The Other World We Live In: A Catholic Vision of Angelic Reality

Paine, Scott

ISBN 10: 162138781X / ISBN 13: 9781621387817

Published by Angelico Press, 2021

About this Item

Seller Inventory # I-9781621387817

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Other World We Live In: A Catholic Vision of Angelic Reality
• Publisher: Angelico Press
• Publication Date: 2021
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 162138781X
• ISBN 13: 9781621387817
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Of all the invisible realities we live among - from virtual networks to rays of sunshine - none are more overlooked than the world of angels, which most relegate either to fundamentalist religion or to elitist cults. But there is another option. We stand with all three Abrahamic faiths (as well as with the majority of the world's traditions) in acknowledging that God's creation consists in a threefold, ascending order: cosmic, human, and angelic. This hierarchy may seem to dethrone our sensitive egos from the pinnacle of creation, but in truth it assigns our human nature a far more dignified, intermediate station that Aquinas calls a "marvelous connection," serving to join the world of matter and the realm of pure spirit. Furthermore, the vexing problem of evil takes on a new dimension when we realize there is mischief not only in us but in the spiritual order as well. When angelic reality is factored into our view of creation and our moral struggles, that view matures and broadens. The "plane" of humankind and cosmos will lack three-dimensionality until intersected by the companion world of the pure spirits.

About the Author

FR. SCOTT RANDALL PAINE is a priest of the archdiocese of Brasilia, Brazil, and professor of medieval philosophy and Eastern thought at the city's federal university. A convert to the Catholic faith in 1973, he was ordained by Pope St. John Paul II in 1983, took his doctorate in philosophy in Rome and has since lived, studied, and taught in Europe, Asia, and South America. His collection of essays by Bernard Kelly, A Catholic Mind Awake, and the second edition of his study of G.K. Chesterton, The Universe and Mr. Chesterton, were both published by Angelico Press. Paine's current writing can be followed on the website: 3wisdoms.com.