Manual for Spiritual Warfare

by Paul Thigpen

A fierce war rages for your soul. Are you ready for battle?

Like it or not, you are at war. You face a powerful enemy out to destroy you. You live on the battlefield, so you can’t escape the conflict.

It’s a spiritual war with crucial consequences in your everyday life and its outcome will determine your eternal destiny.

You must engage the Enemy. And as you fight, you need a Manual for Spiritual Warfare.

This guide for spiritual warriors will help you recognize, resist, and overcome the Devil’s attacks. Part One, “Preparing for Battle,” answers these critical

- Who is Satan, and what powers does he have?
- What are his typical strategies?
- Who fights him alongside us in battle?
- What spiritual weapons and armor do we possess?
- How do we keep the Enemy out of our camp?
Part Two, “Aids in Battle,” provides you these essential

- Teaching about spiritual warfare from Scripture and Church documents
- Scripture verses for battle
- Wisdom and inspiration from saints who fought Satan
- Prayers for protection, deliverance, and victory
- Rosary meditations, hymns, and other devotions for spiritual combat


St. Paul urges us to “fight the good fight of the faith” (1 Tim 6:12). Take this Manual for Spiritual Warfare with you into battle.


Charcoal Grey, Premium UltraSoft, rounded corners, embossed cover, silver foil, black ribbons, silver edges, and red accented interior.


 

Genres: Catholic, Religion, Nonfiction, Christian, Spirituality, Theology, Prayer

336 pages, Imitation Leather

First published September 28, 2014

About the author

Paul Thigpen, Ph.D., is the editor of TAN Books. An award-winning journalist and best-selling author, he has published forty-two books. His work has been translated into twelve languages and circulated worldwide.

Reviews

[booklady · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paul Thigpen’s Manual for Spiritual Warfare could be compared to a marine field manual for spiritual combat survival. Sure you can face the enemy without reading a guide, but why? This one is very good. And trust me, we are at war.

James 4:1-7 identifies three primary threats to our souls: our own passions, the world and the devil. This manual focuses on the last of these adversaries because—according to Thigpen—our society tends to dismiss the existence of Satan as an outdated superstition. Even among those who acknowledge him and his activity, few are aware of the resources available to combat him and finally because our struggles with the world and the flesh while not directly provoked by him, are opportunities he takes advantage of to establish a stronger presence in our lives. So we need to pay close attention to his movements.

The Manual is divided in two main sections: Part One: Preparing for Battle and Part Two: Aids in Battle. In Part One we learn to know our enemy, battle, commander and comrades, weapons, armor and how to keep the enemy out to the camp. Part Two is longer and it is less of a book to ‘read’ and more of a reference. It includes many helpful sources, prayers, devotions, Scripture passages and Church Teachings.

My copy is on kindle and while I appreciate the links to on-line sites, this would be very nice to have in paper format as well.

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like it or not, you are at war.

This book is excellent. To be honest I had no idea where to begin with writing a review. So I went back to the book and copied my highlighted texts from the introduction and first chapter to give you a taste. To begin with we have: "First, belief in Satan's existence and activity is today widely dismissed as an outdated superstition. As a result, most Catholics hear very little about him, leaving them unprepared to understand and defeat him. They need to know their Enemy and his strategies." Having been involved in university campus ministry for over 20 years this statement is true not only of most Catholics but also most non-Catholic Christians. From there Paul states: "The first part of this book lays out the biblical and theological foundations for our warfare with the Devil. The second part offers aids for the battle: Church documents, scriptural texts, words and anecdotes from the saints, prayers and hymns, and further resources for study." It absolutely lives up to that goal. I have already read this book twice and know I plan on reading it again.

One of the mail goals of the book sis "Our hope is that countless Catholics, and other Christians as well, will find this manual so helpful that they will carry it with them and make frequent use of it. For this reason, the book has been produced in a sturdy, compact edition that allows you to keep it handy and refer to it often." And I honestly believe it will do that. I have already recommended it to a number of Catholics and other Christians for I know it will be an invaluable tool in their life and ministry.

"Like it or not, you are at war." Every time I see this it stirs something in me. To be in a war and be unaware of it will only lead to failure. There have been many quotes about the church being a field hospital for wounded hurting people. This book can server as a weapon for those on the front lines, and those helping to tend the wounded. We are the army of Christ but our biggest responsibility is to support the field hospital. And on that same note "God allows evil because He's powerful enough to bring out of even the greatest evil a much greater good." God can work all things for our good and to fulfil his plans.

