to which you knew your self obliged out of covetousness or out of malice or out of negligence Are you now resolv'd to do it 7. Have you wilfully omitted the performance of the Penances which were enjoyned you by your Ghostly Father and by you accepted Declare these things as you find your self guilty at the beginning of your Confession That your Ghostly Father may know the state of your Soul understand his own Power and perform his Duty The Examination upon the ten Commandements The first Commandement Thou shalt have no other God but me The sins against this fiist Commandement are these BEing come to the age of Discretion to have notoriously and for a long time neglected to learn such things as are necessary to be known by all Christians in order to thir salvation which are The Articles of Faith contained in the Creed the manner of Prayer contained in the Paternoster the Commandements of God and the Church and the Sacraments 1. To be an Heritick or to have the Will to be one 2. To disbelieve any article of Faith proposed by the Catholick Church as the Intercession of Saints the Real presence Purgatory Indulgences c. 3. To doubt and stagger in matters of Faith 4. To defend pertinaciously any tenent or opinion contrary to the Catholick doctrine 5. To dispute rashly against the verities of Faith or question the Churches power instituting Fasts Feasts c. 6. To give any exteriour signes of your approbation of Infidelity or Heresie 7. Not to defend the Truth and the Catholick Cause out of cowardise tepidity negligence when you are bound to do it in respect of Gods honour and your neighbours good 8. To mock at matters of Faith at the Ceremonies of the Church at Processions and other sacred things 9. To omit any duty necessarily belonging to a Christian out of shame for fear of some temporal dammage or to conceal your being a Catholick when bound to profess it 10. Not to be careful in resisting all temptations and suggestions of Atheism Heresie c. 11. To hear the Sermons assist at the Ceremonies or any other religious Exercise of Hereticks 12. To read or retain Heretical Books without licence knowing it a thing forbiden 13. To have been negligent in teaching instructing such as are under your express charge in things necessary for their salvation 14. To make use of Magick Spells Witchcraft Enchantments Or to consult such persons or to give credit to their sciences or sayings 15. To receive Characters or to give charms powders potions c. for evil ends 16. To use superstitious prayers words figures ceremonies against the sense intention and Laws of the Church for the procuring of your own or others health 17. To wear or counsel others to wear certain Papers or superstitious Scroles about you for the cure of Agues or any other Diseases 18. To calculate your Nativity seek to know your Fortune c. by superstitious means 19. To give credit to Dreams Fancies the crossing of your way by such Beasts or the singing or flight of such Birds 20. To tempt God by having too much confidence and presumption of his Mercy taking thence an occasion to sin more freely 21. To defer your conversion Confession correction of life and manners upon the same presumption of Gods goodness To have willingly consented to certain thoughts of disdain and murmuration against the divine Providence as for sending Afflictions for hindring the execution of your passions for forbidding of pleasures 22. To dispair of Gods Mercy and to have no hope of obtaining pardon for your sins 23. To murmure against God or his divine Providence 24. To persecute injure scorn deride devout holy religious persons and to undervalue their ways and exercises of piety 25. To have totally neglected all Prayers and thoughts of God Morning and Evening c. 26. To use cursing or blasphemous words against God his Saints or sacred things 27. To disswade any one from any vertuous action as the hearing of Mass the entring into Religion the saying of his Prayers c. 2. Com. Thou shalt not take the Name of GOD in vain 1. TO swear vainly and without necessity or out of custom and what oaths 2. To swear falsly whether in jest or seriously or to the prejudice of another To tell a lye which brings any notable dammage to another is a mortal sin with obligation to repair the dammage thereupon ensuing Note That to Swear vainly is to Swear when there is no occasion which is a great Sin though it be in a matter of truth but to Swear falsly is to Swear and Lye both together 3. To swear you will do what you intend not or if you intended it you perform'd it not it being a thing lawful 4. To be perjur'd or swear falsly in Judgment or to cause another to be perjur'd or being juridicially interrogated to answer falsly or contrary to the intention of the question and what dammage hapned thereupon to a third person 5. To swear by way of imprecation or cursing as the Devil take me Let me never see God God damn me confound me c. 6. To swear you will commit such a sin whether it be venial or mortal And to commit it for your Oaths sake is a double crime 7. To break your lawful Oath or cause others to break their Oaths 8. To take pleasure in hearing others to swear curse blaspheme or provoking them ro it by contradicting urging angring them 9. Not to reprehend swearers and blasphemers when you ought or might do it 10. To discover what you promis'd and swore to conceal what prejudice thereupon 11. To blaspheme the name of God in your heart or by your mouth in your choler or being calm and serious 12. To call the Devil to your help in cold bloud or in the heat of passion 13. Not to perform your lawfully and advisedly made vows to do things that are good or not to perform them in time and place What Vows How long since you made them 14. To fail in the accomplishment of that into which your Vow was changed 15. To make a Vow without intention to fulfil it 16. To make a Vow to do an evil thing or not to do a good thing or to do a good thing for an evil end 17. To contemn undervalue jeer at the Vows of Religious persons 18. To disswade or hinder others from keeping their just and lawful Vows 3. Com. Thou shalt keep holy the Sabbath-day 1. TO do any servile and unnecessary work upon Sundaies and Holy days for the space of one whole hour 2. To do any action of gain as merchandizing buying and selling in any notable manner and matter upon Sundays for upon many Holy-days after the hearing of Mass and Vespers it is by the common practise of the Church permitted and allowed 3. To command any servants or to hire others to work notably upon such days without urgent necessity 4. To employ Sundays and Holidays in Gaming
In hope of which happiness all Sufferings shall seem sweet to me as proceeding from your paternal hands and I here disavow all expressions of complaint which the violence of my Disease may hereafter draw from my Tongue but not from my Heart which is wholly resign'd to my dear Lord's will and pleasure Nor will I care to be informed how long I must lie languishing in this my Infirmity or whether Death shall in this battle be defeated or become victorious over my life No my Lord I absolutely leave the disposal of my Body Soul and all that concerns me to thy divin Will and Pleasure and desire nothing as to my life and death but that the short remainder of my life may be spent in loving thee serving thee and suffering for thee and that whensoever thou shalt send death to cut its thread my Soul may be found ready prepared for her happy eternitie In the mean space it matters not whether I am cherished or contristated I will endeavour to be indifferent to either since I deserve not the one and my Sins render me worthy of the other Thy innocent Son O Eternal Father who suffered not as I do for his own Sins was deserted by his Disciples and even by thy self also and shall I after this example expect from men any assistance tenderness and compassion I only beg of thee my bountiful and compassionate Creator some small communication of that Spirit wherewith thy patient Son my sweet Saviour suffered that so uniting all my pains to his Passion they may acquire the dignity which their own nature denies them to be acceptable to thy divin Majesty Whose sacred Name be praised by me and all creatures for evermore Demands to a Sick Person at the receiving of the Viaticum or Extream Vnction or at other fit times 1. DO you firmly heartily and humbly believe all the Articles of Faith and all the Holy Scripture according to the sense of Catholick Doctors and Definitions of the Church 2. Do you detest all Superstitions Schisms and Heresies condemn'd by the Church 3. Are you glad and desirous to die a Member of this true Catholick Apostolick Roman Church in the Faith taught by our Lord Jesus and participation of the holy Sacraments 4. Do you acknowledg that you have grievously offended God your Creator who hath been so bountiful unto you and are you sorry for all your sins ingratitudes negligences omissions commissions lost time and opportunities rejected Inspirations 5. Do you ask pardon of the divin Majesty and all your Neighbours whom you have any way offended disedified contristated wronged or scandalized 6. Doth your Sorrow for all these things proceed not so much for fear of death hell and punishment as for the offence displeasure and dishonour of God whom you should have loved above all things 7. Are you fully resolved by Gods grace and assistance if you out live this sickness to amend your Life and rather to leave lose and suffer any thing than to offend God And do you desire life only to this effect that you may better serve him 8. Do you wish you could love God with as great sincerity as the blessed Saints do in Heaven and as the most perfect Souls do upon Earth 9. Have you perform'd such Penance made such Restitution done such Satisfaction to God and Man as your Confessor hath enjoyned you or are you content and ready to do it 10. Do you recommend your self to the Prayers of the blessed Virgin Mary of your special Patrons and in particular of your good Angel Guardian 11. Do you distrust disavow and renounce all your own merits vertues and perfections and trust to be saved by the Mercies of God and Merits of your dear Redeemer 12. Do you render hearty thanks to the divin Majesty for all his favours blessings and especially for that of your Conversion and Vocation to his true Church and Faith And also for all the Crosses he hath permitted to befal you and even for this your present Sickness in which you now languish 13. Do you absolutely and entirely resign your self to his sacred Will and Disposition for all time and eternity and are you indifferent to Sickness or Health to Life or Death to Comforts or Crosses and to whatsoever shall be conformable to the Divin liking and pleasure 14. If the Devil tempts you in matter of Faith What will you answer him I believe in God and his Church Or In matter of Despair 'T is true I am a great Sinner and deserve Hell yet my Saviour is my hope my pledge and my surety and when God ceases to be good and Jesus to be my Saviour then will I cease to hope for Mercy and not before 15. But if your Ghostly enemy continues to afflict affright and terrifie you with the memory of your Sins Gods Judgments and Hells torments what will you do I will say Live Jesus my Lord and my Love and I will put his Death and Passion betwixt me and them all 16. If through the suggestion of Satan or any self-frailty or surprisal you should chance to fall and swerve from any of these good purposes and resolutions I now declare it to be of no force for evermore and I will by Gods grace return speedily to him again Other Questions proposed to a Penitent languishing and loving Soul by her Confessor to dispose her to a happy Death with her Answers unto the same by way of a Dialogue between God and her This is proper for more Spiritual Persons GOD. My Child the last hour of thy mortal life runs now in the Watch of my divin Providence This is the moment on which depends thy Eternity Answer me therefore heartily conscionably and confidently to these points which I shall here propose unto thee Soul O my God! be thou blessed for evermore and thy sacred Will be done in me and in all thy Creatures Speak Lord for thy servant hears attentively and will answer sincerely as in thy presence who penetratest into the secrets of my heart And I most humbly beseech thy Divin Majesty that I may supply by my inward Will and Desires what I am unable to express by my outward Words and Gestures I confess and acknowledg my imperfection ignorance and unworthiness to speak to thee My Lord and my Maker or to be by thee remembred or regarded but hoping in thy gracious assistance I will humby obey thy commands 1. Art thou willing to dy a Member of my Church at this Time in this Place and Company O my God! I desire even from my very heart to die a true Child of thy holy Church believing all that the said Church teaches and am ready rather to lose my life than leave my Faith As for all other circumstances of my death I am altogether indifferent how when and where I shall live or die so it be in thy sweet favour and friendship and according to thy sacred Will and Pleasure 2. Doth not thy Soul
reflect upon my sinful life I tremble at deaths memory and approach But O dear Jesu when I consider thy infinit merits and mercies I am comforted I become confident and I remain content to dy whensoever it shall be thy good pleasure because thou being my God sufferedst Death to give me eternal Life 10. How long art thou content to ly languishing in Sickness and after death to remain punished in Purgatory Even as long as it shall please thee my Lord and Lover for in Sickness in Death and after death I wholly resign and abandon my self to thy sacred Will and Disposition 11. 1. Have I not been bountiful liberal and loving to thee 2. Hast thou well requited this my love and liberality 3. What thanks dost thou give me 4. At least what do I deserve from thee O my Lord Thy Liberality Mercy Goodness and Love to me thy most ungrateful Vassal hath been excessive immense unmeasurable and alas I have never requited the least of thy benefits by any faithful service fervent affection or sincere gratitude But now O my Royal Benefactor behold I here 1. render thee all the humble thanks benedictions and praises I am able 2. I heartily wish it were in my power to praise honour and love thee with that purity fervor and affection as thou deservest and I desire 3. Since I know my self to be altogether uncapable to pay what I owe thee therefore I beseech thee to pay thy self out of thy own infinit stock of mercy and thy Sons immense treasure of merits 4. Thy self O my Soverain Lord God! is thy own praises and this I offer up unto thy divin Majesty 12. How much did I suffer on the Cross 2. For whom 3. What moved me to it 4. What did I thirst after in dying and crying Sitio 5. Compare thy pains with mine is there any proportion 6. Will not all this move thee to suffer a little Sickness and Death for me O my dear Redeemer I am not able to conceive much less to express the dismal torments thou enduredst at thy Death 2. Yet I know it was all to Redeem Sinners and my self in particular 3. And the only motive was the great affection thou hadst to save my soul that I might Love Praise and Enjoy thee eternally 4. I believe thy Thirst was after my love and salvation 5. And I wish that mine may be after thy only Love and Honour 6. In thanksgiving for all which thy love favours and benefits and because thou art my God I absolutly resign my self to suffer and die when how and where it shall please thy divin Majesty 13. But what if thou art not of the number of my Elect and that out of my severe Justice I should send thee into Hell fires O my God! I remit my self wholly to thee and were I assured of that fearful Separation from thee yet I would still endeavour to love thee serve thee and adhere to thee during this my pilgrimage on earth with all possible diligence sincerity and fidelity 14. Dost thou not much desire in dying to have the fruit of the Sacraments and the presence and Prayers of thy Ghostly Father and of my holy Church This O my dear Lord is my most hearty desire but I prefer thy blessed Will before both I care not how suddenly Death may seize on me so it finds me not unprovided All this which is by me spoken and answer'd to my Lord and Savior with perfect use of Sence and Judgment I will by his divin Grace never revoke or deny where and howsoever I lead and end my life Of all which I take for witness my Lord God himself in whose presence I am and the whol Court of Heaven humbly offering up these my desires intentions and resolutions to the Throne of the divin mercy to be there ratifi'd confirm'd and perfected by the merits of my dear Redeemer Christ Jesus and by the intercessions of his and my blessed Mother Mary and heartily begging the assistance of the whol Church both Militant and Triumphant for the full and perfect performance thereof Blessed be my God for ever Amen Protestations to be made by the Sick Person either Vocally if he be able or els Mentally being distinctly read and suggested unto him ✚ In the Name of the Blessed Trinity Father Son and Holy Ghost I N. wretched and miserable sinner do Protest before Almighty God who sees the secrets and sincerity of my heart before you my good Angel and all the Court of Heaven and also before you my Ghostly Father and Friends here present 1. That I have a firm constant and setled will and desire to die in the true Catholick Faith and Church wherein all the Saints are departed understanding and believing all the Articles of my Faith in that sense and meaning which my holy Mother the Catholick Church the Spouse of Christ and Pillar of truth hath and doth propose them to be understood and believed 2. Also I protest that I do with all my heart and soul detest all the sins of my life past humbly beg pardon for all my Commissions against God my Neighbour my self in Thought Word and Deed and for all my Omissions in observing the precepts of God and his Church the Rule and Constitutions of my Profession the works of mercy either spiritual or corporal as also for having abus'd the Sacraments refus'd Gods grace rejected his inspirations neglected his vocations been careless in the custody of my heart and senses scandalous in my life and manners tepid in tending to perfection and generally for all my sins scandals disedifications and for whatsoever I have any way offended my Creators divin Majesty and goodness Humbly beseeching him by his own infinit Mercy by the Merits of my dear Saviour Christ Jesus by the Intercession of the powerful Virgin Mary and by the Prayers of all the Angels and Saints that he will be pleased to supply all the defects of my Sacramental Confessions and that now at last he will furnish me with grace and strength to produce this one Act of true and sincere Contrition O my God! be merciful unto me a Sinner In the pronunciation whereof I could be content my heart would break asunder with grief and sorrow for having offended so infinitly amiable a Lord and Lover 3. Also I protest that I do heartily forgive all such as have ever any way offended hurt or injur'd me and that I most humbly crave pardon of all them whom I have any way knowingly or ignorantly offended hurt injur'd in words in deeds or by my bad example offering my self ready to make them full and ample satisfaction to the utmost of my power 4. Also I protest that I am altogether uncapable to render worthy thanks to the divin Majesty for his infinit favours blessings and benefits from time to time in general and in particular bestow'd upon me his undeserving unworthy and ungrateful Servant wherefore I do beseech the blessed Virgin my
essential Defects are 1. Want of sufficient power and jurisdiction in the Priest to whom their Confessions were made Or if he were so ignorant so deaf so drunk c. as that probably he did not hear the Confessions or not rightly give the Absolution 2. Want of Contrition in the Penitent or of so much Sorrow as was absolutely necessary with the Sacrament or want of a sufficient purpose of amendment 3. Want of Integrity in the Confession when the Penitent wittingly and willingly concealed any mortal Sin In which cases it is absolutely necessary to reiterate not only such Confessions but all that were made since any such committed Error 2. As for other motives of Devotion and not of Obligation inducing zealous Christians to make General or Annual Confessions they are to be judg'd of by the prudent Ghostly Father and his dictamen and counsel is therein to be followed 3. The Penitent therefore who is desirous to make an exact general Confession either as necessitated thereto by reason of some Essential Defect crept into his former Confessions or advised thereto by his Ghostly Father May do well for his more orderly proceeding and to avoid trouble tedidiousness and Confusion to divide his whole life into three or four estates or stages The first from the time he had the use of reason to the time of his first Communion or If he have been brought up in Heresie till the time of his Conversion to the Catholick Faith The Second From that first Communion