Prayerful Examination of Conscience

Before the Examination of Conscience

O God, the searcher of all hearts, behold, I here protest, in thy presence, that what I now design is sincerely for the honor of thy name, and because I heartily desire to be delivered from the guilt of my sins: therefore I come to thy sacrament of penance, that, complying with thy holy institution, I may obtain thy blessing and pardon, as thou hast promised. May thy holy grace assist me in performing this great duty well, as it is thy mercy which has called me to it.

Think seriously, and with the most lively gratitude, on all the benefits God hath so liberally bestowed on you, and particularly for his goodness in preparing this sacrament as a remedy for your sins.

How great are my obligations to thee, O my God, in thus providing for me, after my disgrace, the means of a perfect reconciliation. To have purified me in the waters of baptism was not enough; thou hast also left me the waters of penance, to wash me still more from my iniquities, and cleanse me from my sins. For this end thou hast left to the Church, in the persons of the apostles, the power of remitting our offences: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost; whose sins ye shall forgive, shall be forgiven.” O what excessive goodness! What an advantage to poor sinners, to have a tribunal established for them, always open, where they may be received into favor! Can I ever be insensible to so striking an instance of thy bounty? I have withdrawn myself from thee by a formal contempt of thy law, and thou art pleased to make the first advances to meet me: O Father of mercies, and God of goodness, be thou forever blessed! Permit me to fly to this powerful refuge; and suffer not that, by a new ingratitude, I should for the future ever abuse so excellent a resource of salvation. No: it is not human respect, nor custom, nor the fear of being thought careless of my soul, that brings me at present to this sacrament of reconciliation; no, it is a sincere regret for having incurred thy displeasure; for who can be at rest, O my God, when he knows that he is thy enemy, and that he has offended the very best of fathers?

Beg of God to make your sins known to you, and to give you a true sense of their malice. Prostrate yourself in spirit at the feet of your Redeemer, as Magdalen did when she washed them with her tears; or imagine yourself on Mount Calvary, and there, beneath his cross, pour forth your prayers to him, resolving to acquit yourself of this confession, as if it were to be your last.

O Holy Spirit, eternal Source of Light, mercifully vouchsafe to enlighten the darkness of my understanding, that I may clearly perceive the true state of my conscience. who hast created me, and art to be my judge, dost fully behold the most secret recesses of my heart; show me now, therefore, my sins, in as conspicuous a manner as I shall behold them when on the point of appearing at thy tremendous tribunal. My object at present is, to prevent the rigorous account I must there give of all my thoughts, words, and actions; for were I now deficient in that sincere exactness which is necessary in the examination and confession of my sins, thou wouldst infallibly correct, at thy unerring tribunal, the injustice and iniquity of such a proceeding. Discover, then, to me, O my God, all these secret thoughts, irregular desires, criminal words, and actions, or omissions of my duty, by which I may have violated thy sacred laws, or scandalized my neighbor. O do not permit self-love to seduce and blind me, but rather remove the veil it places before my eyes, that, beholding the true state of my interior, I may make an humble and sincere confession of my sins to thy minister.

I desire, like the prodigal child, to enter seriously into myself, and without delay to forsake my evil ways, in which I have been wearied out in the pursuit of empty toys and mere shadows, seeking in vain to satisfy my thirst with muddy waters, and my hunger with the husks of swine. I ardently desire to return to thee, O Fountain of Life! but, O my God, though I can go astray from thee fast enough, when left to myself, yet I cannot make one step towards returning to thee, unless thy divine grace stir me up and assist me. This grace, then, I most humbly implore, prostrate in spirit before the throne of thy mercy. I beg it for the sake of Jesus Christ, my Redeemer, who died upon the cross for me and for all sinners. Thou hast said, “There is joy in heaven for one sinner that doeth penance.” Give me now the grace of true repentance, and let heaven rejoice at my conversion. Assist me in this great work by thy heavenly light, in order that I may discover all my imperfections, see all my sins in their true colors, and sincerely detest and confess them. I know thou desirest not the death of a sinner, but rather that he be converted and live. I know that thy mercies are above all thy works, and I most confidently hope, that as in thy mercy thou hast spared me so long, and hast now given me this desire of returning to thee, so thou wilt finish the work that thou hast begun, by assisting me in every part of my preparation for it, and bringing me to a perfect reconciliation with thee.