The last quote I will leave you with is from the end of the first chapter. "Meanwhile, our days in this life provide a season for God to test, purify, strengthen, and perfect us, making us fit to live with Him forever in heaven. To that end, the demons serve as useful tools for Him as they constantly test us by tempting us, so that we become purer and stronger and closer to perfection every time we resist the temptation." Those are just a few of the gems from the first few sections of the book. The Contents of the book are:

How to Use This Manual
Part One: Preparing for Battle

1. Know Your Enemy
2. Know Your Battle
3. Know Your Commander and Comrades
4. Know Your Weapons
5. Know Your Armor
6. Keep the Enemy out of the Camp

Part Two: Aids in Battle

7. Church Teaching About Spiritual Warfare
From Catechisms
From Church Councils
From Papal Documents
8. Scriptures for the Battle
Scriptural Names and Images for the Devil and Demons
Incidents in Scripture Involving the Devil and Demons
Scripture Verses for Warfare
9. Help From the Saints
Words From the Saints
Spiritual Warfare in the Lives of the Saints
10. Prayers, Devotions, and Hymns for Battle
Prayers to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit
The Blood of Jesus
Litany of Christ Our Champion
The Name of Jesus
Prayers to Our Lady, Vanquisher of the Enemy
Rosary Meditations for Spiritual Battle
Prayers to the Saints and With the Saints
Prayers to the Angels and to God for Their Assistance
Prayers for the Church
Prayers for the Family and Home
Prayers With Sacramentals
Prayers From Traditional Liturgies
Prayers for Strength and Deliverance
Scriptural Prayers for Deliverance
Hymns for Spiritual Warfare
For Further Study

I cannot recommend this book enough for anyone wishing to go deeper in the spiritual life. As soon as you pursue God and his will you will encounter opposition. This book will help you understand that opposition and strengthen you and provide tools and knowledge to stand against it. Be bold. Follow Chris and stand firm!

This is an amazing book you need to read it!

Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More.

[Jeff Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

As the introduction spells out:

"Sacred Scripture speaks of our ongoing battles with the world, the flesh, and the Devil (see Jas 4:1–7). This book focuses on our struggle with the last of those three adversaries …"

He gives his reasons for concentrating on this aspect based on disbelief in Satan’s existence, lack of knowledge regarding resources available, and that even our struggles with the flesh and the world can be influenced by the Devil’s interference. This is a book of considerable balance and prudence. There are plenty of caveats for a book of this type and Paul Thigpen takes care to make all the proper distinctions. One of the important distinction is regarding aspects that are reserved for the priestly role and what the laity is able to do. These distinctions are reinforced throughout the book. This manual avoids the Saturday Night Live’s Church Lady cry of “Could it be SATAN?” while specifying the reality of spiritual warfare and demonic influence.

The first part of the book is a primer on the scriptural and theological aspects of spiritual warfare. The reality and urgency of what are response should be is spelled out as we really do have a mortal enemy who wants to seek our destruction. While we are alive there can never be a ceasefire regarding spiritual warfare and spiritual pacifism is just surrender of our soul. I really enjoyed this whole section of the book as it lays out the theology reinforced with a solid bedrock of scriptural references.

The second part of the book broken up into multiple sections providing the tools and the weapons for spiritual warfare.

+ Church teaching about spiritual warfare from Catechisms, Councils, and Papal documents.
+ Biblical reference that provides a glossary, biblical history involving the Devil and Demons, and related scriptural verses.
+ Wisdom from the saints on spiritual warfare. Like his saint’s meditation book I totally loved this section for the wide range of pertinent quotes. This is a part of the book I will want to revisit from time to time.
+ The last section includes specific prayers, devotions, and hymns related to spiritual warfare. This section is about a third of the book and is a great resource for prayer. Included in this are Rosary meditations for each mystery along with some very nicely written prayers from the author.

So this is surely all you need to be interested in this book. Yet there is one more aspect that makes this book even better. That this manual was published like an “old school” prayerbook meant to be kept at hand and well used. It is described as “Premium Ultrasoft with two-tone sewn binding, ribbon marker and gold edges.” This is just beautifully made. I am pretty much converted over to only using ebooks and I did read this as a PDF, but I was totally delighted when I received this book in the mail.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Manual for Spiritual Warfare has been one of the most popular Catholic books in recent memory. It seems like as soon as TAN Books ships them out to various retailers, they fly off the shelf before the dust ever settles. Now, I for one, don't normally fall prey to popular books. I like to think I look for the less known and less popular books, but when I was offered a chance to review this book, I figured I'd see what all the hype was about. Boy, was I glad that I did!

