Examination of Conscience: The
Beatitudes & the Gifts
1: Blessed are the poor in
spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Holy Fear
Do I put my trust in Jesus in
difficulties, or do I react out of self-righteousness?
Do I humble myself before the
awesome majesty of God, or do I rebel by sin?
When I sin, do I humble myself
with great but not presumptive trust in God’s mercy?
Am I grateful to be a child of my
heavenly Father? To be redeemed by the Blood of His Son? To be the dwelling
place of the Holy Spirit?
Are the final things always
before me: Death, Judgment, Heaven or Hell? Am I preparing for my judgment when
I stand before the just Judge and my fate will be sealed for eternity?
Do I seek perfect happiness in
heaven before imperfect happiness on earth?
Is my life on earth one of
purification and love or gratification and selfishness?
Do I humbly accept all the
teachings of Christ as expressed by His Church?
Do I receive correction with
humility and gratitude?
Do I refer all glory to God,
being ever-fearful of the scourge of vainglory?
Do I have a holy fear of
offending God? Especially of receiving the sacraments unworthily?
2: Blessed are the meek: for they
shall possess the land.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Piety
Do I seek God above all
creatures, choosing the Father’s love before my inheritance?
Do I delight in being a child of
God? Do a delight in following His commands? Do I delight in Christ’s mandate
to “be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect”?
Do I long to grow in spiritual
childhood? Do I show reverence to Jesus, Mother Mary, and the angels and saints
in their images and statues in the Church and in my home?
Do I dispose myself towards the
sacraments in meekness? Do I go to confession regularly, even for lesser sins,
so that I receive Holy Communion fervently and gratefully?
Am I continually grateful for
Jesus’ death on the Cross? For the Holy Mass? For Holy Communion? For His
Mother Mary and His Divine Mercy?
Do I surrender joyfully to Divine
Providence in difficult situations, being trustful of the Father’s love?
Do I bear witness to the Truth of
Christ with the meekness of His Sacred Heart?
Do I seek my heavenly inheritance
before temporal gain?
Do I meekly submit to divine
authority as expressed through the Church, my parents and superiors, and all
licit channels of authority?
Do I honor the Images of the
Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart each day in my home?
Do I make reparation for the
blasphemies against our Lady: (1) blasphemies against Her Immaculate
Conception; blasphemies against her perpetual virginity; (3) blasphemies against
her Divine Maternity and being the Mother of men; (4) blasphemies of those who
try to engender hatred or indifference towards her; (5) offenses of those who
outrage Her directly in her images.
3: Blessed are they that mourn:
for they shall be comforted.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Knowledge
Do I have a holy compassion for
our Lord in His Passion, especially for his sufferings for my sins?
Do I patiently mourn when I feel
the weight of the Cross? Do I choose to fall under the weight of the Cross
rather than to fall by committing sin?
Do I have a heartfelt contrition
for my sin?
Am I open to the Gift of
knowledge so as to know my own misery and utter need for grace? Does this bring
me into a deeper understanding of my need for mercy and lead to greater
confidence in our Lord’s love for me?
Do I keep my own self-knowledge
(my misery and inclination towards selfishness) ever before me, especially when
I find myself judging others?
Do I mourn the sins of all
mankind instead of either denying the objective sins or condemning the sinner?
Do I mourn the world’s condition: Sacrilege, vainglory, ingratitude,
lukewarmness, pride, atheism, sexual depravity, rebellion to God’s loving laws,
abortion and euthanasia, etc.
Do I make good and frequent use
of the Sacrament of Penance?
Do I make fervent reparation for
offenses against the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary?
4: Blessed are they that hunger
and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Fortitude
Do I seek firstly God’s glory and
secondly to be a saint?
Do strive to love God with my
whole being?
Do I fight lukewarmness and
indifference in my everyday life?
Do I pray regularly for God’s
strength contained in His Gift of Fortitude? Do I thus carry my cross?
Do I make an offering of
everything I do?
Do I receive Holy Communion often
and always in the state of grace so that my love of God and neighbor is fueled
by our Lord loving within me?
Do I have confidence that every
effort towards loving God and neighbor will be rewarded?
Am I just and merciful with my
neighbor? Do I see Jesus in them and treat them accordingly?
Do I long for the sanctity of all
mankind? The conversion of sinners?
Does my compassion for my fellow
man first include his eternal salvation? Does this love then overflow towards
fulfilling his temporal needs?
Do I pray for dying souls? For
the souls in purgatory?
Do I have a holy longing for just
laws on earth that reflect the kingdom of God?
