The Greatest Cipher System of All-Time
December 17, 2025
Fr. John Riccardo
Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised previously through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, the gospel about his Son, descended from David, according to the flesh, but established as Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness through resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we have received the grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the Gentiles, among whom are you also, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ; to all the beloved of God in Rome, called to be holy. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:1-7).
In these introductory verses to the Church in Rome, Paul tells us that the good news of King Jesus’ victory over the powers of Death and Sin had been promised previously through the prophets. There are scores of prophecies about what and how God is going to defeat these cosmic powers, but none of them just come out and say “God is going to become a man and rescue His creation.” We might be inclined to wonder why the prophecies are often so mysterious and confusing? Part of that answer has to do with the fact that a war is going on. That is to say, there’s an enemy force holding the human race enslaved, and they’re not just going to give up. Writing about this war and the mystery of the rescue mission Jesus came on, C.S. Lewis once said: “Enemy occupied territory; that’s what this world is. And the story of Christianity is the story of how the rightful King has landed, landed in disguise.”
The Dominican scholar Serge-Thomas Bonino reflects on this “disguise” in a wonderful and worthwhile book Angels and Demons: A Catholic Introduction (not to be confused with another book of the same name!). Drawing on the writings of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Bonino discusses how the demons were aware that God had a plan to reclaim what was rightfully His. However, they were left in the dark as to how that was going to happen. “Since Adam’s fall,” Bonino writes, “the demons must have suspected that God was preparing something like a major coup. Yet, despite the prophecies, the modalities of this redemption [rescue mission] largely escaped them.” An analogy might help here.
In World War II, the Germans used a cipher system called Enigma, which had been developed in 1918. This cipher system coded and decoded messages that were being sent across various fronts in the war. The system was insanely complex. There were 159 million million million possible settings for every message! Each day, at midnight, the cipher key was changed, meaning anyone trying to crack the code had to start all over again from scratch. Largely to gross errors by German operators, the Enigma did in fact get cracked and shortened the war by many years.
The demons, who were literally hell-bent on keeping us captive, were relentlessly trying to “crack the code” of the various Old Testament prophecies. God, however, is much more creative than the Enigma machine and He doesn’t commit gross errors like the Germans did. The prophecies were only intelligible after it was too late, that is, after the demonic forces and the powers of Sin and Death had been defeated. The demons, after all, never suspected that God — the majestic, all-powerful, Lord of heaven and earth — would become a creature for the sake of His creatures. Hell simply does not know the language of love and humility. As Bonino writes, “The scandal of the Incarnation worked thoroughly against the demons. It was only gradually, compelled by events like the Resurrection and Ascension, that the demons were led to recognize the divinity of Jesus Christ.”
And all of this took place for you and me! Who is this God we adore and worship and praise?! And who are we that He should do such unfathomable things to rescue an often rebellious, ungrateful creature? May these final days of Advent be filled with ever greater awe and wonder as we prepare to celebrate our rescue!
ACTS XXIX Prayer Intentions
December 2025
For our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, that the Father would clothe him with courage and ardent charity, so that his shepherding may boldly lead the Church to the renewal and rescue God desires for His family in these days.
That as we close out the jubilee year of hope late this month, each of us will be ever more filled with this supernatural virtue, and be even more intentional about showing an anxious and watching world who God is and invite them into his family.
For our mission in the Diocese of Beaumont, TX, that our time with the presbyterate would be marked by the power of the Gospel, becoming an occasion of rescue, deep renewal, and lasting transformation for them and the people they shepherd.
For those who will join us from across the country for a Leadership Immersive, that the Father would rekindle in us His vision for the Church, restore our identity as His sons and daughters, and send us back into the world to continue His work of recreation.
For all prayer, planning, and preparation for The Jesus Conference: Mobilizing the Church for the World He Loves, that the Holy Spirit would lead, direct, and inspire every decision, so that this gathering becomes a catalyst for the rescue, renewal and transformation of the human family.
For Fr. John Riccardo, the ACTS XXIX missionaries, and our families, that this Advent and Christmas would overwhelm us anew with wonder at the rescue God has accomplished in Jesus, and that we may become radiant witnesses of hope to a weary and crying world.
For our Episcopal Advisory Council, Board of Directors, and faithful partners in mission, that this holy season would be for them a fresh encounter with Jesus the Rescuer - healing, strengthening, and anointing them for the bold mission entrusted to us in these glorious days.
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