340 years later, in 2017, a team of computer scientists based at the LUDUM Science Center in Catania, Italy, managed to unravel the mystery. They used a decryption program that they found on the dark web. (Of course! They found a translator on the dark web. Not a surprise. I would have been surprised if they said they found it in the Bible. LOL. 😉)
*** “The scientists thought Sister Maria had perhaps created the code using a blend of existing alphabets. And thanks to her years of exposure to religious scripture, the nun had been a skilled linguist with knowledge of both ancient and modern languages. So it was that the experts’ theory proved to be right.”
A lot of it was just incoherent babbling. But some of the sentences formed specific thoughts. Evidently, IF she had written or spoken those words in plain language, she would have been accused of heresy and quite possibly burned at the stake. Now that they know what the letter said, using an understanding of modern psychiatric medicine, mental health professionals have written Sister Maria off as a schizophrenic. It wasn't The Devil's handwriting, it was her own.
REFERENCE: “In 1676 A Possessed Nun Wrote A Message From The Devil. Now The Spooky Letter Has Been Translated | Scientific Mirror” By Richard Arghiris, Nov 16 2021 ~ https://web.archive.org/web/20220219182310/https://scientificmirror.com/s/1676-possessed-nun-message-devil-letter-translated?as=799&bdk=0 (archived copy saved on the Wayback Machine)
*** “The scientists thought Sister Maria had perhaps created the code using a blend of existing alphabets. And thanks to her years of exposure to religious scripture, the nun had been a skilled linguist with knowledge of both ancient and modern languages. So it was that the experts’ theory proved to be right.”
A lot of it was just incoherent babbling. But some of the sentences formed specific thoughts. Evidently, IF she had written or spoken those words in plain language, she would have been accused of heresy and quite possibly burned at the stake. Now that they know what the letter said, using an understanding of modern psychiatric medicine, mental health professionals have written Sister Maria off as a schizophrenic. It wasn't The Devil's handwriting, it was her own.
REFERENCE: “In 1676 A Possessed Nun Wrote A Message From The Devil. Now The Spooky Letter Has Been Translated | Scientific Mirror” By Richard Arghiris, Nov 16 2021 ~ https://web.archive.org/web/20220219182310/https://scientificmirror.com/s/1676-possessed-nun-message-devil-letter-translated?as=799&bdk=0 (archived copy saved on the Wayback Machine)
This article is fascinating to read. For some reason, after finishing the detailed account of Sister Maria, the article writer decided that, for contrast and comparison, the story of Saint Bernadette, a teenage girl who claims to have had visions of the “Immaculate Conception”, Mary, the mother of Jesus, should be told as the conclusion of the matter. He seemed to think that Bernadette's story was much more intriguing than Sister Maria's.
Below are a few excerpts from the article. It's a lengthy article, but the excerpts help you get the gist. (Bold letters added for "effect.")
"The nun awoke from her terrifying demonic state and found herself soaked in ink. She looked down. A bizarre letter had come into her room during the night. What did it say? Who was it from? She didn’t know. Yet the letter was covered in mysterious symbols, and that led to only one explanation. Satan himself had written the message…Yes, one day in 1676, the Devil took control of the nun’s body – or so she claimed – and wrote a diabolical message. ...... it wasn’t the first time Satan had apparently called at a convent. ...And over the ensuing centuries, many code-breakers tried to crack the supposedly Satanic language. But it wasn’t until 2017 that anyone made any real progress. ...Yes, in that year, a team of computer scientists based at the LUDUM Science Center in Catania managed to break the code. Founded in 1969, the privately funded institution normally collaborates with educational and research organizations. But in this case, the group went to some shadowy places in the name of unraveling the truth. ...In fact, the scientists only managed to decipher Sister Maria’s letter with the help of a powerful – and highly controlled – decryption program. This software is used by governments and doesn’t appear to be widely available. The team had to source it from the dark web – the hidden part of the internet that should normally be avoided at all costs. So why did they do this? ...The scientists thought Sister Maria had perhaps created the code using a blend of existing alphabets. And thanks to her years of exposure to religious scripture, the nun had been a skilled linguist with knowledge of both ancient and modern languages. So it was that the experts’ theory proved to be right. ...
The team managed to crack a portion of the note – 15 lines to be exact – although much of it was muddled and incoherent. But those parts that did make sense contained heretical statements that would have gotten Sister Maria into serious trouble. Why? Because if she wasn’t possessed, she may have been a secret rebel. Or a hoaxer. Or perhaps part of her mind had split off from the rest. ..."
The historical records are clear about what Catholic church leaders did to heretics (torture, property confiscation, execution by fire). If the nun wasn't judged to be a heretic, they might have accused her of being a witch. No matter. She's still end up getting punished the same way. Although the Catholic Church has since apologized for its actions, it still happened. It's History. They may have said the sister was crazy, but I don't think so!- I kind of think she was a "secret rebel". Just me thinking. LOL.😉
Unsolved mystery, solved.
