-In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

Eternal God,
We thank You for every gift You have given us. There is nothing
that we can ever, adequately, give You because we can create
nothing on our own. Everything we have, You created. We can only
offer our praise and worship to You. You are gracious, You are
glorious, and You are very merciful.

Almighty Father,
We continue to follow faithlessly, the ways of the world. We are
continually told that we are in charge of our own destinies. We
become increasingly distracted and disappointed in the lies and
delusions that fail to satisfy us.
Father,
We ask You for the grace of courage to defend our faith always.
We ask You for the grace of perseverance to not weary of
combatting the deceit and lies of the world.
We ask You for the grace of strength to endure to the end to be
united, in reality, to You for eternity.
We ask all these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

-In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

A Brief on Examination of Conscience

This particular Deacon's Corner is certainly not a complete guide to the Examination of Conscience, but as we take a look at the Ten Commandments and answer a simple (maybe not so simple) question for help Here we go...

Have I treated, people, events, or things as more important than God?

Have my words, activities or passively put down God, the Church, or people?

Do I go to Mass every Sunday (or Saturday) and on Holy Days of Obligation?

Do I avoid, when possible, work that impedes worship to God, joy for the Lord's Day and proper relaxation of mind and body on these days?

Do I look for ways to spend time with family or in service on Sunday?

Do I show my parents due respect?

Do I seek to maintain good communication with my parents where possible?

Do I criticize them for lacking skills I think they should have?

Have I harmed another through physical, verbal or emotional means. including gossip or manipulation of any kind?

Have I respected the physical and sexual dignity of others or of myself?

Have I taken or wasted time or resources that belong to another?

8.You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

Have I gossiped, told lies or embellished stories at the expense of another?

Have I honored my spouse with full affection and exclusive love?

Am I content with my own mans and needs, or do I compare myself to others unnecessarily/

'

Seriously, do we really think about the state of our souls? I mean, do we
remind ourselves that something may, first, be a temptation and,
secondly, a sin, and, lastly, do we make an effort to avoid both? Do we
take this seriously or do we think it’s not really necessary? Do we think
that Satan, hell, and eternal isolation from the love of God just isn’t a
“thing” to be concerned about?
Our current culture of moral relativism tells us we get to choose what’s
good and evil, right and wrong, and if sin is even a “thing”. I get to
choose if this is relevant in my life. I get to make my own rules and/or
decide which rules I’ll follow. In reality, sin is the only real evil and
infinite mercy is the remedy.
Here is something to ponder…
When God (and Moses) brought the Israelites out of Egypt and the slavery
they had been in for over 400 years, not everyone was happy about it.
(But, duh, they were slaves!) We are told, in fact, how they complained
in the desert: “O that we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate
in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions,
and the garlic.” (Num 11: 4-5) (Ok, you had food, but you were slaves!)
So it is with us and sin. We have the effect of leaving our slavery to sin
behind us when we go to Confession, but we still have affection for our
sin. At Confession, we’re sorry, we do penance, but we’re not that sorry.
Our human nature tends toward moral relativism. We want to be in
charge of our destiny, and we want God to be what our “image” of Him
is; not as He truly is.
Even when we resolve to change and not sin again; even when we detest
our sins, see their ugliness, and fear hell, our human inclination to sin
(concupiscence) leads us to sin again.
So…what’s the point?
The incredible goodness of God does not condemn us. Instead, God’s
goodness is recognition of our created nature being “very good”. (Gen
1:31) It is our free will that allows us to choose to love God or the world.

Resistance to temptation and sin requires effort on our part, but when we
are truly aware of God’s goodness, He reveals to us the story of our life,
which is the story of HIS love for us.
We need to grow in our hatred of sin in order to grow in love for virtue.
St. Bernard speaks of how miserable it is to return to slavery of our
disordered passions once we have tasted the grace of God.
Let us pray.
Almighty Father, we thank You for Your forgiveness each time we return
to the slavery of sin.
We ask for the grace to recognize our affection for sin and to reject any
inclination to return to our sinful nature. We ask for the grace of strength
and perseverance to conquer our sinfulness and focus on Your goodness,
truth, and beauty in our lives. We want to live in Your freedom and not
in slavery to the world.
We pray this in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.
Points to ponder:
1. What is perfect contrition?
2. What is imperfect contrition?
3. Why is prayer, fasting, and almsgiving considered essential to our
conversion?
Resources:
1. Fulfillment of All Desire by Dr. Ralph Martin chapter 6
2. 2 Cor 5:14-21
3. Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)1452, 1455, 1456,1459, and
1460

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