The Most EVIL Examination of Conscience!

[Anathama_Sit]

Again, this is where prudential judgement comes in. If someone comes to you with problems that are legitimate, you have good reason to listen. Examine first your reason for listening! If it merely to listen to scandal and please your appetites in that regard, you need to change something. If it is purely so that you may offer advice and help, you are doing things right. Remember that you can still listen while at the same time saying something like “spare me the details, I just want to know in what way I can help you?” In other words, instead of all the details just hear the overall problem. Perhaps that is the better way to think about it. Don’t worry too much about it - if your intentions are pure you will never be in sin. You can’t sin by mistake.

I think this is best! I’m no Moral Theologian nor anywhere near holy enough to be giving advice if that’s what it looks like I am doing. I’m only discussing my thoughts on the matter and am up for correction! Your Spiritual Director will know best.

God bless.

Greetings NewsTheMan,

This is sound advice. I do not know why people think I need to hear the details, I shall curb them next time. Sometimes I wish others would go to someone besides me for advice.

God Bless.
Anathama Sit

 

[JaMc]

On one issue at least this examination seems to be muddled:

Committed slander or calumny? (Telling lies about another person in order to destroy his reputation.)
Committed libel? (Writing lies about another person in order to destroy his reputation.)

I think these are British civil law definitions within the law of defamation. the church recognises the sin of telling lies to lower a person’s reputation, (calumny) and also telling the truth without just cause to lower a person’s reputation. I also think that in church teaching the reputation does not have to be destroyed, only lowered.

Sorry, OP. I realise I have added another sin for you to be concerned about!

It says “in order to” destroy someone’s reputation. It says nothing about succeeding - you just have to intend or be trying to do so. By putting it in terms of “libel” and “slander,” I think it’s trying to use terms familiar to most English-speaking people - I don’t think the author intends to say that it’s only sinful if it meets the legal elements of the torts of Libel and Slander.

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Here is an entirely different take on an examination of conscience.
Some one gave me a printed copy of this a few years ago.

What was not included was this quote from the blog post it was in

While the Ten Commandments mostly tell us what to avoid, the Beatitudes tell us what to become.
By examining Our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount, we can take a deeper look at the state of our souls before Confession.

I find this type of examen to actually be much, much harder.

 

[Anathama_Sit]

Here is an entirely different take on an examination of conscience.
Some one gave me a printed copy of this a few years ago.

What was not included was this quote from the blog post it was in

I find this type of examen to actually be much, much harder.

Greetings Oneofthewomen,

Thanks for sharing that. I found that to be interesting. I shall share that with some of my friends.

God Bless.
Anathama Sit

 

[TrueLight]

Here is an entirely different take on an examination of conscience.
Some one gave me a printed copy of this a few years ago.

What was not included was this quote from the blog post it was in

I find this type of examen to actually be much, much harder.

I love it!

 

[onmyknees]

I love the Beatitudes! I personally think it is harder to not sin by omission than it is to not sin by commission.

 

[ImmaBV]

ATeutonic, I use this examination because it is crystal clear on what is mortal sin and what is venial, also it describes the sins in more detail. catholicparents.org/oxcart/Examination%20of%20Conscience.pdf I hope this helps you.

Thanks much both ATeutonicKnight and Onmyknees for your very helpful posts, also all the others. If something have given me much suffering, is how I could prepare well for confession. These posts have been so enlightening and educative. I have recently been using a similar detailed examination of conscience, and the more sins I can remember the better. I am most worried if I can not remember at least several sins, because I must go to confession at least once monthly. The longer I delay the worse my memory goes. The thing I am sure of is that I have many many more sins than I can ever rememer, so if you have a rigourous detailed form of examination of conscience, I am all for it, plus much of your prayers and God’s grace of course. And - I always wonder how could some saints confess daily, if not because of these smart guidances??

 

[Anathama_Sit]

Thanks much both ATeutonicKnight and Onmyknees for your very helpful posts, also all the others. If something have given me much suffering, is how I could prepare well for confession. These posts have been so enlightening and educative. I have recently been using a similar detailed examination of conscience, and the more sins I can remember the better. I am most worried if I can not remember at least several sins, because I must go to confession at least once monthly. The longer I delay the worse my memory goes. The thing I am sure of is that I have many many more sins than I can ever rememer, so if you have a rigourous detailed form of examination of conscience, I am all for it, plus much of your prayers and God’s grace of course. And - I always wonder how could some saints confess daily, if not because of these smart guidances??