The Manual for Spiritual Warfare begins with a guide on how to use this manual. It tells us that we are in an ongoing battle against the world, the flesh, and the Devil. This book focuses on our war against the Devil! Part One "lays out the biblical and theological foundations for our warfare with the Devil," and Part Two gives us help for the battle, i.e., hymns, Scripture, and prayers. Part One was easily my favorite part. It was divided into six chapters that are as follows:

1. Know Your Enemy
2. Know Your Battle
3. Know Your Commander and Comrades
4. Know Your Weapons
5. Know Your Armor
6. Keep the Enemy out of the Camp

Keeping the enemy out seems like the most obvious of advice, but as easy as it sounds, he still finds a way in our camp. One way Satan ends up in our camp is through "Trojan horses," like Ouija boards or fortunetelling. "Poisonous reptiles" are another way Satan sneaks into our camp. St. Teresa of Avila referred to "little" sins that we don't think are important or significant are poisonous reptiles. The last bit of advice is to "fight the good fight," which leads into Part Two that provides us with methods of fighting.

I also enjoyed reading about spiritual warfare in the lives of the saints. Here we see examples from St. Anthony the Great, St Benedict, and lots from the Desert Fathers, I love the Desert Fathers, so any book that promotes reading them gets a good mark in my book! Obviously, I am going to recommend you buy this book, but buying it is not enough. Carry it with you everywhere you go. Read it. Study it. Memorize the Scriptures. Engrave the prayers on your heart. This is one of the best books on spiritual warfare since Lorenzo Scupoli's The Spiritual Combat! Bound in premium ultra-soft leather, this makes a beautiful gift for Confirmations, graduations, birthdays. or even weddings. Don't buy just one of these. Buy two, because you won't want to give up your copy when a friend asks to borrow yours!

[Ramón S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s so good that after reading it in Kindle I would buy it in paper. Perfect manual!!

[Jane Lebak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall I think it's a good book, with a couple of caveats. I read the Kindle version, and first problem is it's too expensive. It's $10 for the Kindle version at this moment in time, and that's not competitive when most Kindle books are in the $5 range. Secondly, I found formatting and typographical errors in the text, such as Padre Pio's birth/death dates given as 1997 - 1968 (that would be a trick) and "chord" for "cord" at one point. Also, the margins run right up to the sides of the Kindle screen, which is annoying for the reader and not how they're typically formatted.

Having covered that, though, the rest of the book is fairly solid and straightforward. Without sensationalizing matters, Thigpen discusses the background and nature of spiritual warfare and demonic attacks and what we can reasonably expect to deal with as lay Catholics. He outlines several methods of dealing with these attacks (again, as lay people) with cautions against things we should not be attempting to do.

The second half of the book has prayers and scriptures dealing with spiritual warfare. I found the quotes from the saints most helpful, though. Recommended for Catholics who want a good introduction to dealing with temptation and active spiritual attacks.

[Kenneth Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enlightening Book .

I didn't know the Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church was so on the spot so brilliantly were the Devil and.his horrible Fiends were at work in this Daily war we are in.

This book has just raised me from spiritual apathy and showed me how real this monstrous Enemy is.

He is still here and he is still a murderer and snake and a liar.

Kenny Mckechnie .

[Murray]

3.5 stars ⭐️

In case you’re wondering, this is not a book about exorcism or deliverance. It’s a compilation of thoughts, quotes, scripture and hymns that takes sentient supernatural evil seriously and the idea that humanity faces a lifelong struggle against it. This may be part of your belief set or it may not. But it pays to reflect on such realities, or the possibility of such realities, from time to time. For, as Hamlet put it: “There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy, Horatio.”

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book. Finally! A book that uplifts the soul unto God! A book that allows the soul to unite itself to Almighty God whilst engaging in spiritual combat!

This manual for spiritual warefare is a huge blessing. It came at the time when I was struggling quite intensely and assisted me in ways I did not think.

It is structural, realistic (does not beat around the bush, neither does it tone down the fact that we are in spiritual warefare), logical, understandable and founded on faith!

It is exactly what every Catholic should use and go to. Because Thigpen is correct. We are at war. In everything in this life, we are at war with evil spirits who wish us to do evil, and the Angels of God who encourage us to do good - who wish to unite us with God.

