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Contents

10/28/2024

What we know
Theory 1: Previous Papas
Theory 1a: Papa III
Theory 1b: Papa II
Theory 1c: Holy Trinity
Theory 2: Secondo’s Son
Theory 3: Jim Defroque�
The Importance of Phantomime
Final Thoughts

Please refer to this key. I just can’t be arsed to keep typing their names:

C – Copia Papa IV

T – Papa III/Terzo

S – Papa II/Secondo

CC – Cardinal Copia

A lot of these theories will feed into each other and overlap therefore they have been difficult to completely categorise. I hope it all makes sense. ☺

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What we already know…

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RITE HERE RITE NOW

If you haven’t seen it already, then I can’t help you with spoiler warnings, it’s been 4 months, sorry.

The ending of RHRN heavily implies that Copia has a twin and that he is taking over as the new Papa, Papa V. We can’t be 100% sure of this, as we have not seen what happens in between Sister Imperator’s death and the silhouette of the new Papa behind the door. So, anything is possible. It could be that there the twin never makes it to be Papa V, and the new guy is just some guy, or maybe a previous guy becomes Papa V.

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Now, let’s get into it….who could Papa V possibly be?

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Theory 1: Previous Papas

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There are many reasons to suspect that one of the previous Papas will make a return as the “new” frontman. Here I will explain the theories in no particular order which are not assigned to a specific Papa.

It is “known” that all the previous Papas are now dead, as their bodies inside caskets could be seen in the ministry. However, Papa Nihil came back from the dead, as did Jesus, so anything in Ghost is possible.

The name Copia meaning “copy” could imply that Copia is the twin of a previous papa. The first being born given the Emeritus name and the other being a spare, a copy. A copy of something usually comes after the original, not before which would fit into the succession.

Terzo and Secondo are allegedly born 3 months apart. We know Papa Nihil was a whore and impregnated multiple women and there is a rumour that T, S and C are all roughly the same age. Sister Imperator could therefore be the mother of either T or S, making one of them Copia’s twin.

We don’t know if the 3 Papas were injected with something to kill them or are just with tranquilizer, putting them in a sedative state.

Lyrically there are hints to a return of somebody, especially in Respite on the Spitalfields. These lyrics directly imply there is a return of someone more corrupt i.e. a previous Papa who is able to tell their side of the story. Tobias himself has also said that the next Papa will be very evil:

The moon in the gutter� Has a story to tell� One day he will come back� From the bowels of hell

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We know that the movie hints to Romulus and Remus being the basis of the twin storyline. There are real “twin” moons that have been named Romulus and Remus. This can all reiterate the theory that a previous Papa is the twin, being the “moon in the gutter”.
CMLS video depicts a pregnant lady with a moon in her belly.

Tobias has said, in an interview with Revolver, that “Anything is possible” when asked about a return of a previous Papa. He often also talks about everything being cyclical and life repeating itself.

In Chapter 16 of the Youtube episodes, Sister informs Copia that “Jesus is coming” and of course, Jesus rose from the dead.

In the movie and trailer, we are told that it is a story “not about death but one of life”, which could be implying revival.

The Phantomime album cover shows us some sort of encased, mummified Papa, which could signify that a Papa has been preserved ready to come back. It is known that Tobias is a big Star Wars nerd. Phantomime cover often reminds me of Han Solo being frozen in carbonite. Importantly, Luke and Leia never sensed that they were twins. The previous Papas theory could be a parallel of this.

The “Escape the Ministry” game has a lot of hints about a return of a Papa, if it is canon. See more on the Phantomime slide.��

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There is a constant motif of the number 3 throughout RHRN.

The movie is literally called Rite Here Rite Now, from Square Hammer, which Terzo sang.

Watcher in The Sky could refer to Terzo as the watcher, implying he is still alive in the ether, as in the videos for Square Hammer, From the Pinnacle to the Pit, a searchlight finds T looking over the city.

There is a theory that Terzo sings Twenties and that is an extension of Mummy Dust, and T appears to hate Trump as he suggested this in one of the rituals. “I’m number one, you’re number two” could be sung by T to Copia.

In Mummy Dust, the lyrics “I was carried on a wolfs back” could feed into the Romulus and Remus theory as they were raised by a wolf.

Terzo and Copia are more likely to be the same age than Secondo and Copia.

Terzo had the shortest run at being Papa, only 2.5 years roughly. It would make sense that Tobias would want to bring him back.

When the bodies of the previous Papas were able to be visited in caskets in the ministry, there were allegedly scratch marks in Terzo's coffin.

The lyric: “Did no one hear the distant thunder?” In ROTS could be related to Cirice�
To the right is a Terzo theory that was written on reddit. I thought it was interesting and wanted to include it in this. ��

Theory 1a: Papa III

Digging deeper on specific theories about Terzo (sexiest ever) coming back and being Papa V/Copia’s twin in no particular order.

