Monday Morning Musing: An Examination to Guide Your Week

Christ desires us to bring forth the fruits of a holy life, i.e., He wishes us gradually to improve, to grow more just and charitable in our dealings with others, more humble and severe in judging ourselves. Do those who call themselves Christians invariably display these characteristics? If you are uncharitable, irritable, untrustworthy, harsh toward others, self-satisfied and self-indulgent, there is much reason to fear that your profession of Christianity is vain, and that you do not possess the Holy Spirit and are not united with Christ in the Spirit.

    Knud Karl Krogh-Tonning (+1911), Norwegian theologian, convert from Lutherinism

Note that we are encouraged to "gradually improve." God is patient with us giving us a model of how to be patient with others. I plan to read this every day this week as an examination of conscience. Lord, bless this week and make each of us better at the end of it than we were at the beginning.

Thought for the Day: Govern Yourself!

 Most days I read the saints of the day from Butler's Lives. Today is the feast of St. Henry the Emperor who died in the early 1022 and was one of the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire. A line from his description really hit me. While he had the responsibility of governing his nation, he had the prudence to recognize that, "the government of himself was his first obligation."

That invites serious introspection. How well do I govern myself? Do I reflect on my chief faults and work diligently to master them? Do I "govern" them by a prudent use of my intellect and will? A serious examination shows me exactly how often my faults govern me rather than me governing them. Thank God for the sacrament of Confession and the help of my guardian in mastering myself, a lifelong project.

Reading the lives of the saints always invites serious reflection on our faults and failings, but also our successes. At the end of the day, it's good to examine both. How well did I do in my actions? Did I omit something I should have done?

I am the queen of my own little nation. How well am I governing?

Fr. Tom Collins: A MORE DOCILE APPROACH TO AN EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE

Lent begins in a few weeks, so it's a good time to think about confession which always begins with a serious and fruitful examination of conscience. Fr. Tom gives us a how-to approach.

The Rite for the Sacrament of Reconciliation encourages the use of God’s Word, found in Holy Scripture and in Church Tradition, for the examination of one’s conscience.

Have you been to Confession Lately?

Fr. Tom suggests some important guidelines for examining your conscience. This would be a great article to run off and take with you (along with your Bible) for your next Confession.

A MORE DOCILE APPROACH TO THE EXAMINATION OF ONE’S CONSCIENCE

by Fr. Tom Collins

The Rite for the Sacrament of Reconciliation encourages the use of God’s Word, found in Holy Scripture and in Church Tradition, for the examination of one’s conscience. Just as a diagnosis of a sick person requires many forms of examination (e.g., blood tests, pulse, blood pressure, EEG, X-rays, EKG, urine analysis, CAT scan, etc.), so a thorough examination of conscience should consider the many dimensions of one’s spiritual life in the light of God’s revealed Word. Our need for diverse formats for an examination of conscience can be seen in a simple exercise. Counting the number of times "F" is found in the following sentence:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FOLLOWED BY MONTHS OF CAREFUL ANALYSIS OF THE FACTUAL DATA COLLECTED FROM IT.

The correct answer is at the bottom of this page in italics.