O GOD, the Father of light! Thou who enlightenest all men that come into this world, send into my poor soul a ray of the holy light of lore and contrition, that I may know, detest, and confess the sins which I have committed against thee. I desire to see my sins in all their enormity, and just as they are in thy sight: I wish to detest them for the love of thee, and to confess them with the same sincerity as I should wish to do at the moment of my death. Jesus, my God and Saviour, I offer to thee the examination which I am going to make, and I look to thee with confidence for the grace to do it well. And do thou, O Mother of God, assist me, thou who art so full of compassion for sinners that desire truly to repent of their sins.
Help me, my holy Guardian Angel! help me to know all the offences which I have committed against my God. O! all ye Saints in heaven, pray for me, that I may bring forth worthy fruits of penance. Amen.
Here examine your conscience on the Ten Commandments of God, the Precepts of the Church, the Seven Deadly Sins, etc.
O MY God! the God of my heart! my soul! my life! my refuge ! my strength ! whom I have so much offended that neither the sands on the seashore, the stars in the heavens, the flowers of the fields, nor the leaves of the trees, can equal the infinite number and unspeakable variety of my sins. I have sinned; I have offended thee, and done evil before heaven and earth. I have departed from thy law; turned my back on thy grace; adored what offended thee; made an idol of my guilt; and ran on without fear or shame in the ways of deceit,