5: Blessed are the merciful: for
they shall obtain mercy.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Counsel
Do I delight in God’s Mercy as
His greatest attribute that I will ponder forever in heaven?
Am I always confident that He
will always forgive me in confession if I only bring heartfelt contrition?
Do I understand that the failure
to believe in God’s desire to forgive a sin is even worse than the sin itself?
Do I believe in my heart that all
souls - both the sinner and the righteous - are utterly dependent upon God’s
mercy?
Do I habitually make the right
decision to forgive others - and thus open my heart to likewise receive God’s
mercy? Do I remember our Lord’s request to forgive, his parable of the unjust
steward, and the separation of the sheep and goats on judgment day?
Do I pray for my enemies -
especially by making the necessary act of the will when I don’t feel like
praying for them?
Do I keep seeking to serve God
despite my misery - always confident of His mercy?
Do I strive to avoid all
presumption so as not to abuse His mercy?
Do I take advantage of the
special means for our times: The Divine Mercy image, chaplet, novena, hour of
mercy, and other devotions?
Do I try to perform the corporal
works of mercy without sullying them by vainglory? [Feeding the hungry, giving
drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, comforting the imprisoned, sheltering
the homeless, visiting the sick, burying the dead.]
Am I habitually performing the
spiritual works of mercy, something which is always possible for every soul?
[Admonishing the sinner, instructing the ignorant, counseling the doubtful,
comforting the sorrowful, bearing wrongs patiently, forgiving injuries, praying
for the dead.]
Do I pray the Hail Mary often and
well: “pray for us sinners… NOW… and at the HOUR OF OUR DEATH. Amen.”
6: Blessed are the clean of
heart: for they shall see God.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Understanding
Do I abhor sin so as to have a
child’s heart open to heavenly graces?
Do I seek spiritual delight and
heavenly consolation rather than worldly pleasures?
Do I live chastely and soberly so
as not be mastered by sin?
Do I seek a pure heart as the
perfection of all virtue? Do I understand that only God can permeate the depths
of my heart? Am I docile to God’s purification of my heart?
Do I deny myself so as to follow
Jesus? Do I deny myself so to pray as I ought? Do I deny myself so as to
persevere in prayer when I feel desolate? Do I deny myself when I feel desolate
so as to proclaim wholeheartedly the goodness of God?
Does God’s inspirations and
insights make me more humble and increase my desire for purification?
Do I humbly beseech God for the
gift of Understanding so that I may know Him, and by knowing Him that I may
love Him?
7 Blessed are the peacemakers:
for they shall be called children of God.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: Wisdom
Do I act wisely: sacrificing all
things for the peace of Christ, not that of this world, so as to be counted as
one of His children.
Do seek firstly the glory of God
and secondly my happiness with Him forever in heaven, after having faithfully
served Him here on earth?
Do I pray for the gift of Wisdom
which comes from on high?
Do I distinguish between the
peace of Christ and the peace of this world, remember our Lord’s words: “Peace
I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, do I give
unto you.”
Do I seek God’s will and not my
own will when dealing with others? Do I die to my selfish inclinations in order
to bring others closer to Jesus?
Do I consider all earthly riches
as naught compared to being a child of God? Do I expect my reward and
inheritance not in this world, but in the next?
Do I joyful sacrifice my own will
and earthly goods for the true peace of Christ? Does the holy denial of my own
will bring true peace to those I live and work with?
Can people recognize by my words
and deeds that I am a follower of Christ and that my home is in heaven? Can
they recognize that my heart is wholly devoted to Christ and not the things of
this world?
8: Blessed are they that suffer
persecution for justice’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Associated Gift of the Holy
Spirit: All of the Gifts
Do I prove my fidelity to Christ
by suffering for His Truth and Justice?
Is my suffering for Christ
perfected in love? “And if I should distribute all my goods to feed the poor,
and if I should deliver my body to be burned, and have not charity, it
profiteth me nothing.” (1 Cor 13:3)
Do I persevere in faith when I
suffer for living in the truth, seeking justice, and pursuing holiness?
Do I persevere in proclaiming
God’s truthfulness and justice when I suffer on that account?
Do I accept my crosses without
resentment?
Do I glorify God in my heart by
rejecting the lies of the devil and asserting God’s infinite goodness and
righteousness?
Do I live in communion with and
in conformity to all the souls suffering injustice in the world today?
Do I respond in joy when I lose
world riches and prestige for following Christ?
”Blessed are ye when they shall
revile you, and persecute you, and speak all that is evil against you, untruly,
for my sake: Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven. For
so they persecuted the prophets that were before you.”
