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Create a
clean heart in me, O God
PRAISED BE JESUS
CHRIST!
(Now and Forever)
In this column last week, I pledged to share an examination of
conscience. In doing so, it is my hope that during this Lenten
Season quality time will be taken to prayerfully reflect on those things
that impede our growth in holiness and that the examination of
conscience will prove helpful in doing that.
“Create a clean heart in me, O God” (Psalm 51) is the basic Lenten
theme. Regular use of the sacrament of penance opens our lives to God so
a clean heart may be created in us.
Confession (also called the sacrament of penance or the sacrament of
reconciliation) should not be limited to Lent, of course. Utilization of
the sacrament is part and parcel of the call to conversion which results
in “a clean heart.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church
instructs in article 1422: “Those who approach the sacrament of penance
obtain pardon from God’s mercy for the offense committed against him,
and are, at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have
wounded by their sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer
labors for their conversion.”
The ritual for the sacrament was revised in 1973. This was called for by
the Second Vatican Council. Scripture readings and prayers were added to
the ritual for penance and new forms for the celebration of the
sacrament were introduced. By 1975 an English translation of the ritual
was at hand. The study edition of that publication included an
examination of conscience.
No effort was made to distinguish between mortal and venial sins in this
examination of conscience. Rather, via a list of questions, it suggests
that a person needs to challenge himself/herself whether he/she
sincerely wants to enter into a deeper relationship with God. The goal
was not to make people scrupulous or to place burdens, but to make us
aware of the areas where, without vigilance, we place a clean heart in
harm’s way.
The examination is divided into three sections, each of which is
introduced by a Scripture quotation.
Section I. The Lord says: “You shall love the Lord your God with your
whole heart.”
1. Is my heart set on God, so that I really love him above all things
and am faithful to his commandments, as a child loves his parents? Or am
I more concerned about the things of this world? Have I a right
intention in what I do?
2. God spoke to us in his Son. Is my faith in God firm and secure? Am I
wholehearted in accepting the Church’s teaching? Have I been careful to
grow in my understanding of the faith, to hear God’s word, to listen to
instructions in the faith, to avoid dangers to faith? Have I been always
strong and fearless in professing my faith in God and the Church? Have I
been willing to be known as a Christian in private and public life?
3. Have I prayed morning and evening? When I pray, do I raise my mind
and heart to God or is it a matter of words only? Do I offer God my
difficulties, my joys and my sorrows? Do I turn to God in time of
temptation?
4. Have I love and reverence for God’s name? Have I offended him in
blasphemy, swearing falsely, or taking his name in vain? Have I shown
disrespect for the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints?
5. Do I keep Sundays and feast days holy by taking a full part, with
attention and devotion, in the liturgy, and especially in the Mass? Have
I fulfilled the precept of annual confession?
6. Are there false gods that I worship by giving them greater attention
and deeper trust than I give to God: money, superstition, spiritism or
other occult practices?
The second and third sections of this “examination of conscience” will
be shared in my column next week. In the meantime, some thoughts from
the Catechism.
It is the apostle St. John who says: “If we say we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. But if we acknowledge our
sins, he who is just can be trusted to forgive our sins and cleanse us
from every wrong. If we say, we have never sinned, we make him a liar
and his words find no place in us” (1 John 1:8). This is powerful stuff.
Over and above this reality, however, is the task at hand if we are to
achieve the goal of our primary vocation. That vocation is to grow in
holiness. The cry of the psalmist should be the cry of every person
bonded to Jesus Christ by the sacraments of initiation (baptism,
confirmation, Eucharist). “Create a clean heart in me, O God.”
A good examination of conscience and confession opens our eyes to the
selfishness that blinds us to those things that hold us back from growth
in holiness. Sins and even faults that are not truly sins, submitted to
the sacrament of reconciliation, when faced realistically, opens our
eyes to the goodness of God and generates within us an attitude of
gratitude to the God whose love for us is beyond measure. The sacrament
of reconciliation is both a ministry of healing and a road to freedom.
On Easter Sunday, Jesus greeted his apostles for the first time after
his resurrection with the beautiful word Shalom, peace. That is
the goal of the sacrament of reconciliation. It is, perhaps, best
expressed in the dismissal recommended for the rite for the
reconciliation of individual penitents: “Go in peace, and proclaim to
the world the wonderful works of God, who has brought you salvation.” |
