gematria

Assigning numerical value to letters. Whereas the world in general now uses the Arabic numerals: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9, and the later added 0, this was not always so. In Hebrew & Greek each letter of the alphabet is also a number.
In Latin, only certain letters are numbers.

HEBREW:
Alef=1
Bet=2
Gimel=3
Dalet=4
He=5
Waw=6
Zayin=7
Hhet=8
Tet=9
Yod=10
Kaf=20
Lamed=30
Mem=40
Nun=50
Samech=60
Ayin=70
Pe/Fe=80
Tsadde=90
Qof=100
Resh=200
Shin=300
Thau=400

GREEK:
Alpha=1
Beta=2
Gamma=3
Delta=4
Epsilon=5
Zeta=6
Eta=7
Theta=8
Iota=9
Kappa=10
Lamda=20
Mu=30
Nu=40
Xi=50
Omicron=60
Pi=70
Rho=80
Sigma=90
Tau=100
Upsilon=200
Phi=300
Chi=400
PSI=500
Omega=600

LATIN:
I=1
V=5
X=10
L=50
C=100
D=500
M=1,000

Gematria is used for a variety of Mystical & Religious purposes. One is to determine the "number of the name of the Beast" of REVELATION 13:18.

Protestants used to say that the Beast would be a Pope, since one of the titles for the Pope is

VICARIVS FILII DEI Latin for
in place of the Son of God

V= 5
I= 1
C=100
A= 0
R= 0
I= 1
V= 5
S= 0

112

F= 0
I= 1
L= 50
I= 1
I= 1

53

D=500
E= 0
I= 1

501

112 + 53 + 501 =666

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