Examination of conscience
The examination of conscience is a pious exercise in which the management of one's own life is considered and reflected .
In the Roman Catholic Church , the conscience has its place every evening in Compline , at oftener conscience even in the middle of the day, before receiving the sacraments , especially before the holy communion and the reception of the sacrament of Penance , as part of a retreat Community or in Penitential services . No. 1454 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church lists among the penitent’s files:
“It is appropriate to prepare to receive the sacrament of penance by examining one's conscience in the light of God's Word. The most suitable texts can be found in the moral directives of the Gospels and the Apostles' letters : in the Sermon on the Mount and the exhortations of the Apostles . "
St. Ignatius von Loyola , who recommends the examination of conscience twice a day, at noon and in the evening, distinguishes between the general examination of conscience and the particular one, which always relates only to a certain error and its eradication. According to him, both types are supposed to be connected to each other at the time of the examination of conscience. For the general examination of conscience he cites five points:
- Give thanks to God our Lord for the benefits received
- Asking grace to recognize and cast off sins
- Demanding an account of one's soul, from the hour of rising to the present trial, hour after hour, time after time; and first about thoughts, then about words, then about works
- Asking forgiveness from God our Lord for the wrongdoings
- Make reform with his grace, Our Father
So-called conscience mirrors also offer assistance in examining your conscience . These are often aligned with the ten commandments or the main works of mercy .
Individual evidence
- ^ Catechism of the Catholic Church , subsection The Acts of the Penitent