Examine yourself attentively, not only on the sins you have committed since your last confession, but also on the faults you may have committed in making it; but beware of scrupulosity or anxiety; for in this examination it is only necessary that you should use such a moral diligence as any temporal concern might require, where it is neither your intention nor your interest to be deceived. For this purpose, calmly recollect on the different occasions of sin which have since fallen in your way, or to which your state and condition of life exposes you; the places you have frequented, the persons you have conversed with; &c. &c.; in the doing of which the following table of sins will greatly assist you.

IN MATTERS OF FAITH. Have you been guilty of heresy, or disbelief of any article of faith, or of voluntarily doubting of any article of faith?—Have you rashly exposed yourself to the danger of infidelity, by reading bad books, keeping wicked company, going into places of worship belonging to other communions during the time of their service, and joining with them in their worship?—Have you, by word or deed, denied your faith, or railed at or despised holy things?—Have you been ignorant of the articles of your faith and the duties of your religion, or have you been negligent in instructing, or procuring the necessary instructions for those under your care?—Have you given credit to dreams, taken notice of omens, or made any other superstitious observations?—Have you used charms or spells, or consulted fortune-tellers, or made use of any other superstitious practices to find out things to come, recover things lost, &c.?—How often? and with what scandal and ill example to others?

OF HOPE. Have you despaired of salvation, or of the forgiveness of your sins?—Have you rashly presumed upon God’s goodness, continuing to offend Him because He is merciful; going on in your sins, without any thought of amendment, depending upon a death-bed repentance?—Have you relied upon yourself rather than upon divine grace; or neglected for a long time to return to God by repentance after falling into mortal sin?

OF CHARITY. Have you loved any creature as much or more than God?—Have you murmured against the providence of God, resisted His inspirations, refused to submit to His divine will, not prevented evil when you could and ought, committed sins through human respect?

OF RELIGION. Have you made a sacrilegious confession or communion?—Have you received the sacraments of confirmation or matrimony in the state of mortal sin?—Have you abused the Holy Scripture, or profaned holy places or sacred things?—Have you blasphemed God or His saints?—Have you been negligent in the divine worship, seldom or never adoring and praising God, or giving Him thanks for His benefits?—Have you prayed but seldom, or with little attention, or omitted to make acts of faith, hope, and charity?—Have you behaved with irreverence in the house of God, or broken any vow or solemn promise made to him?—Have you neglected to hear Mass on Sundays and holy-days of obligation?—or have you heard it with willful distractions, or not taken care that your children or servants should hear it?—Have you neglected confession and communion at Easter, or omitted the penance enjoined you, or acquitted yourself of these religious duties carelessly?—Have you sworn falsely, or what you did not certainly know whether it was true or false?—Have you broken your lawful oaths, or sworn to do anything that was wicked or unlawful?—Have you had a custom of swearing rashly or inconsiderately, by the name of God, by your soul, or by the way of imprecation upon yourself or others?—Have you sworn by the blood or wounds of God, or any other blasphemous oath, or been accessary to others swearing, cursing, or blaspheming?—Have you spent the Sundays or holy-days of obligation in idleness or sin, or been the occasion of others so spending them?—Have you done any servile work without necessity upon those days?—Have you broken the days of abstinence, or eaten more than one meal on fasting days, or been accessary to others so doing?—How often, &c.

IN THOUGHTS. Have you been deficient in point of charity towards your neighbor?—Have you judged rashly of him?—Have you willfully entertained thoughts of hatred, aversion, rancor, or a coldness and resentment against him?—Have you, on this account, endeavored to avoid meeting or speaking to him?—Have you envied him in his merit, reputation, fortune or employments?—Have you conceived desires of revenge against him, and wished that harm might befall him?—Have you been hard-hearted, or without any feeling or compassion for him in his affliction?—Have you felt in yourself a secret pleasure and satisfaction when any disgrace happened to him, and discontent in seeing him thrive and flourish? [These sins may vary in their malice, according to the length of time we were thus affected, or the relation we stand in to the different persons in question, or according to the greater or less importance of the matter under our consideration.]