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Theory 1b: Papa II

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Similarly, these are my theories about Secondo coming back and becoming “Papa V”/Copia’s twin in no particular order. For me, this is one of the more plausible theories, and even though I am a Terzo stan, I welcome this theory with open arms.

During the Infestissumam era ghost were still a largely unknown band and therefore money was tighter and there were not as many tours, therefore Tobias did not get to try out many outfits for Secondo, so having him return as the next Papa would be a great opportunity.

During RHRN, there is a scene where Sister is talking to Copia, and says “As with all things in life it circulates. Everything that has a beginning has an ending.” which then directly cuts to this image of Secondo in the backdrop. This could be Tobias throwing us off, or it could be a hint of what is to come.
In the design, we can see that Secondo is in the middle, with Nihil holding his head. It could mean that Secondo is Nihil’s favourite…one he would want to bring back.

Tobias often describes Papa II being similar to/inspired by Phantom of the Opera (POTO), and the second (SECONDO) single from Phantomime was that of the same title. Allegedly, according to Escape the Ministry game, Secondo’s favourite band is Iron Maiden and favourite song by them is POTO.

It has been a decade since Secondo last graced us with his presence, therefore it would be a perfect time to bring him back.

There is quite a lot of similarity between Copia’s and Secondo’s face, mainly in the cheeks meaning they could be twins. The OG Copia from the March 2020 ritual also had 2 lines down his nose, similar to S.

There are a lot of references to the Wizard of Oz (I’ll get into that more later) both in RHRN and the lyrics to Respite on the Spitalfields. In the Wizard of Oz, they want to reach the Emerald City. Secondo’s accent colour of his robe/vestment is Emerald.

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Theory 1b continued: Papa II

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All the Secondo merch that is coming out recently (as of September 2024) is either quite telling of what is to come, or it’s Loma Vista trying to throw us off. For example, the S plushie, S rosary. They also love using his face in official merch artwork still.

Zenith was finally released to most countries very recently, for some reason…The 13 Commandments (Spotify playlist in which Zenith is on) artwork also has Secondo on it, pointing at a tablet looking at what we can presume is the order of the Papas. The OG Zenith cover also has Secondo on it, despite being released at the time of Meliora.

The La Mantra Mori lyrics seem important -“You share not the blood of ours” This song really feels like a sacrificing of Secondo, given it is also at the end of the album, with people telling him (maybe the other Papas) that he is not one of them due to not sharing the exact bloodline.

In the short scene in RHRN where we find out Copia is a twin, which showed very quick images/clips such as the Romulus and Remus statue, we are also shown clips from the Year Zero video with a hand reaching out to a window.
In the scene, there is also a clip where a silhouette with horns (I understand that this is from the Dance Macabre video) seems to take the baby away, perhaps Satan himself. In Jigolo Har Megiddo, Secondo sings “I am the son of one below” – could this mean he was taken and raised by Satan? His entire get-up really fits into the evil destroyer of empires vibe.
Additionally, in Jigolo Har Megiddo, he says “I am the way, and you invited me to stay,[….]You see through me what lies beyond” – this could potentially be seen as S will return.

Copia’s twin appears to have blonde hair, and we don’t know what Secondo’s hair is like because he is bald/shaved it.

At the end of RHRN, we see Frater Imperator in the ministry. Behind him, are two windows, that look like a “II” which could be a slight reference to S. There are also 2 windows in the door that the new Papa walks towards.�

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Theory 1b continued again: Papa II

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I stated it in the first slide about previous Papas, but the lyric “one day he will come back from the bowels of hell” really makes me think of Secondo, given he was the most evil, menacing Papa. These specific lyrics also could echo the lyrics in Idolatrine, “that the bowels of the earth hides the pits of hell”. Overall, ROTS implies that someone evil has destroyed the empire, and we know that Infestissumam means “the most dangerous one”. Infestissumam is about empires being destroyed, and we know that empires are built and then destroyed.

In Monstrance Clock, it sounds like Secondo has been sacrificed, “come together for Lucifers son”. There is also a clock in the RHRN graphics. This may be a bit of a reach. If Papa II is crucified and reborn again/having a second(o) coming, this could make sense. Also, Secondo covered the song Crucified…..perhaps he knew his own fate.

Rats! On The Road tour poster has Secondo in the background.

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Theory 1c: The Holy Trinity

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Basically I really don’t have any theories for the idea that Primo is coming back because he is old and terrifying and we don’t want him. BUT…�
I do have a theory that somehow all the spirits of the previously dead Papas have all come together to avenge themselves and are now all together in a Previous Papa’s body, hence The Holy Trinity.

All 3 of their bodies were preserved and contained so that everyone could see them.

In Pro Memoria, it lowkey sounds like many Papa’s whispering togther, almost spooking Copia out, threateningly reminding him of his inevitable death.

