Knowing Is Doing » by Marlon De La Torre, MA, MEd., PhD.

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The Screwtape Letters And The Catechism Book Cover Art

The Screwtape Letters and the Catechism of the Catholic Church

by Dr. Marlon De La Torre

Discover the power of the Catechism like never before with Screwtape!

All of us are faced with the daily onslaught of sin and temptation. We are all involved in a spiritual battle to keep our souls united with Christ so we can attain heaven.

The Screwtape Letters and the Catechism brings together two wonderful and significant resources that can help us to grow in spiritual courage. Engaging the Catechism of the Catholic Church from a new perspective, against the backdrop of C. S. Lewis' classic The Screwtape Letters, this book will help you to recognize temptation and engage in the battle against sin. Following Lewis and the Catechism, you will learn how to use the teachings of Christ to outwit the evil one.

In this book, each chapter of The Screwtape Letters is cross-referenced with the Catechism. By examining the dialogue between the demons Wormwood and Screwtape, we can apply Screwtape's lessons on temptation to our daily lives. The Catechism provides sound and reasonable explanations of the Catholic Faith, and these explanations debunk the methods of Screwtape. C.S. Lewis masterfully invites us into the diabolical world of Screwtape and Wormwood and the ever-present battle between good and evil. The Catechism, on the other hand, masterfully reveals the teachings of Jesus Christ as a living gift of the Church that shows us the love of God for his children.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Dr. De La Torre's work, The Screwtape Letters and the Catechism, is both timely and engaging. In an era in which secularism is rampant and belief in the diabolical is waning, De La Torre utilizes the work of C .S. Lewis to reawaken Christians to a dark reality that must be opposed through growth in the virtues and the spiritual life. His creative use of the Catechism of the Catholic Church not only offers support for his theological arguments but also demonstrates how a catechetical text can be used to evangelize and further the mission of proclaiming the joy of the Gospel. 'Stay sober and alert. The devil is prowling like a roaring lion, waiting to devour you. Resist him, solid in your faith.' This creative and inspiring work is a tool not only for discussion and meditation but also for resisting the devil and putting him to flight." -- Most Rev. Earl K. Fernandes, Bishop of Columbus

"It's been said that the greatest trick of the devil is convincing the world he doesn't exist. Based on the state of culture, society, not to mention increasing challenges in the Church, it's easy to believe that the devil has achieved even more success than the Houdinis and Copperfields combined. But as Dr. Marlon so beautifully details in The Screwtape Letters and the Catechism the devil's tricks are no competition for the Truth of Christ and Catholicism. Eventually the evil one's empty promises leave us searching for and desiring the only thing that satisfies -- a relationship with Jesus within the one, holy, and apostolic faith." -- Teresa Tomeo, syndicated Catholic talk show host, author of Beyond Sunday: Becoming a 24/7 Catholic

"Reading C. S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters was an important formative experience for me as a young adult Catholic. I only wish I could have had this book to read alongside it. That's because as a Catholic who was just starting to understand my need for constant conversion, I could recognize in Screwtape's letters the areas of my life where my 'Wormwood' was succeeding, but I didn't have any clue what weapons I had from the Church to fight back. Dr. Marlon De La Torre has done a great service to Catholics -- and all Christians -- by providing this companion field guide for spiritual warfare against those who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of our souls." -- Anna Mitchell, Co-host and Producer of the Son Rise Morning Show on EWTN Radio

"This is a wonderfully creative, practical, and inspired book! Dr. De La Torre invites us to look anew at C. S. Lewis's classic work on the wiles of the enemy, augments it with rich insights from The Catechism of the Catholic Church, and makes it all easily applicable to our daily lives. Scripture, Lewis, the Catechism, prayer ... settle in for a feast!" -- Fr. John Riccardo, Executive Director of ACTS XXIX

Available on Amazon.com

Marlon De La Torre on EWTN Live

EWTN Live 08 24 2011 The Screwtape Letters and the Church Fr Pacwa and Marlon De La Torre

EWTN Nuestra Fe En Vivo con Marlon De La Torre

Nuestra Fe En Vivo–Marlon De La Torre • 3 | Diciembre | 2018

Faithfulness. Leadership, and Growing Your Impact with Dr. Marlon De La Torre and Ron Huntley

Faithfulness, Leadership, & Growing Your Impact | Dr. Marlon De La Torre & Ron Huntley #108

At Home With Jim and Joy Pinto with Dr. Marlon De La Torre, Part 1

At Home With Jim and Joy - 2025-06-11 - Marlon De La Torre, Ph.D., Pt. 1

At Home With Jim and Joy Pinto with Dr. Marlon De La Torre, Part 2

At Home With Jim and Joy - 2025-06-12 - Marlon De La Torre, Ph.D., Pt. 2

Premise

The great Australian Catechist-Theologian Frank Sheed once said:

To men with their awareness of the majesty of God, the truth that Christ was God had to be broken very gradually or it would have broken them. If we read the Gospels with that in mind, we can see how marvelously Our Lord brought the Apostles to realization. His method was not to tell them, but to bring them to a point where they would tell Him. (Theology and Sanity, pg. 80)

The backdrop of Sheed's quote serves as a central premise for Knowing is Doing in assisting anyone who faithfully desires to teach the Catholic faith. Understanding the need to transmit and articulate the Catholic faith in a clear and precise manner, Knowing is Doing provides the opportunity for anyone who has ever considered embracing the role of teacher, educator, pedagogue, and catechists to engage their gifts and talents in handing on the faith with fidelity and joy.

St. John Paul II intimately tells us that the aim of catechesis is to place the person into an intimate communion with Jesus Christ. (Catechesis In Our Time, 6) This means as teachers we must be interested in Christ in order to teach about Christ. In other words, our mission if we so desire to teach is to have an intimate communion with Christ. This relationship, in turn, would serve as a central starting in our educational journey to proclaim and teach Jesus Christ.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church intimately binds the entire premise and mission of Knowing Is Doing as follows:

What moves us to believe is not the fact that revealed truths appear as true and intelligible in the light of our natural reason: we believe "because the authority of God himself who reveals them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived. So that the submission of our faith might nevertheless be in accordance with reason, God willed that external proofs of his Revelation should be joined to the internal helps of the Holy Spirit. Thus the miracles of Christ and the Saints, prophecies, the Church's growth and holiness, and her fruitfulness and stability are the most certain signs of divine Revelation, adapted to the intelligence of all; they are motives of credibility which show the assent of faith is by no means a blind impulse of the mind. (CCC 156)