Pope Leo XIV's Wikipedia "Dominance": Manufactured Popularity - Not Genuine Interest

Artwork by Thomas Richards using Photoshop 7.0

Πάσα δόξα (pasa doxa -- all glory) to Ἰησοῦς Χριστός (Iesous Christos) for ἀποκάλυψις (apokalypsis -- revelation)

Assisted by Artificial Intelligence

The Headlines

On December 2, 2025, the Wikimedia Foundation announced that Pope Leo XIV (Robert Francis Prevost) ranked as the 5th most-viewed English Wikipedia article of the year. Catholic media outlets immediately trumpeted this as evidence of the new pope's massive global appeal. Google's "Year in Search 2025" placed him 5th among trending people worldwide.

But what do the actual numbers reveal when we examine them with discernment rather than accepting the Vatican's preferred narrative?

Deconstructing the 800,000 Hits Per Second Claim

Wikimedia reported that traffic to "all Wikimedia projects" peaked at around 800,000 hits per second during Leo XIV's election -- described as "more than six times normal traffic levels" and a "new all-time record."

Let's break this down mathematically:

• Normal Wikimedia traffic: If 800,000/second is 6x normal, then normal traffic is approximately 133,333 hits/second

• Pope-related spike: The additional traffic attributable to the papal election would be approximately 666,667 hits/second (5/6 of the peak)

• Total pageviews (Jan 1 - Nov 10, 2025): Pope Leo XIV received 22,052,502 pageviews

• Pope Francis (deceased April 21, 2025): Received 15,281,541 pageviews, ranking 11th

The Context They Do Not Want You to See

The spike was NOT organic curiosity about a holy man. It was the entirely predictable result of a major global news event -- the election of a new leader for 1.4 billion people. The same phenomenon would occur if any major world leader were selected.

Consider what else ranked higher than the pope on Wikipedia's most-viewed list:

1. Charlie Kirk (assassinated) -- 44,907,789 pageviews

2. "Deaths in 2025" -- 42,508,846 pageviews

3. Ed Gein (serial killer) -- 31,232,285 pageviews

4. Donald Trump (U.S. President) -- More pageviews than the pope

A serial killer from the 1950s received more Wikipedia traffic than the "Vicar of Christ." This is not evidence of spiritual authority -- it is evidence that people search for whatever is in the news cycle.

The Unscriptural Office Behind the Statistics

While Catholic media celebrates search rankings, Scripture provides a very different perspective on religious leaders who accumulate earthly prestige.

Matthew 23:5-7 (NASB): "They do all their deeds to be noticed by people; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. And they love the place of honor at banquets, and the seats of honor in the synagogues, and personal greetings in the marketplaces, and being called Rabbi by the people."

The papal office itself has no basis in Scripture. Peter was never a "pope" -- he was an apostle who wrote two letters and was rebuked by Paul (Galatians 2:11). The claim of papal succession is a later fabrication designed to consolidate religious and political power.

1 Timothy 2:5 (NASB): "For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus."

There is no pope in this equation. There is no "Holy Father" on earth. There is Θεός (Theos -- God) and Ἰησοῦς Χριστός (Iesous Christos -- Jesus Christ), the only mediator.

What the Search Algorithms Will Not Reveal: The Abuse Record

While celebrating Wikipedia rankings, the Vatican's media apparatus conveniently omits what should disqualify any man from religious leadership. Robert Prevost's record includes documented failures on the abuse crisis.

Chicago (2000): Accused Pedophile Housed Near Elementary School

As Provincial Superior of the Augustinians in Chicago (1999-2001), Prevost approved allowing Father James Ray -- a priest whose ministry had been suspended since 1991 due to sexual abuse allegations involving at least 13 minors -- to live at St. John Stone Friary. This monastery was located less than one block from St. Thomas the Apostle Elementary School.