Tbh I don’t have a lot to go on with this, but it was just an idea and I’ve forgotten where I was going with it….

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Theory 2: Secondo’s Son

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There is generally SO much imagery within Ghost which shows Secondo holding a baby or generally just babies around the Infestissumam era.

As mentioned, in the very quick twin birth scene in RHRN we see a devil silhouette potentially taking a baby away from what we think is Sister Imperator. Could this guy actually be a younger Secondo and he raises the baby all by himself?�
The Year Zero video kind of implies he has a son, furthermore this could be the kid in the Cirice music video.

In this pic we see Secondo holding twins, one with very evil eyes. We have been hinted that the new Papa is going to be more evil. Could this be the twin?

Once again we return to the Monstrance Clock lyrics “come together for Lucifer’s son”. If Papa II is the most evil one; the devil, Lucifer, then his son would be the antichrist which would fit into the antichrist theory that has been thrown around for a while now.

There is an idea that perhaps Jim Defroque is the other twin that Secondo raised and he was so against him that he became a vicar, albeit a corrupt one. Then he got so corrupt that he is now an evil Papa. Which takes us to our next theory…

GHOST 'Infestissumam II’ by Zbigniew Bielak

I think this theory is definitely possible, just wish I had more to go on, in terms of theories!

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Jim Defroque could be Copia’s twin since no one actually says that Copia’s twin is going to be the next papa, we just assumed that.

Jim Defroque is already a corrupt priest so wouldn’t be hard for him to become a satanic priest

Tobias has spoken about the mask and how it can be uncomfortable, becoming Jim Defroque might be easier without the mask

Jim could abandon his fake religion in favor for working with the clergy to regain a following and carry on his preaching but this time for a different cause.

In the weird Download Festival RHRN hint drop thingies (wtf do you call them?!) Jims face kind of turned into a Papa….

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Theory 3: Jim DeFroque

*coughs* I don’t enjoy this theory very much tbh

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As I have I already mentioned, I believe that the cover of Phantomime (and to an extent, Impera) shows an encased, preserved previous Papa (or some other guy) ready to be released again to the world.
I think this fits into the Wizard of Oz connotations that there is some robotic evil Papa who is being controlled or maybe controlling the clergy??

Phantomime holds a lot of importance as according to lore in the Escape the Ministry game, each song is representative of the Papas beforehand, please see the very messy pictures from the game below. The game is still available to play online, just Google it.

Additionally, all the songs lyrics have connotations of the Papas and what is to come. For example, We Don’t Need Another Hero could imply we now need someone more evil.

Phantomime was due to be released on Acension day, May 18^th – this day commemorates the Christian belief that Jesus ascended to heaven after rising from the grave. It also celebrates the passing of the Holy Spirit from Jesus to his followers

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The Importance of Phantomime

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The character of Cardinal Copia has always struck me as odd and childlike. The tricycle. The juiceboxes. The silliness. It seems that the clergy have kept him young. It was like he was the puppet of the clergy. The song “I’m a Marionette” could be foreshadowing this.

It is implied that Copia (other than Psaltarian) is the only one who can see the ghosts of Nihil and later, Sister. Could it be that everything that happened in the movie was just a dream for Copia?

We can already grasp from the Wizard of Oz annotations in ROTS and at the end of RHRN there are lots of hints to everything being a ruse and it seems throughout Copias time, he was being controlled by the clergy.

Were they always preparing for a higher power? And taking instructions from this higher power? Could it be that Nihil and Sister weren’t ready to release the twin to take over the world, but now the twin is ready? The one who has been encased and preserved like on the Phantomime cover? Ie, a previous, evil Papa…Papa II? Or maybe the baby grew up in the clergy in secret?�
Psaltarian can often be seen reminding Copia of how long he has left, and growing impatient perhaps he had a wicked plan all along, to kill Copia to make room for the new guy. Perhaps Sister gave him an ultimatum, saying “its either him or me” and bargains with him begging for Copia to become the head of the clergy. It would make sense as to why she didn’t tell Copia that she was ill. And, the end of Witch Image we hear “like a mother would save her own child from digging a grave”.

Eclipses are a very important motif throughout RHRN, at the end credits there is an eclipse and during Jesus’ crucifixion it is said an eclipse takes place.

It is said that Copia is to do 150 shows but he has only done 129. Maybe he will come back as Frater for more before Papa V fully takes over?

“Romulus and Remus grew up and helped overthrow the king who had ordered their death. They wanted to build their own city along the Tiber River where their basket had washed ashore. They disagreed about where it should be, and Romulus killed Remus during their quarrels. Romulus built the city of Rome on one of the seven hills along the Tiber - the Palatine hill - and lived a long life as king of Rome.” Could it be that one of these twin Papas end up killing the other? Time shall soon tell….

Final Thoughts about stuff in no apparent order

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