Thigpen uses the perfect amount of resources, relies upon the perfect amount of tools in order to help us engage in our war against Satan. The biblical passages, the Old Testament Pslams, the Saints quotes, the Saints lives... are utterly fantastic!

But the B.E.S.T bit for me was the prayers at the end of the book. 1/3rd of the book comprises of prayers. And these prayers are not anything. There are R.E.A.L.L.Y good prayers within this book that has enabled me to progress with my relationship with God.

So my final thought. For anyone struggling, in intense battle with Satan, constantly struggling against evil temptations and satanic encounters within life... this book will set you off...
Why? because not only does it teach you what to do, but it encourages you with your battle against Satan, the world and the flesh itself.

May God be with you all!!!

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this book a lot of credit because it introduced me to one of my favorite Saints: Bridget of Sweden, and of her life, the plethora of incredible revelations she witnessed.

Because of author Paul Thigpen's familiarity with St. Bridget of Sweden, and his willingness to quote her mystical experiences (a lot of Catholic authors are very shy to reveal which mystics are influencing their theological studies), I came to trust him and look forward to more of his works.

Otherwise, it is a good book, and a helpful resource, but maybe containing less surprises than Thigpen's A Year With The Saints.

[Stephen Heiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a review copy of this some time ago and have had a chance to read/use it all the way through. It's beautifully bound and is part mini-reference, part prayers, with some hymns in the back for good measure. My sole complaint is that it features some Novus Ordo "saints" like JP2 Josemaria Escriva and Mother Teresa, but this is a very small part of the work and can easily be ignored. However, if you have access to a copy of the old manual "Blessed Be God" it's superior to this.

[Amanda Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

To engage in spiritual struggles can be a lonely affair. Many will discount the reality of your situation, even those who are charged to help. The greatest comfort and help for me in this book came from the stories regarding saints’ actual engagements with the enemy. Not just what they said we should do, but how being confronted with dark spirits actually affected them. This section is largely absent from many manuals, but provides the greatest lesson - we are not alone in our struggles. The Great Liar works tirelessly to convince us we are alone, but here we see, for sure, even the greatest of of God’s court have been assailed, same as the lowest.

[R.R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful spiritual guide

The many prayers, quotes, and bible verses were a good resource in combating spiritual attack. I also appreciated the guidance at the beginning of the book.

[Yenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

If only this book is translated to Indonesian, I would frequently give this as a gift to my Catholic friends.

[gardeningmom7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Satan delights in sadness and melancholy, since he himself is sad and melancholy, and will be so for all eternity - a condition he wants everyone else to share with him.”

[Jaime K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm basing my review on the first 9 chapters and not the 10th. The 10th starts out great, with prayers against spiritual warfare, but there are 100 pages of it.
The 10th chapter is 1/3 of the book.
Yes, the prayers are fantastic, but there are too many at once--and many are repetitive. St. Michael the Archangel is my go-to and even I don't think we needed 20 prayers for him to fight the devil.

Just Starting: I already love that Thigpen constantly reiterates the fact that SOME issues within us are NOT from the devil. Some are indeed simply medical issues; some urges are due from our own sin. But recognizing that the devil and His minions ARE spiritually in this world and act on our physical abilities and broken [sinful] states is the first step in being able to differentiate what is just being human and what is spiritual attack.

Demonic powers are real. Jesus spoke of them and drove out demons; they're a part of our heritage. It's so dangerous to act as if they are all figments of our imaginations.
If we believe in good, we must also believe in evil.

Chapter 2 broke down ordinary and extraordinary demonic activity, which is very helpful.
I especially love that Thigpen reminds the reader that demons can't own a person, even if they possess one. We are GOD'S. Satan's hold over us is finite; God's is infinite.

I like the differences between deliverance ministry and exorcisms.

This book makes me want to fast more.

"Little" sins are more significant than we always think they are.

Chapter 7 has so much jargon that despite the fact that I’ve read encyclicals and writings from the early Fathers, I found myself struggling and needing to reread passages more than once.

"Scriptures for the Battle" (Chapter 8) is fantastic. It's also very interesting to see the different names for the Devil and his demons that are mentioned in the Bible.

If we stop praying, we open ourselves to the "deep wiles of Satan" (Chapter 9).

Blessed John Henry Newman's words on temptation (Chapter 9) are fantastic.

