A 71-year-old Australian preacher named Brian Leonard Golightly Marshall, who lives on Toogoom, Queensland, is raising not a few eyebrows for claiming to be Jesus Christ and calling Pope Francis as the "anti-Christ."
According to the Daily Mail Australia, Marshall even said that his image is similar to the face imprinted in the holy relic, the famous Shroud of Turin, and that when he wrote to then Pope Benedict XVI about it, Marshall claimed that Benedict "supported" his claim but retired before he could make an official proclamation.
"You see, many days ago Mr. Brian Marshall sent me photographs of him and the Most Holy Shroud of Turin — he actually looks so much like that of the Holy Image on the Shroud," the alleged letter from the former pope reads. "There is no other explanation. He is simply the Lord Jesus Christ Almighty! I was so penetrated with love and compassion from God that I requested the photo I saw to be put in a place of honour somewhere. He is the Most Royal Man Alive, The King of Kings... The Messiah, Almighty and Everlasting."
However, there is no record of Pope Benedict ever mentioning Marshall, and there is no way for the letter to be verified as well. Marshall claimed that Pope Benedict already made plans to announce him as the second Jesus Christ in March 2013, but the attempt was thwarted by Pope Francis, whom he called the "anti-Christ."
While many refuse to believe Marshall's claim, he was able to convince one American man, who left his wife, children, and grandchildren to live in Australia with Marshall as his follower.
The follower's son-in-law even said: "He believes this guy, Brian Leonard Golightly Marshall, is Jesus Christ. He told his wife that he's going to go to Australia to be with him. Leaving her and his kids and grand-kids to go be with this guy. My mother-in-law and him have fought about this several times in the past. She doesn't buy into it. He's said he's going to leave before and it didn't happen. But it sounds like it really is going to this time. They had a realtor come over and everything."