IN WORDS. Have you spoken harshly to your neighbor—given him abusive language—railed at him—mis called him—mocked and ridiculed him—exposed him to scorn—affronted him—censured his conduct—found fault with every-thing he did—put wrong constructions upon his actions—calumniated or detracted him—been pleased to hear others speak ill of him—listened to and encouraged the calumny or detraction when you could prevent such discourses? [N.B.—The motive for speaking thus, the number of persons present, and the subject of this uncharitable language, must be specified, as we are bound to repair the injury to the best of our power.]
We also sin by ill-natured reports or insinuations, malicious expressions, whether true or false—by giving bad advice and bad example—by instilling bad or dangerous principles—by flattering others, or approving of evil—by giving false testimony—by discovering the secrets or the faults of others—by abusive words, reproaches, bad wishes or imprecations, &c.

IN ACTIONS. Have you wronged, deceived, or circumvented your neighbor in buying or selling?—Have you injured him by stealing, cheating, usury, extortion, or any unlawful contract?—by putting off false money, or using false weights or measures?—Have you bought or received stolen goods?—Have you contracted debts without design of paying them?

We also sin by wronging our creditors, or our own family, by prodigal expenses—by refusing to pay our just debts when able, or by culpable extravagance rendering ourselves unable to pay them—by neglecting the work or business for which we were hired, and obliged by contract to perform; in fine, by unjustly taking or keeping any thing of value belonging to another; in which case it is impossible to obtain forgiveness without making restitution to the best of our power. [And here it is to be observed, that where two or more jointly injure another, in goods or reputation, they are jointly and severally obliged to restitution; that is to say, they are bound to contribute their respective proportions towards repairing the injury; and every individual of them is answerable before God for the whole injury, when either or any of the accomplices refuse to repair their portion thereof.]

IN OMISSIONS. Have you neglected to succor, comfort, and assist your neighbor in necessity?—Have you neglected to restore ill-gotten goods, or to repair injured characters?—Have you refused to be reconciled to an enemy, or to perform duties of obligation, such as respect and love towards parents, obedience to superiors, &c.

BY PRIDE. In having too great an esteem for ourselves, and haughtily despising others; in being too apt to speak of our own affairs, or in our own praise; in aspiring to honors and preferment through vanity; in affecting to be humble, or in deceiving others by hypocrisy; in being influenced in what we do by human respects, for obtaining the applause and esteem of men; in being too much wedded to our own opinions and inclinations; in being too solicitous about our health; in being too fond of the pleasures, comforts, and conveniences of life.

BY AVARICE. In being backward in giving alms according to our ability; in squandering away in gaming, or in vain and foolish expenses, the substance that Providence hath given for the relief of the poor and distressed; in not only refusing them an alms which we can afford, but in refusing it with bitterness, reproaches, imperious, ill-natured language, or with an insulting air; in being too much attached to the goods of this life; where it must be ever remembered, that whatever is really superfluous to us belongs of right to the poor; that where there is much, much should be given; and that where there is only a little, even some of that little should be cheerfully given; for “God loves the cheerful giver.”

BY ENVY. In being sorry for the prosperity of others—in rejoicing at their misfortunes—in wishing with jealousy for what belongs to them.

BY IMPURITY. In willfully dwelling upon, or taking pleasure in unchaste thoughts. [N.B.—The penitent must here mention whether these bad thoughts were entertained during a considerable time, and how long; whether they were accompanied with desires of committing the evil; whether they caused irregular motions; whether in a holy place; and, finally, whether the objects of these sinful desires were single or married, kindred or relations, or persons consecrated to God.]

BY WORDS. In speaking obscenely, or with a double meaning, which is as bad, if not worse; in listening with pleasure to such vile language. [N.B.—This sort of dis course is still more criminal, when it passes between two persons of a different sex. We also sin grievously in this way by singing unchaste songs, by giving toasts and sentiments contrary to modesty, or by permitting them to be given when we can prevent them, or by not retiring on such occasions.]

BY LOOKS. In viewing immodest objects; in reading bad books; in keeping indecent pictures; in frequenting plays and public assemblies, which are but too often the schools of vice, where dangerous objects are held up to view, and where vice is represented, not in its native horrible colors or consequences, but as mere gaiety. Comedies also are so full of indecent sentiments and indelicate allusions as cannot but offend a modest ear, and have an immoral tendency. They are not only powerful incentives to this vice, but are besides evidently unlawful, for the following reason: viz. because we cannot assist at them without contributing, by our purse and our example, to maintain a set of people in a profession or way of life which was always deemed infamous by the Catholic Church. Under this head likewise may be classed the tempting of others to sin by dissolute glances, gestures, or immodesty in dress or behavior.