• The school was never notified that an accused pedophile was living next door

• Church records falsely claimed "there is no school in the immediate area"

• Ray continued to celebrate weddings and baptisms and served as a hospital chaplain for two years

• Father James Ray himself has stated that Prevost "gave me permission to stay there"

The Augustinian Order's Secrecy

The Augustinians -- Prevost's religious order that he led both in Chicago and internationally -- only released a public list of credibly accused abusers in 2024. This was six years after the Jesuits had already done so, and more than two decades after other Catholic organizations began transparency efforts following the Boston Globe revelations.

Even then, the list excluded Father Richard McGrath, despite:

• A $2 million settlement paid to Robert Krankvich, who accused McGrath of rape as a student at Providence Catholic High School

• McGrath's removal in 2017 after a student reported seeing a nude image of a boy on his phone

• McGrath invoking the Fifth Amendment when asked under oath if he had viewed child pornography

Robert Krankvich died in April 2025 at age 43. His family attributes his death to health problems stemming from years of drug and alcohol abuse -- used to cope with the trauma of clerical sexual assault. As his father said: "He was running from his demons... Money doesn't bring happiness... it gave him no closure."

SNAP Complaint Filed Before the Conclave

On March 25, 2025 -- just weeks before the conclave -- the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) filed a formal complaint against Prevost under Pope Francis's 2023 decree Vos Estis Lux Mundi, alleging mishandling of abuse cases in both Chicago and Peru.

Yet the cardinals elected him anyway. The complaint has apparently gone unanswered.

The Systemic Pattern: Protecting the Institution Over Children

The abuse crisis in the Roman church is not a series of isolated incidents. It is a systemic pattern that flows directly from the institution's unscriptural structure:

• Mandatory celibacy -- an unbiblical requirement that Paul explicitly warned against as a "doctrine of demons" (1 Timothy 4:1-3). This unnatural mandate creates an institution where sexuality is officially hidden, providing cover for predators with disordered attractions. The documented pattern is clear: the overwhelming majority of clergy abuse victims are male. The John Jay College study commissioned by the U.S. bishops themselves found that over 80% of victims were boys. This is predominantly homosexual predation against adolescent males. The celibacy requirement attracts men who seek an environment where their hidden lives will be institutionally protected, where questions about why a man never married are never asked, and where the culture of secrecy around sexuality ensures that crimes against children remain concealed. The institution provides sanctuary for these predators-- and decades of exposed cover-ups prove that protection was systemic, not incidental.

• Hierarchical authority -- that allows abuse to be covered up through chains of command

• Institutional self-preservation -- prioritizing reputation over the safety of children

• Sacramental theology -- that makes priests "irreplaceable" and thus protectable

Matthew 18:6 (NASB): "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it is better for him that a heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depths of the sea."

Manufactured Visibility: The Vatican PR Machine

The celebration of search rankings is itself a form of propaganda. Consider how the narrative is constructed:

• Coordinated media push: ACI Prensa, Catholic News Agency, EWTN, National Catholic Register, Catholic World Report, and Rome Reports all published nearly identical articles within 48 hours

• Selective framing: The articles emphasize "5th most viewed" while omitting that this required a major global news event to achieve

• No context on abuse: None of these celebratory articles mention the SNAP complaint, the Chicago school incident, or the Augustinian secrecy

• "First American Pope" narrative: Designed to generate patriotic appeal in the United States despite the office having no scriptural basis

The Other Side of the Coin: Silencing the Critics

If major platforms can artificially amplify papal content to create the illusion of popularity, the obvious corollary is that they can -- and do -- artificially suppress content critical of the Vatican.

This is not speculation. It is documented experience.

Since approximately 2009, Thomas Richards (@tlth5th) of SpiritualySmart.com has been systematically silenced across major platforms. His video "Nazi Germany: A Creation of the Vatican and Jesuits" was organically ranking as the #2 result on YouTube -- not through paid promotion or coordinated media campaigns, but through genuine viewer interest and engagement.