Greetings ImmaBV,

There are some who do a daily examination of conscience as well at night before going to bed. I have found that doing a daily examination of conscience helps greatly, it does not have to be detailed as the ones that have been enumerated in here, but enough to cover any serious sins [mortal] and or venail if you wish.

I am blessed to be able to go to Confession when needed. Some saints could go to Confession everyday because their situation was that they were around priests everyday, for example Blessed John Paul II. My life circumstances at the moment place me in proximity to several priests every single day, so Confession is there if I need it.

God Bless.
Anathama Sit

 

[ATeutonicKnight]

Greetings ImmaBV,

There are some who do a daily examination of conscience as well at night before going to bed. I have found that doing a daily examination of conscience helps greatly, it does not have to be detailed as the ones that have been enumerated in here, but enough to cover any serious sins [mortal] and or venail if you wish.

I am blessed to be able to go to Confession when needed. Some saints could go to Confession everyday because their situation was that they were around priests everyday, for example Blessed John Paul II. My life circumstances at the moment place me in proximity to several priests every single day, so Confession is there if I need it.

God Bless.
Anathama Sit

I wish I had that opportunity. Going to confession daily would be a blessing, and doing a daily examination of conscience wouldn’t be so bad, either.

 

[Anathama_Sit]

I wish I had that opportunity. Going to confession daily would be a blessing, and doing a daily examination of conscience wouldn’t be so bad, either.

Greetings ATeutonicKnight,

I used to be very anxious about Confession until my Confessor said to start doing a daily examination of conscience. It has taken out most of the anxiety of the Confession of my sins now. The only anxiety that I have now is sometimes having to confess what I confess too, but I am sure everyone goes through this. I just remind myself just wait until Absolution and that pulls me through.

Yes I am blessed to have this opportunity, I believe this is helping me in great volumes that perhaps I’ll never be able to quanitify on this side of eternity.

God Bless.
Anathama Sit

 

[solomonkane]

Great thread, if you look at enough examination of conscience “templates” you will see common threads running through them.

This is the one I used when I made my first general Confession after being in the the wilderness for 21 years. I did this over 4 days for 2 hours a day; that’s about all I could handle before I went TOO loopy thinking about things. The general confession went for 45v minutes, but i felt so refreshed after it, I can’t really describe it in words.

I printed this guide out and basically read from it as my confession. I made an appointment with the priest first and informed him it was to be a general confession. he was more than happy to oblige and set aside a full hour for it, and I used nearly all of it, as previously mentioned.

willingshepherds.org/Examination.html

God Bless you all on your journey. Oh, and next week I’m attending a five-day silent Ignatian Retreat here in Australia, led by some Benedictine monks from Clairval Abbey in Flavigny, France. Looking forward to that…

 

[Oneofthewomen]

Great thread, if you look at enough examination of conscience “templates” you will see common threads running through them.

This is the one I used when I made my first general Confession after being in the the wilderness for 21 years. I did this over 4 days for 2 hours a day; that’s about all I could handle before I went TOO loopy thinking about things. The general confession went for 45v minutes, but i felt so refreshed after it, I can’t really describe it in words.

I printed this guide out and basically read from it as my confession. I made an appointment with the priest first and informed him it was to be a general confession. he was more than happy to oblige and set aside a full hour for it, and I used nearly all of it, as previously mentioned.

willingshepherds.org/Examination.html

God Bless you all on your journey. Oh, and next week I’m attending a five-day silent Ignatian Retreat here in Australia, led by some Benedictine monks from Clairval Abbey in Flavigny, France. Looking forward to that…

Thanks for sharing. I had a similar experience when I returned to the church, and have now embraced the sacrament.
I did the 19th Annotation of the “Spiritual Exercises”- the experience changed my life! I pray that you receive wonderful graces from your retreat. Peace be with you !!

 

[onmyknees]

Wow! I thought the one I use was very specific! This one goes into so much more! After reading the whole thing I think I need to make a general confession I am too scared to go face to face. May I make a general confession behind a screen?

 

[solomonkane]

Don’t be afraid of confession, I’ve always liked this quote from St Isidore of Seville:

“Confession heals, confession justifies, confession grants pardon of sin. All hope consists in confession. In confession there is a chance for mercy. Believe it firmly. Do not doubt, do not hesitate, never despair of the mercy of God. Hope and have confidence in confession.”

 

[mankind0]

Here is a really detailed examination of conscience though willingshepherds.org/Examination.html is also a great one. It is fisheaters.com/penance.html. Some of the questions were downright comical, but they are very true.