The Devil You Don't Know: Recognizing and Resisting Evil in Everyday Life

With insight reminiscent of The Screwtape Letters, Rev. Louis J. Cameli challenges readers to reconsider what they've always believed about the devil. In some ways, it’s easy to believe in a devil who makes heads spin round and enables people to levitate. Many movies and books about possession and exorcism have trained spiritual seekers to identify evil by its expected Hollywood conventions. By contrast, in The Devil You Don't Know: Recognizing and Resisting Evil in Everyday Life, Cameli, nationally renowned pastoral leader and priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago, paints a challenging, unsettling portrait of the devil as a formidable adversary who works great harm, often in quiet, less-seen ways.

While remaining a fixture of popular culture, the devil has―until now―been largely ignored in contemporary spiritual writing. Cameli exposes the devil’s tactics of deception, division, diversion, and discouragement, in individuals and also in institutions. This thoroughly biblical, deft exploration considers the personal and social dimensions of sin, and offers both enlightenment and hope in the power of Christ to overcome evil.

Fr. Louis John Cameli is a Chicago Heights, Illinois, native and a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago. He studied theology at the Gregorian University in Rome, where he received his licentiate in theology in 1970 and a doctorate in theology with a specialization in spirituality in 1975. Fr. Cameli is the author of more than a dozen books, including The Devil You Don’t Know: Recognizing and Resisting the Evil in Every Day and Catholic Teaching on Homosexuality: New Paths to Understanding. He has been a contributor to Chicago Studies, the Priest, and America. In 2001, he served as principal writer and general editor of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop’s document The Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Priests. Before and after his doctoral studies, Fr. Cameli served in two parish assignments. In 1975, he became professor of spirituality, director of spiritual life, and dean of theology at Mundelein Seminary of the University of Saint Mary of the Lake, Mundelein, Illinois. In 1996, Cardinal Bernardin appointed Fr. Cameli as director of ongoing formation of priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago and director of the Cardinal Stritch Retreat House in Mundelein. In 2002, he received the Blessed Pope John XXIII award from the National Organization for the Continuing Education of Roman Catholic Clergy for his contributions to the continuing education and ongoing formation of priests. In 2005, he was appointed pastor of Divine Savior Parish in Norridge, Illinois. In 2006, he received the National Catholic Educational Association’s Seminary Department’s John Paul II Seminary Leadership Award. In March 2009, Cardinal Francis George appointed Fr. Cameli as his delegate for Christian Formation and Mission with residence at Holy Name Cathedral, Chicago. Fr. Cameli has also served as a retreat director for priests' retreats and as a presenter for priests' convocations in the United States, Canada, and New Zealand.