Chapter 9 has some great quotes about Mary and Jesus and their protection against the devil. And protectkon from the Saints!
But some of the Saints’ stories are a bit too long and even random due to the lack of context.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

A curious little miscellany, something I found better than average as a daily reader, especially as I managed to engineer finishing it on Easter Sunday. I found something of value in all the sections, although it would almost be better to read a psalm today and a episode from a saint's life tomorrow and a hymn or two the day after that, rather than plowing through them by category. As a "manual" or handbook it sorely lacks an appendix; it would then actually be a valuable thing to keep within reach at the desk when I'm feeling depressed, oppressed, tempted, etc.

In any case, the book's mission, as laid out in Part 1, is a very solid one. One doesn't even strictly have to believe in hostile transnatural intelligences external to oneself to recognize that one is assaulted by destructive, powerful psychological attacks every day and to derive benefit from recognizing that there is a war going on within oneself, a war that can be successfully prosecuted if never finally won, so long as the awareness is there. On the other hand, there probably really *are* such external enemies, too, and it is better to keep in mind that we are under attack and likewise that we have help... if we want it and ask for it.

[Madeline Roe · Rating 5 out of 5]

After recently becoming a Christian I felt the need to “get to know my enemy” or prep for some kind of spiritual battle and that led me to this book. I’m very glad I picked it up and that it directed me to Acts 19:11-20 as a reminder to stay in my lane; focus on love, mercy and peace rather than the darker side of things because that is simply not my fight, it’s God’s.
I love that this book had direct sources to the scripture as well as other books in direct correlation to the topic at hand. It’s not something I will sit down and read again, but I will definitely be keeping it to reference back to. I also enjoyed the prayers in hymns in chapter 10, I would read one in the morning before work and it was just a refreshing start to the day. It also has a ton of helpful tools like the renewal of baptism promises on page 296-297.
Overall, it did get a little boring at times but I also got a lot out of it.

[EMMANUEL · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite spiritual book, thus far in my reads. This book is literally a renowned literary text of the spirituality genre.

What I do find more gratifying of this book, is the revolving ideology and focus in regards to what the book is about. Prayer. And. Scripture.

The book is very isocentrically in focused on the core objective of Catholicism. Not Christianity. Catholicism. Personally and subjectively, I find Catholicism more clear in regards to the expectations and communities objective. Scripture. Not telling you what to do, but the Priest does provide comment. Opinion. Insightfulness of what the priest interprets his best approach on addressing that aspect of Daily life and personal identity.

Anyway... the prayers in this book, are definitely useful. I will ensure and assure to have this book as my main reference in regards to establish my spiritual contentedness.

[Emmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great little book chock-full of helpful information for strengthening your spiritual life. Whether you're looking for advice from the saints, scripture verses, or prayers, you're bound to find what you're looking for here. My only recommendation is that you use this book as a reference, as opposed to something read straight through, cover to cover. That gets a little overwhelming and the book comes out feeling a bit dry. Still, there's a lot of interesting stuff here, when used properly.

[Riley Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, prayerful resource to be used again and again. Do not only read this book, USE IT. We live in very secular times where many Christians no longer think about the devil, demonic activity, or hell. Yet, these forces are raging, and it is important to have sources available to help combat the enemy, above all, the Sacraments and prayer.

[Amzy Vicente · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very timely book, especially with all the things going on in the world. I would recommend this book for someone preparing for Confirmation, or for someone who would like to refresh their knowledge about the Faith.

I hadn't known about the power of specific prayers that are contained in this book.

[Rylan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read for a brief overview on a very deep topic. Like any manual, it won't do the work for you, but it will help you get your footing and find your way. The collection of prayers in the back are an excellent resource, the Litany of St. Michael is especially helpful now during St. Michael's Lent.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. You can easily apply the concepts to modern life and the various ways that we are tempted to sin. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for guidance on how to overcome the many temptations we face everyday

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reference book

I found this book as very enlightening. However I found it most useful as a book of reference. A book in which if you need strength one can look up the chapter or prayer you feel in most need of.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the other Tan "manual" books a bit more reader friendly than the "Manual for Spiritual Warfare." This book is insightful and thought provoking. Inspiring the reader to practice the pause and pray. A bit repetitive at times, still a usual guide for Catholics during troubling times.

[Haremare · Rating 4 out of 5]

good if it's your first book on spiritual warfare

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely one to pocket and reread throughout spiritual direction. The resources are rather helpful as well.

[Jess Ketchum · Rating 5 out of 5]

🖤🖤🖤

[Brandon Tate · Rating 4 out of 5]

the book itself is very well made, it was an easy read through but also one i will be coming back to from time to time, a lot of good prayers in this book and very useful knowledge to gain from it