How do Roman Catholics explain their change in Eschatology? Gregory I, Pope from 590-605, predicted that the end of the world was imminent in a letter he wrote to Ethelbert, a European monarch. He advised "Further, we also wish your Majesty to know, as we have learned from the words of Almighty God in Holy Scriptures, that the end of the present world is already near and that the unending Kingdom of the Saints is approaching. As this same end of the world is drawing nigh, many unusual things will happen - climatic changes, terrors from heaven... All these things are not to come in our own days, but they will all follow upon our times." (Bernard McGinn, Visions of the End-Apocalyptic Traditions in the Middle Ages, Page 64, Published 1979)



Pope Innocent III (died 1216) predicted that the world would end 666 years after the rise of Islam in 618.
How do Roman Catholics explain their change in Eschatology?

The answer is quite simply that the Church has not changed her thoughts on eschatology.

Even within the church, the subject of the Antichrist and the end times is somewhat opinion based as well subject to speculation to say the least.

Two fundamental things that we take into consideration here. One is that no one knows when the end of the world will be. The other is that each (Catholic) generation (popes included) have given their *own personal interpretations and thoughts on this said issue. No pope can teach the he knows for a fact when the end of the world will come about.

Pope Gregory simply gave his personal views on it, when he wrote that he thought the end of the world would occur. (We must also recall that Pope Gregory the Great lived through the Roman Plague of 590). Other popes have done the same. The Church Fathers have expressed their views on it, as well as countless saints and Catholic theologians.

The Church can not determine when the eschatological events will occur because the Scriptures tell us it is impossible.


  No One Knows That Day and Hour
  
  36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son,[a] but the Father only. 37 For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. - Matthew 24:36-44
  
  The Day of the Lord
  
  5 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers,[a] you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. - 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3
  
  10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies[a] will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. - 2 Peter 3:10
  
  3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. - Revelation 3:3


Nevertheless, some Pontiffs believed that certain event were (are) pertaining to the end times or the antichrist, but that in itself simply remains a personal reflection on the subject.

Even Pope St. John Paul II once stated that we are now nearing the final confrontation. But again, this is not an infallible statement, but rather his personal belief on the matter. Church teachings have not changed, just the personal opinions of various popes, theologians and saints!


  “We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has gone through. I do not think that wide circles of American society or wide circles of the Christian community realize this fully. We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel versus the anti-Gospel.


“We must be prepared to undergo great trials in the not-too-distant future; trials that will require us to be ready to give up even our lives, and a total gift of self to Christ and for Christ. Through your prayers and mine, it is possible to alleviate this tribulation, but it is no longer possible to avert it. . . .How many times has the renewal of the Church been brought about in blood! It will not be different this time.” - The Final Confrontation

Prophecy is usually recognized as true while the thing prophesized have run their course. The anti-church and anti-gospel of Pope John Paul II should be seen as something the against the Church and against the Gospels and not as a counterfeit church or a counterfeit gospel, although the Antichrist will no doubt teach a false gospel of sorts.

For more information about this topic, one may pursue my following article:


What is the Catholic understanding of Antichrist?