Praise for The Other World We Live In
“Where are the angels these days? No doubt, they mind their own business. And a great business it is: that of God’s ultimate plan for the created world. The real question is where are we in the cosmic battle that engages the opposing armies of Heaven and Hell? This beautiful and terrible book (‘terrible’ in the best sense, like Our Lady, who is said to be, terrible as an army in battle array) elucidates the part we are to play in the drama unfolding all around us on an invisible plane. How can we afford to miss out on this vision?”
—ABBOT PHILIP ANDERSON, Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey
“In sparkling, spirited prose, Scott Paine addresses the modern world’s appalling amnesia regarding the nature and history of the angelic orders, and their demonic counterparts. The result is a thoroughly engaging guidebook to the world of spirits, ranging from Our Lady’s relationship with angels to the reasons why devils are falling as well as fallen, to the arsenal of demon-busting weapons in the Catholic armory. Throughout, Paine’s scholarship, wit, and insight never flag, producing a book that will be happily read by the choirs of heaven as well as the faithful here on earth.”
—PHILIP ZALESKI, Smith College
“The author integrates insights into the world of angels and demons with Christian spirituality, buttressing what we profess in the Nicene Creed, namely, our faith in one God, the maker of all things visible and invisible. Reflections regarding the nature and mission of these spirits, both good and evil, assist the reader in whetting the all-important tools of discernment between light and darkness. We are made acutely aware that our struggle is not against flesh and blood. We are spurred on to a more intimate, enlightened friendship with the good angels, reliving moments when mortals ate angelic bread. The whole is couched in theologically refined language and a style at the same time gripping, stirring, and uplifting.”
—FR. ANDREAS HOECK, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary
“Yet another Catholic book on angels? Thus I mused as I began to read The Other World We Live In. But the first page changed all that. Paine has authored a masterpiece of angelology. Crisply concise, it nevertheless covers the topic comprehensively: cosmologically, metaphysically, psychologically, scripturally, spiritually. His treatment of the fall of the angels is the best I’ve read, and the latter part is a masterclass on spiritual warfare. Yes, I read Saint Thomas Aquinas’s treatise (and several other works) on the angels, but not till I engaged this tour de force did I realize how essential are the angels in every aspect of life.”
—THADDEUS KOZINSKI, Divine Mercy University
“There are truths beyond our comprehension, truths we may know to be true but never fully comprehend. In our myopic-scientistic culture, such truths—like those concerning the angels—are often labelled as fantasies. Drawing upon the intellectual traditions of far wiser cultures, Fr. Scott Randall Paine illuminates how the angels foster the coherence of the spiritual world with the visible world. That is, how the solidity, reality, and diversity of these ‘separate substances’ engage with each other and as well with human beings, the Church, the unfolding of history, Christ and His Blessed Mother, and sin. This remarkable book also provides practical bearings toward living with these hierarchical beings, as understood in the light of Christian faith.”
—BRIAN KEMPLE, Lyceum Institute
“The angelic world so surpasses our limited understanding that we need to approach it with both theological precision and poetic insight. In The Other World We Live In, Fr. Paine deftly leads us on such an exploration, emphasizing the light and glory of the holy angels, but also giving due attention to the dark world of demons. His presentation is balanced and at times humorous, leading one to understand why Chesterton said ‘angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly.’”
—FR. GARY SELIN, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary