At The Confession.
Begin by devoutly making the sign of the cross, + saying at the same time, Bless me, O Father, for I have sinned. Then repeat the Confiteor, or "I confess to the Almighty," &c. till you come to the words, "through my fault," at which strike your breast, glowing with compunction, like the humble publican in the gospel; and so proceed to accuse yourself with candour and sincerity, telling first how long it is since you were last at confession, whether you were then absolved, (a circumstance of the utmost importance, which many are too negligent in attending to,) and whether you performed your penance. Having confessed all the sins you can remember, listen with docility to your confessor, whilst he endeavours to excite you to contrition, and prescribes the various means, either of atoning for the sins you have confessed, or of preventing future relapses.
Prayers Before Confession.
We are taught by the holy Council of Trent, that those who would obtain the grace of justification, should be thus disposed: they must have faith; they must fear the justice of God; they must hope for mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord; they must begin to love God; they must hate sin; they must sincerely resolve to change their lives, and keep the commandments. To infuse these necessary dispositions into the soul of the penitent, is the intent of the following prayers:
I am fully sensible, O my God, that there cannot be a greater misfortune than to have displeased thee, who art infinitely good and worthy of all our affections. I tremble when I consider how terrible a misfortune it is to fall unprepared into thy hands; for who can bear that dreadful sentence: Depart from me, ye accursed, into eternal fire!—Matthew xxv. But the thought of losing thee, O Lord, alarms me still more than any other punishment whatsoever. Thy patience in waiting for me, thy readiness to pardon me, the multitude of thy mercies, which I have so often experienced, are now present to my mind; they upbraid me most forcibly. Thou hast brought me forth from nothing, created me to thine own image and likeness, ransomed me with thy precious blood, and after I had rebelled and become a slave to Satan, thou didst still bear with me, adopt me as thy child, and prefer me to thousands who were never enlightened by thy holy law. Yet I have deserted thee, I have tired myself in the ways of iniquity, I have hated thy discipline, I have turned my back on all thy commandments. Though thou hast called me, yet have I refused to return; though thou hast frequently stretched out thy hands to me, yet I have paid no regard to thy invitations. Wretch that I am! who shall deliver me from this body of death? Who shall give water to my head, and a fountain of tears to my eyes, that day and night I may weep for my ingratitude? I have sinned! what shall I do to appease thee? O Guardian of men! behold I acknowledge my iniquity. My transgressions are become a heavy burden upon me. I am not worthy to appear before thee, nor even to lift up my eyes before thy throne. From the depth of my misery I cry out to thee: O Lord, hear my voice, and be merciful to a poor sinner! Thy mercies surpass all thy works; thou willest not my death but my conversion; nor didst thou come to call the just, but sinners to repentance. Thou art always mindful of thy word, on which I rely: receive thy prodigal child, nor let me henceforth be ever separated from thee.
Though I have sinned, O Lord, and done evil in thy sight, yet I shall never say, as Cain did, that "my crimes are too great to be forgiven." I know that in mercy thou dost display thy power; and that though my sins were multiplied in number even beyond the grains of sand in the sea, atoms in the air, or drops of water in the ocean, yet thy mercies are still infinitely greater. Without this consideration I should certainly despair. But thine own repeated assurances, and the frequent proofs thou hast given of thy tenderness towards sinners, support my confidence in thee whenever my enemy attempts to weaken it. Thou art truth itself; and therefore thy word can never deceive us. Thou hast declared that thou wilt entirely forget the iniquities of the sinner, if he be truly converted, and cease to do evil; thou hast told us, that a contrite and humble heart shall always find favour with thee. Thy sacred oracles are full of these sweet consolations, and thy invariable conduct towards sinners speaks the same soothing language. Thou didst pardon David, though his sin was most grievous; Magdalen, a sinner by profession; Peter, who denied thee with oaths; the adulteress, convicted in thy presence; the penitent thief on the cross: all these obtained forgiveness, because they sought it sincerely. Nay more, thy tenderness was shown even to the traitor Judas; nor were even the cruel Jews excluded from thy prayers: and shall I not also, O my God, cry out to thee for mercy? Yes; for relying on thy wonted goodness, I shall never be confounded. My sins are enormous, it is true, and stand always against me; but the more hideous they are, the more I detest them. Against thee, O God, have I sinned; and to thee I cry out for pardon. O that I had never offended thee, because thou art infinitely good. O that my sorrow for having offended thee were as great as my offences. O that I might grieve for them even unto death, and feel those bitter pangs with which thy soul was overwhelmed in the Garden of Olives. Let the inexpressible anguish of mind thou didst there feel, thy sighs, thy tears, thy fainting, and thy bloody sweat, O Lord! plead now in my behalf, and supply the defects of my imperfect sorrow. Let them draw down thy mercies, O heavenly Father, and restore me again to thy favour.
I have now before me, O Lord, a sad prospect of the manifold offences by which I have displeased thy divine Majesty, and which I am assured will appear in judgment against me, if I repent not, and my soul be not disposed by a hearty sorrow, to receive thy pardon. But this sorrow, O Lord, this repentance, must be thy free gift; and if it come not from the hand of thy mercy, all my endeavours will be in vain, and I shall be for ever miserable. Have mercy therefore on me, O Father of Mercies! and pour forth into my heart thy grace, whereby I may sincerely repent of all my sins. Give me a true contrition, that I may bewail my past miseries and ingratitude, and grieve from the bottom of my heart for having offended so good a God. Permit me not to be deluded with a false sorrow, as, I fear, I have been too often, through my own weakness and neglect; but let it be now thy gift, descending from thee, the Father of Lights, that so my repentance may be accompanied with amendment and a change of life, that I may be fully acquitted from the guilt of all my sins, and once more received into the number of thy servants: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Thou hast, O Lord, given power to thy church to forgive sins in thy name. Thou hast promised pardon to those who do penance. Behold the prodigal child; nay, worse than the prodigal. I have disfigured and denied my soul, that was created to thy own image and likeness. I have forfeited my title to that eternity of happiness which was prepared for me. I have nourished sin in my bosom, the most poisonous of serpents, and the most hateful of monsters. Alas! I have offended him by whose blood I was redeemed. I have been the cause of his sufferings; I have renewed his death, and crucified him again by my sins. Oh! who will give sorrow to my heart, and a fountain of tears to mine eyes, that I may bewail my iniquities in the bitterness of my soul. Have compassion on me, O most loving Father! I throw myself into the arms of thy infinite mercy. Clothe me with thy grace, and admit me to thy sacrament of reconciliation. Cast out of my heart whatever thou knowest profanes, or defiles thy temple. Root out of my soul whatever is displeasing unto thee, and lay in me the foundation of a new life. I renounce and utterly detest all my sins, for the love of thee. O my God of infinite bounty and goodness! I am heartily sorry for having offended thee. I beg and hope for pardon, through the merits of thine only Son, my Saviour, Jesus Christ. Accept his passion and death in satisfaction for my offences, and for his sake have mercy on me, who place my whole trust and confidence in thee. Amen.