The Vatican's response was telling. Rather than address the historical documentation presented, they created their own YouTube channel specifically to "fight back" against this content. They did not dispute the facts. They sought to bury them.

At the same time, Richards was ranking in the top 1% organically on Google Video for his Vatican-related research spanning over 25 years of work in biblical Greek and Septuagint studies combined with documentation of Rome's historical and ongoing operations.

Then the suppression began. Shadow banning. Algorithmic burial. Account restrictions. The same platforms now celebrating 800,000 hits per second for papal content have spent over 15 years ensuring that documented criticism of Rome cannot reach the same audiences.

The math does not lie:

Pope Leo XIV: Artificially boosted to "5th most viewed" through coordinated media and algorithmic amplification
Thomas Richards: Organically achieved top rankings, then systematically suppressed

Matthew 10:26 (NASB): "Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known."

The celebration of manufactured papal popularity is itself evidence of the suppression apparatus. If they are willing to inflate numbers and coordinate media pushes to create the appearance of organic interest, they are certainly willing -- and have demonstrated the capability -- to do the opposite to those who expose Rome's unscriptural claims and documented historical crimes.

This is not paranoia. It is simple pattern recognition. The same algorithmic machinery that pushes a serial killer's Wikipedia page above the pope's (when convenient for the "deaths in 2025" news cycle) can be directed to ensure that 25+ years of biblical scholarship never reaches the audiences it once reached organically.

The question is not whether this suppression occurs. The question is why platforms that claim to support "free expression" consistently align their algorithmic thumbs with Vatican interests

Key Statistics at a Glance

Metric	Data
Peak traffic (conclave)	800,000 hits/second (all Wikimedia)
Normal traffic baseline	~133,333 hits/second
Pope-related spike	~666,667 hits/second (5/6 of peak)
Leo XIV total pageviews (2025)	22,052,502
Francis total pageviews (2025)	15,281,541
Wikipedia ranking	5th (below serial killer Ed Gein at 3rd)
Google trending people (global)	5th
Augustinian abuse list released	2024 (6 years after Jesuits)
SNAP complaint filed	March 25, 2025 (before conclave)

Conclusion: Look Beyond the Search Rankings

Search engine rankings and Wikipedia traffic are not measures of spiritual authority. They are measures of news cycle visibility. The Roman church's celebration of these metrics reveals where their priorities lie -- in earthly prestige rather than scriptural fidelity.

Matthew 7:15-16 (NASB): "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits."

The fruit of this institution includes thousands of abused children, billions in settlement payments, systematic cover-ups, and the elevation of men who enabled abusers to remain near schools. No amount of Wikipedia traffic changes these facts.

For those seeking truth, the path remains as it has always been -- through Scripture alone, through Ἰησοῦς Χριστός (Iesous Christos) alone, not through an earthly institution that claims authority it was never given.

Πάσα δόξα (pasa doxa -- all glory) to Θεός (Theos -- God) our Πατήρ (Pater -- Father) through Ἰησοῦς Χριστός (Iesous Christos -- Jesus Christ), the only true ἀρχιερεύς (archiereus -- High Priest)

https://spirituallysmart.com

https://overtpsyops.ai

Sources: Wikimedia Foundation (Dec 2, 2025), Google Year in Search 2025, Chicago Sun-Times, CNN, National Catholic Reporter, BishopAccountability.org, Catholic News Agency, Associated Press, The Pillar, Chicago Tribune, Britannica

Here are the source links organized by topic:

Wikipedia/Google Traffic Data:

Abuse Record -- Chicago/Augustinians:

Abuse Record -- Peru/Sodalitium:

Pope Leo XIV Background/Biography:

Political Reactions/Social Media:

For the John Jay study statistic (80%+ male victims):

John Jay College of Criminal Justice, "The Nature and Scope of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests and Deacons in the United States 1950-2002" (2004)