or Conversion till the time of his Marriage or of his entrance into Religion or of his undertaking such an office trade employment or of his being made Priest c. The third From that time till he made his last exact General Confession The fourth From that time till this present day Where note That if the Penitent well remembers to have made good and sincere Confessions till he came to such an Age or that about ten or twenty years past or at such a time be made an exact General Confession He is in no sort obliged to begin his Examination of Conscience any higher than precisely from such time as he doubts of the validity of his Confessions 4. Having thus divided his life He must apply himself to consider the Places where he liv'd the Persons with whom he conversed and what was the chief part of his charge office employment and business That so he may finde out that which is indeed the main matter and greatest difficulty in the making an exact General Confession to wit The number of his sins in their several kinds and species 5. If he hath been so habituated to some one or more particular sins as that he daily and customarily committed them it suffices to declare that he so long time for so many years or months wallowed therein 6. If the Custom was not so continual nor the Acts so frequent It suffices to say That he was given to such a Sin for so long a time during which he fell each month or each week so often 7. Because the frailty of mens Memory is so great that they can scarcely give in the particular number of their Sins It suffices to say I have fallen into such a Sin so many times to wit 40. or 50. times or thereabouts 8. If one hath been formerly an Heretick It is sufficient to say I continued so long in such an Heresie to wit a Protestant Puritan c. resisting Gods Grace and Call c without specifying such other Crimes as are inseparable from heresie as not having during that time observ'd the Fasts Feasts c. Unless he hath also committed other Crimes which are against the common laws of nature and Christianity which must be specified 9. As for the time which is requisite for the Examination of Conscience in order to a General Confession it must be so much as is sufficient according to the Judgment of a prudent and discreet man the Penitents dexterity being considered 10. Let such over-scrupulous Penitents as torment themselves trouble their Ghostly Fathers with long and unnecessary relations of the circumstances of their Sins rest confident and assured That it is morally speaking impossible for the greatest Sinner in the world to have committed any Crime which is not either expressed or intimated in this following Catalogue Let them therefore satisfie themselves to have deliberatly and impartially examin'd themselves upon these points and Confes'd such Sins accordingly wherein they found themselves culpable adding briefly such only essential Circumstances as may alter the species of the crime 11. Retiring therefore your self into some quiet and convenient place and taking sufficient time for your Examination whether it be for the space of 5. or 6. hours together or at divers interrupted times and upon several days which is better and less painful having Pen and Paper in readiness and your Confessional open before you You are first to place your self in the Divine presence imploring the assistance of the Holy Ghost and the prayers of the Blessed Virgin of your Angel Guardian and of your particular Patrons that you may truly know your Sins and be sincerely sorry for them Then you are to represent to your self the infinite greatnesse and goodnesse of your Creator by you so grievously offended and the Image of your Crucified Saviour covered with bloud and wounds for the love of your ungrateful and ungracious Soul which hath again crucifi'd him as oft as she hath committed Mortal Sins which considerations must needs touch your heart with a lively Sorrow and Contrition 12. This done you are to examin your self upon each one of the Commandments of God and of the Church For to commit a Sin is no other thing than to do that which God or his Church forbids you or not to do that which they command you But before you begin your Examination upon the Commandments you shall do well to examin your self in general upon these following Articles marking with your Pen or setting down on your Paper wherein you shall find your self guilty General Heads wherupon you are first to Examine your self 1. HAve you incurr'd any Excommunication or Censure 2. Have you any Case reserv'd to the Pope or to the Church 3. Have you made Sacrilegious Confessions that is have you through fear shame or malice conceal'd any mortal Sin or which you conceiv'd to be a mortal Sin in Confession 4. How long since did you make such a Confession how many such Confessions how oft have you said Mass communicated administred or received Sacraments being in this condition 5. Do you still continue in the direct and evident occasions of committing the same Sin Why have you not quitted them Will you not now quit them without which Resolution you can obtain no Absolution 6. Are you oblig'd to make Restitution of goods unlawfully taken kept stoln or any way by you unjustly possess'd or of your Neighbours honour and good name Have you not made this Restitution