Comments on: The Winning Strategy

By: The Winning Strategy « Mario Sacasa

The Winning Strategy « Mario Sacasa — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 18:56:00 +0000

[...] great article by Peter Kreeft. He pulls no punches and reminds us all who our real enemies are in this [...]

By: Women of Grace

Women of Grace — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:10:13 +0000

[...] the end of Jennifer’s article there is a link to one of Peter Kreeft’s great pieces on spiritual warfare , something everyone should read and [...]

By: I am NOT a Halloweenie! | Real Catholic Mom

I am NOT a Halloweenie! | Real Catholic Mom — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 03:41:17 +0000

[...] am compelled to remember that we do have an enemy. I know the enemy is not the person dressed up as the evil ghoul trying to scare kids at the [...]

By: On The Spiritual Attack of our Converts and What to Do About It | Archdiocese of Washington

Thu, 05 May 2011 04:40:10 +0000

[...] I hope that our RCIA directors talk to them about this issue. I hope they make Dr. Peter Kreeft’s recent article about the reality of spiritual warfare required reading, and emphasize the benefits of finding a trusted priest or trained spiritual [...]

By: Convert45

Convert45 — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 01:45:31 +0000

Irish Francis,
We’re meant to be servants of God, not soldiers.
Do you know why we genuflect? I just learned and it might surprise you as it did me.
It is very specific – and only has one other context – military. Look it up! We bow to our commanding officer as we enter the pew. Genuflecting is derived from Roman soldiers taking a knee to express obedience., or
“.. complete subjection to the authority of his commander.”
(Quoted from The Mass: Four Encounters with Jesus that Will Change Your Life, By Dr. Tom Curran, p.40.)

Dr. Kreeft,
You are my hero! Hang in there, academia was too rich for my blood. I love the clarity and simplicity in the books and articles you write. I do wish you’d address the Neo Paganism ( New Age ) when you talk about our patients (above). The tough ones in my life are the neo-Gnostics. I would love a whole book from you on that one – starting from The Vatican’s Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life. We need your help on this one! There really is inadequate Kreeftian scholarship addressing one of the Enemy’s main vanguard of attack – his counterfeit religion. Please?
Respectfully,
Convert45

By: Lord Raymond of Monmouth

Lord Raymond of Monmouth — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 12:48:03 +0000

My God what have we done. Your article is one of the best and I am so glad someone out there that is paying attention to this and is able to pronounce it clearly. I have read Papa’s encyclicals and your theme here is one of his underlying message. You speak the truth and I thank you for your direction. We all must change our lives first before we can proceed. God Bless and thank you! Lord Raymond of Monmouth

By: Rob_A

Rob_A — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:38:53 +0000

Thank you Dr. Kreeft for a powerful and inspiring article. I wish more priests would speak like this during their homilies. This is definitely worth sharing with as many people as we can.

By: brodane

brodane — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 14:56:47 +0000

Thank you, Dr. Kreeft. There certainly is an eternal war being waged. Souls and societies are eternally in the balance. Failure to engage the fight is complicity with the very evil we say we abhor. But I do have a question relating to your essay.

My question regards the “weapons”, you have prescribed. Perhaps you assume a foundation that I’m not convinced most of us have. For it seems that St. John’s words in Revelation 12:10-12 are a comprehensive battalion: “For they overcame him (Satan), by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony and by loving not their lives even unto death.”

It seems that you covered only the last of the triad: total surrender of our lives to Christ in the battle. Certainly, if our confession is empty and lifeless (that is, without our lives being given over), then Christ’s cross and blood and our confession of the Gospel, will not be sufficient to win.

But the devil doesn’t yield to human consecration alone. “For there is no other name under heaven whereby we must be saved.” “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come.” “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to them that believe.” “For they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb…” The power is in the blood of Christ and the word of Christ, proclaimed and demonstrated through consecrated servants of Christ.

I was just a bit surprised that the “weapons” you cite seemed to make no mention of these. I am certainly overlooking something, I’m sure. I would enjoy hearing your thoughts on this, if it were at all possible that you had time to do so.

Thanks for thinking and standing for the faith that redeems the lost from certain peril.

By: GonQPat

GonQPat — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 08:30:27 +0000

Very perceptive comments. Yes, everyone who is searching for the Truth will need to be reminded of who is his or her real enemy. And unfortunately, it is easy to focus on the visible physical world, and ignore the invisible spiritual creatures.

Yet, much to my surprise, many anti-Catholic writers, like Toni Cappocia and Richard Dawkins, are self-proclaimed enemies of the Catholic Church. Yet, I do believe that they do not realize just who is their real enemy.

Nevertheless, for newcomers to the Catholic faith, and Catholic old-timers, who have recently re-discovered their faith; the above mentioned critics can be very unsettling. But, as a bystander, I have discovered that those critics are not invincible. I have posted an article entitled ‘The Bystander’ on my web-site at ‘www.faithembraced.co.za,’ which offers a way of side-stepping those critics. From that changed perspective, one can simply smile at the critics and continue to embrace one’s Catholic faith.

GonQPat

By: boomshakalaka

boomshakalaka — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 20:29:23 +0000

HuxleyFan,

I believe you have misinterpreted Prof. Kreeft’s claims on suicide statistics. He is clearly talking about *pre-adult* suicide statistics, while you are citing the results for the general population.

For the note, these rates are extremely volatile. For example, just between 2003 and 2004, youth suicide increased 8%.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/07/health/07suicide.html?_r=1

Regarding wealth and suicide, it’s important to note that Prof. Kreeft talks about *personal* wealth too, not just national. Take a look at the following study:

http://www.astm.org/DIGITAL_LIBRARY/JOURNALS/FORENSIC/PAGES/JFS2004347.htm

From the abstract: “1) 77% more likely than controls to have lived in houses rather than in apartments or trailers, 2) more likely than controls to have lived in more expensive houses (mean values $70,143 versus $61,513 respectively, p = 0.04) and 3) more likely to have killed themselves because of factors other than financial strain (8.0% of suicides showed financial strain).”

–

With respect to national wealth, you tried to make an inference from the nations at the top of the list, which shows a mix of both rich and former-Communist developing nations. Why didn’t you take a look at the bottom of the list? Because the countries with the lowest suicide rates are all “dirt poor.”

Another meta-study:
http://www.springerlink.com/content/xyb1nw7yfg9c5gne/

From the abstract: “These results suggestion that suicidal behaviour could be a specific characteristic of affluent society, although the connection must be considered complex and intricate.”