Prominent Catholic author, speaker and educational psychologist Mary Ruth Hackett is among the many Christians around the world who in recent years has become more knowledgeable about, and attuned to, discerning spirits and the concept of spiritual warfare, the unseen battle against evil preternatural forces.

“I came to the Church almost 20 years ago,” said Hackett. “I converted, and there was no mention at all anywhere in my catechesis about any sort of spiritual warfare or discernment of spirits.”

The host of the Parenting Smarts podcast levelled up by studying the life and written works of St. Teresa of Avila. In 2021, she collaborated with Carmelite Brothers for a podcast series discussion and analysis of St. Teresa's The Way of Perfection. She was also enriched by the saint's The Interior Castle, an important read in understanding spiritual identity.

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Viewing it as pivotal for younger Catholics to understand the importance of these concepts in the early chapters of their life, Hackett has collaborated with fellow Catholic author Dan Burke to produce Discernment of Spirits for Beginners: Learning to Hear God and Defeat the Lies of the Enemy.

This book contains advice on recognizing a spiritual attack when it happens, tools to respond, advice on how to steer clear of behaviours that invite these attacks and how to diminish negative self-talk. Hackett and Burke draw from St. Ignatius of Loyola’s 14 rules of discernment to provide readers with a “practical battle plan for spiritual awareness and strength.”

Hackett declared all children of God need to be on guard, and that ignorance is not an effective defence against the prowling spirits seeking the ruin of souls.  

“The devil will attack all of us,” said Hackett. “If God loves you and He loves us all, then you've got a target on your back. You've got to understand. It's not fair to say that only high-brow intellectual people should be able to understand the concept of discernment of spirits. ‘We're going to keep it and reserve it for the intellectual elite.’ I'm sorry, no, we're all under attack.”

Recognizing through her professional life that people respond most effectively to tangible cases of these concepts at work, Hackett detailed instances of spiritual warfare at play in her life, in the lives of family and those of friends.

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In the initial weeks since the Nov. 18 publication date, Hackett said many readers have informed her that they are most impacted by the story of a young girl named Becca who struggles with anxiety.

Concurring that there is indeed “an anxious generation that is emerging,” as Jonathan Haidt documented in his 2024 book The Anxious Generation, Hackett said both the young person and the parents are seeking ways to overcome harms to mental health.

The story of Becca chronicles a conversation with her mother. She guides Becca through the process of recognizing the spirit of anxiety and also what to do. 

“It is just really a beautiful example of rebuking that spirit of anxiety, inviting Jesus into our hearts and (allowing) the Lord's peace to just fill us,” said Hackett. “It was a story that multiple people have told me; it just made them cry when they read it to think that is the kind of skill, so to speak, that we need to be teaching our children.”

Hackett took charge of penning the life stories. Burke, the founder and president of the Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation in Montgomery, Alabama, took charge of writing most of the introduction and the final chapter, while adding entire sections throughout the book.

Burke’s expertise in discernment of spirits (Hackett completed one of the Avila courses), combined with Hackett’s in parenting and education, proved to be a quality match. She shared how they pushed each other to articulate each concept with the utmost resonant clarity.

“I'd say, ‘am I getting this right?’ He'd say, ‘ah, yes, it's perfect.’ Or he'd say, ‘no, there's this little nuance that I want to pull out of it,’ ” said Hackett.

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She characterized the writing process as “a bit bizarre” as they were at the same time “extremely accessible to one another,” yet they largely wrote independently. This approach to working was made possible “by the trust between us,” said Hackett.

The journey of Discernment of Spirits for Beginners has inspired Hackett to consider further written work about the spiritual elements at work among the mental health issues teens and young adults are experiencing today.