BY ACTIONS. In abusing and defiling the sanctity of marriage by such liberties and irregularities as are contrary to the order of nature; in touching ourselves or others immodestly; in permitting indecent liberties to be taken with us. [N.B.—It is necessary to explain everything, in order to make known such circumstances as may increase or diminish the guilt, with as much modesty as possible; and also to declare whether we have employed, or neglected to employ, the necessary means of overcoming this vile passion. We should carefully distinguish what is willful from what is not—an effect of deliberation from one of mere negligence; also the number of these bad actions, or at least the length of time we continued in the habit of committing them; with what sort of persons we have sinned, or desired to sin (without mentioning their names). And, as it too often happens with young persons—who have miserably fallen into a certain sin of a lonely and abominable nature—either to conceal this crime or not faithfully confess how often they have been guilty of it, we therefore earnestly beseech such to reflect seriously on the fatal evils in which they involve themselves. Let them consider that all those confessions, and the communions which follow them, are only so many sacrileges, removing them still farther from God, and provoking his just indignation against them; that the longer they continue in this state of hypocrisy, the more difficult it must be to overcome their bashfulness, and the more anguish they must feel in their own interior; that no practice is more destructive of health, beauty, or genius, than this; that it deforms and debilitates the wretched perpetrator; that it must, not only in a moral, but also in a physical sense, degrade him beneath the rank of the brute creation, and render him contemptible to mankind.]

BY GLUTTONY. In exceeding the bounds prescribed by temperance; in eating or drinking to excess; in exciting others to do so; in not observing with due exactness the days of fasting and abstinence enjoined by the Church; in exceeding the quantity which is usually allowed at collation.

BY ANGER. In abusing, quarrelling, striking, or wishing evil to others; in provoking others to quarrel or fight. Which sins are still more heinous when parents or superiors are the objects thereof.

BY SLOTH. In neglecting our religious or moral duties; in performing them carelessly; in leading a life of idleness, voluptuousness, and dissipation; in passing our time unprofitably, when the duties of our state call on us to labor. We are also guilty by following the bent of our inclinations, and gratifying self-love—by studying too much our own ease—by too great a remissness in mortifying our passions or senses.

Having discovered the different sorts of sins of which you have been guilty, together with their number, enormity, or such aggravating circumstances as may considerably increase their malice or change their nature, your next endeavor should be to excite in your breast a heart-felt sorrow for having committed them, and a sincere detestation of them. This being the most essential, as well as the most difficult, of all the dispositions requisite to a good confession, with what humility, fervor, and perseverance should you not importune Him who holds the hearts of men in his hands, to grant it you!

In the meantime, seriously meditate on those powerful motives for exciting contrition which the Church holds forth to her children; and, in order to feel their force the more effectually, endeavor to enliven your faith, to strengthen your hope, and inflame your charity, by devoutly reciting the acts of the three theological virtues.

In the next place reflect on those motives most capable of alarming, and at the same time melting your heart into compunction: such as the everlasting torments of hell; the eternal loss of God and of the joys of heaven; the horror and filthiness of sin; the goodness of God in all He has done, all He still does, and all He will do for us if we continue to love and serve Him; particularly that astonishing instance of His love and undeserved mercy, in forbearing to cut your slender thread of life and to precipitate you into eternal torments in the very height of your rebellion against Him.

This consideration alone must necessarily engage you to cry out with ecstatic surprise and astonishment, “How good must God be in Himself who has been so good to me, His faithless and ungrateful child!” He saw nothing in you deserving of His mercy; He saw everything in you that merited His wrath and indignation.

This last reflection on the infinite goodness of God, if dwelt on with due attention, cannot fail to inflame your heart with an unfeigned love of Him for His own sake—the purest and best of all motives. Whilst the heart is thus softened by divine love into compunction for your sins, form an unshaken resolution of never more offending Him, of doing your utmost to amend your life, of satisfying for your sins, and of repairing any injury you may have done your neighbor, either in his character or property.

If, with these sentiments glowing in your breast, you cast yourself at the feet of your confessor and reveal to him all the sins you can recollect, with tears of compunction and in a truly penitential spirit, be assured you shall return with joy from the tribunal of confession, and feel realized in yourself the consoling promise of the Holy Spirit, “They who sow in tears, shall reap in joy.” — Psalm 125 (cxxv)