Читать книгу The Complete Manual of Catholic Piety - William Gahan - Страница 52

If it be a duty of the greatest importance to begin the day well, it is, doubtless, one of no less consequence to conclude it properly. The new graces conferred on us daring the course of the day, and the protection we stand in need of against the dangers of the night, are urgent reasons why we should address ourselves to God, and pray to him with the utmost gratitude and fervour.

A daily Examination of Conscience, both in general, with regard to our whole conduct throughout the day, and in particular, with regard to our predominant vice, passion, or evil custom, and the particular virtue we want to acquire, is strongly recommended by all spiritual writers, as one of the most important duties of a Christian life, and the most profitable exercise we can apply ourselves to, both for the avoiding of sin, and the acquiring of virtue. It is a looking-glass, in which we see ourselves in our true colours, and come to the knowledge of our sins and evil inclinations. It is a sponge, by which we wipe away guilt from our souls, and become the more pure before God, the more diligently we practise it. If we do not daily weed the garden of our souls by this holy exercise, the corrupt ground of the heart will naturally produce vices and imperfections in abundance.

The nightly Examination of Conscience makes up the principal part of the last exercise of the day. The method thereof consists in the following acts, viz., of the presence of God, thanksgiving, supplication, examine, sorrow, and good resolutions.

The many single blessings which God has bestowed and does bestow on those families where prayers are regularly said in common, should alone be a sufficient inducement to establish this practice every where, and chiefly at night, when all may be assembled with greater convenience.—"Where two or three persons shall be assembled in my name, there," saith Christ, "shall I be in the midst of them." O Christians, what stronger inducement can we have to procure so great a happiness?

+ In the name of the Father, &c. Amen.

Blessed be the holy and undivided Trinity, now and for evermore. Amen.

Come, O Holy Ghost, replenish the hearts of the faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of thy divine love. Amen.

Let us place ourselves in the presence of God,

and humbly adore him.

Impressed with the most lively sense of the presence of thy Eternal Majesty, I adore thee, O my God! I believe in thee, because thou art truth itself; I hope in thee, because thou art faithful to thy word; I love thee with my whole heart, because thou art infinitely amiable and worthy of my love; and, for thy sake, I love my neighbour as myself.

Let us return thanks to God for the favours he has conferred on us.

Enable me, O Lord, to return thee sufficient thanks for all thy inestimable blessings and favours.

Thou hast thought of me, and loved me, from all eternity; thou hast formed me from nothing; thou hast delivered up thy beloved Son to the ignominious death of the cross for my redemption; thou didst preserve me from falling into the abyss of eternal misery, when my sins had often provoked thee to cut the slender thread of my life, which thou heldest in thy all-powerful and chastising hand; and thou still continuest to preserve me, notwithstanding I still continue to offend thee. Alas! my God, what return can I make for the innumerable blessings thou hast conferred on me, during the whole course of my life, as well as for the particular favours of this day? O all ye angels and saints! unite with me in praising the God of Mercies, who is so bountiful to so unworthy a creature.

Let us beg of God to make our sins known to us.

O Eternal Source of Light! who saidst, "Let there be light," and there was light; illuminate the darkness of my understanding, and dispel those shades of ignorance and error, which conceal from me the filth and enormity of my offences. Discover to me, I beseech thee, all the sins I have committed this day, whether in thought, word, deed, or omission; grant me a lively sense of their enormity, in order that I may hold them in the utmost detestation, and dread nothing so much as ever to commit them hereafter.

Let us examine our consciences, and consider where and in what company we have been this day. Let us also call to mind the sins we have committed against God, our neighbour, and ourselves, and reflect whether we have fulfilled the duties of our state of life.

Against God: By omission or negligence in the discharge of our religious duties; irreverence in the church; wilful distractions or inattention at prayer; resistance to the divine grace; oaths; murmurings; want of confidence and resignation. Pause and examine.

Against our Neighbour: By rash judgments; hatred; jealousy; contempt; desire of revenge; quarrelling; passion; imprecations; injuries; detraction; raillery; false reports; damaging, either in goods or reputation; bad example; scandal; want of obedience, respect, charity, or fidelity. Pause and examine.

Against Ourselves: By vanity; human respect; lies; thoughts, desires, discourses, or actions contrary to purity; by intemperance, rage, or impatience; by an useless and sensual life; or by sloth, in not complying with the duties of our state. Pause and examine.

Repeat the General Confession, "I confess," &c. p. 29.