April 1, 2026

Fr. John Riccardo

No one can enter a strong man’s house to steal his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house (Mark 3:27).

The ruler of this world is coming for Me. He has no power over Me (John 14:30).

The annual celebration of Liberation Day, not only for the human race but the entire universe, is upon us. To help us better meditate on what Jesus was doing in His passion, death and resurrection, here are some excerpts from a few of our ancestors in the faith from years ago. May the Holy Spirit help us to appropriately celebrate all that King Jesus has done for us!

“The cross is honorable because it is both the sign of God’s suffering and the trophy of his victory. It stands for his suffering because on it he freely suffered unto death. But it is also his trophy because it was the means by which the devil was wounded and death conquered; the barred gates of hell were smashed, and the cross became the one common salvation of the whole world.” – Andrew of Crete

“Since the hostile power was not going to enter into relations with a God present unveiled, or endure His appearance in heavenly glory, therefore God, in order to render Himself accessible to him who demanded of Him a ransom for us, concealed Himself under the veil of our nature, in order that, as happens with greedy fishes, together with the bait of the flesh the hook of the Godhead might also be swallowed, and so, through Life passing over into death, and the Light arising in the darkness, that which is opposed to Life and Light might be brought to naught.” – Gregory of Nyssa

“But since God is both invincible and magnanimous, He showed His magnanimity in correcting man, and in proving all men, as we have said; but through the Second Man He bound the strong one, and spoiled his goods, and annihilated death, bringing life to man who had become subject to death. For Adam had become the devil’s possession, and the devil held him under his power, by having wrongfully practiced deceit upon him, and by the offer of immortality made him subject to death. For by promising that they should be as gods, which did not lie in his power, he worked death in them. Wherefore he who had taken man captive was himself taken captive by God, and man who had been taken captive was set free from the bondage of condemnation.” – Irenaeus

“The devil was deluded by the death of the Lord...for through the visible mortality of his flesh, Christ – whom the devil was trying to kill – concealed his divinity, like a snare in which he might entangle him like an unwise bird by a clever trick...The devil, although he attacked the flesh of the humanity in Christ that was evident, was captured as if by the fishhook of his divinity that was lying hidden. For there is in Christ the fishhook of divinity; the food, however, is the flesh; the fishing line is the genealogy that is recited by the Gospel. Holding this fishing line truly is God the Father.” – Isidore of Seville

“His flesh was set before that voracious, gaping dragon as bait to provoke him: flesh that would be deadly for the dragon, for it would utterly destroy him by the power of the Godhead hidden within it. For human nature, however, his flesh was to be a remedy since the power of the Godhead in it would restore human nature to its original grace.” – Maximus the Confessor

“I, he says, am the Christ. I am the one who destroyed death, and triumphed over the enemy, and trampled Hades under foot, and bound the strong one, and carried off man to the heights of heaven, I, he says, am the Christ.

“Therefore, come, all families of men, you who have been befouled with sins, and receive forgiveness for your sins. I am your forgiveness, I am the passover of your salvation, I am the lamb which was sacrificed for you, I am your ransom, I am your light, I am your savior, I am your resurrection, I am your king, I am leading you up to the heights of heaven, I will show you the eternal Father, I will raise you up by my right hand. This is the one who made the heavens and the earth, and who in the beginning created man, who was proclaimed through the law and prophets, who became human via the virgin, who was hanged upon a tree, who was buried in the earth, who was resurrected from the dead, and who ascended to the heights of heaven, who sits at the right hand of the Father, who has authority to judge and to save everything, through whom the Father created everything from the beginning of the world to the end of the age.

“This is the alpha and the omega. This is the beginning and the end-an indescribable beginning and an incomprehensible end. This is the Christ. This is the king. This is Jesus. This is the general. This is the Lord. This is the one who rose up from the dead. This is the one who sits at the right hand of the Father.” – Melito of Sardis

“Whither does he go, whither does he descend, he who cannot be held by death? What is the reason, what the manner, what the purpose for his descent into Hell? Perhaps he goes down to bring up Adam, our condemned fellow-servant. Yes, surely he goes to seek the first-formed man like a lost sheep. Doubtless he wishes to visit even those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death. Doubtless he goes to loose from their bonds captive Adam and his fellow-prisoner Eve, he who is at once their son and God. So let us descend with him, let us assemble with him, let us hasten, let us skip, let us escort him, let us raise a shout, let us hurry, that we may see God’s reconciliation with men, and the gracious Master’s release of the condemned.”

“Let us then make haste and journey in mind to Hades, that we may see how there at last, he masters with masterly might the most mighty master and tyrant, and with his brilliant lightning, as with a whole army, effortlessly subdues the ranks of that immortal infantry; Christ the Door having first burst open the exitless doors in the midst, and shattered the woodless gates of bronze by the wood of the Cross; by the nails having broken and sundered the age-old iron bars, by the bonds of his hands having dissolved the indissoluble bonds like wax, and by the spear in his divine side having pierced through the fleshless heart of the tyrant. There did he break the strength of the bow, when on the bow of the Cross, he stretched out the sinews of his divine arms like bowstrings. Therefore if thou followest Christ in silence, thou wilt presently see where he bound the tyrant, where he hung his head aloft, how he razed his dungeon and led out the prisoners, how he trampled the serpent, and where he displayed his head, how he freed Adam and raised up Eve, how he broke down the middle wall, where he condemned the cruel dragon, how he set up invincible trophies, where he put Death to death, how he spoiled corruption, and restored man to his primal dignity.

“Then the Master’s forces shouted to them in reply, saying: ‘Would ye learn who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty, and powerful, and invincible in battle. This is he who thrust you out and banished you from the vaults of heaven, O ye miserable, criminal tyrants! .. This is he who by the Cross openly put you to scorn, triumphed over you, and mortally wounded you. This is he who bound you in chains, and cast you into the dark abyss. This is he who shall expel and destroy you in the eternal fire of Gehenna. So do not dally, do not tarry, but hurry, and send forth those whom until now you have cruelly swallowed up; for your dominion is now abolished, your tyranny is now ceased, your insolence is miserably quashed, your arrogance is brought to an end, your strength is trampled on and destroyed.’” – Epiphanius

Dear Friends,

As we draw near to this Sacred Triduum, we invite you to enter these holy days with us in the spirit of prayer, especially for our priests, who will soon renew their promises at the Chrism Mass. On Holy Thursday, we remember with extraordinary gratitude the gift of the Holy Eucharist and the gift of the priesthood, two profound expressions of Christ’s love for His Church. In this light, we want to share a presentation given by Fr. John this past November entitled, “Priesthood: The Unspoken Crisis, Why Praying for Priests Matters.” If you have the opportunity to watch it, we hope it will encourage you to pray more intentionally and evermore faithfully for the priests who serve us so generously. You can access the talk he re. Thank you for your continued support and prayers for us at ACTS XXIX. Know that we are praying for you, especially in these sacred days. May God bless you!

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