Ch. VIII The Efficacy of this Examen

NONE may question the efficacy of this examen when duly made according to the instructions of our holy Founder, St. Ignatius. Apart from the advantages resulting equally from the General and from the Particular Examen, its main virtue consists in our directing all our inquiries and endeavours against one particular vice we would be rid of. They who are overburdened with debt, without caring to pay, or to lower their style of living, though they are wasting their estate, and gradually sinking into beggary, are vehemently averse from looking into their accounts, avoid all knowledge of their debts, lest poverty, which is at their side, should present itself to their consideration and meet their gaze. While thus wilfully shutting their eyes to their incumbrances, they can fancy themselves rich, and flatter themselves that others deem them such, though it be not the fact; and as their burden increases, they with their creditors, at length, sink under it. Their sole chance of forestalling ruin, is to put their accounts in order, to examine them daily, and by judicious retrenchment to liquidate their obligations. Their heedlessness fittingly represents that of a spiritual man who makes no use of this Particular Examen. He shrinks from thus searching into his conscience, for that he is afraid to see himself as he is, he prefers that his faults should pass unnoticed; he deems himself religious, making some outward profession of virtue, yet to him applies the rebuke once addressed to the Bishop of Laodicea, "Thou sayest, I am rich, and I have become wealthy, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou of all others art the wretched one, and the pitiable one, and poor, and blind, and naked."

Let us then rest assured that the groundwork of all self-amendment is the knowledge of our shortcomings. For how shall that be reformed which is excused, palliated, carefully covered up, and of which we are ignorant? On the other hand, it is impossible but that one should set in earnest about his self-improvement who searches into his faults, numbers, and sets them down, comparing day with day, week with week. What can he feel but confusion who with holy David is able to say—"My sin is ever before me"? We must set about amending ourselves in the same way as we strive to bring others back to good. We begin by convincing them of their faults. We then convict, exhort, and rebuke, according to the counsel of the Apostle—"Preach the word, be urgent in season, out of season, convict, exhort, rebuke in all long-suffering and teaching." Would you know when you are to rebuke? The Apostle makes answer—In season, out of season. Would you be told what this means? St. Chrysostom, in his Homily on this Epistle, replies—"What means in season, out of season, in due time, and out of due time? This: have no fixed time, let every moment be the proper time for you; not only that of calm and peace, or when you are sitting in the church, but amid perils, whether you be bound in prison, or laden with fetters, or, when doomed to death, you are being hurried to the scaffold; shrink not, at such times, from convicting, rebuking. . . . If you rebuke without proofs, you will be deemed over hasty, no one will bear with you. But when guilt is brought home to the culprit, he will more easily submit to rebuke, else he will be dead to shame. If you convict and rebuke passionately, and omit exhortation, you will undo everything. For by itself rebuke is unbearable, unless tempered by exhortation. Like as a sick man will not bear the surgeon's knife unless it assuage his pain, neither will your erring brother." These prescriptions of St. Chrysostom concern, indeed, the correction of our neighbour, yet are they no less suited to self-correction, in that they include the three points of the Examen. (1) A palpable self-conviction of one's faults by comparing day with day. (2) Rebuke, to stir up sorrow and shame. (3) Exhortation, by consideration exciting to confidence, whereby the purpose of amendment is strengthened. It were well to observe at this point, the way wherein God is wont to bring the sinner back to Himself, as we should make use of the self-same in our own case. Hear what God does—"But to the wicked saith God: What hast thou to do to tell My precepts, and that thou hast taken My covenant into thy mouth? Whereas for thee, thou hatest instruction, and hast cast My words behind thee: when thou sawest a robber, thou consentedst with him, and with adulterers has been thy portion." After the enumeration of other sins, He continues—"These things hast thou done, and for that I kept silence." On that account—"Thou thoughtest falsely, that I was like thyself; but I will rebuke thee, and lay the matter in order before thine eyes." Which shows that seeming to take no notice of sin, and delaying its punishment, encourages the sinner not to enter into himself, as if God felt no displeasure at sins which He does not forthwith chastise, whence he is emboldened to take delight in his crimes. In like manner does our inferior man give full swing to his vices when reason winks at his excesses, and blindfolds itself lest it see them. For this the only remedy is that which God threatens—"I will rebuke thee, and lay thy sins in order before thine eyes." St. Augustine, in his Comments on this text, says—"For that I refrained from vengeance, put off My severity, and with redoubled patience waited long for thy repentance, Thou thoughtest falsely that I was like thyself. It is not enough for thee to take delight in thy sins, but thou must deem them pleasing to Me. Not feeling God's vengeance, thou wouldst hold Him for thy accomplice, for a partial Judge, for thy boon companion. I will rebuke thee. And what shall I do thereby? At present thou art hidden from thyself, but I will show thee to thyself. For didst thou see thyself and wert thou displeased with thyself, thou wouldst be pleasing unto Me. But for that not seeing thyself, thou art content with thyself, thou shalt be displeasing both to Me and to thee; to Me when thou shalt come to judgment, to thee when thou art burning. For what is it I shall do to thee, but set thee before thy face. Thou wouldst hide from thyself, thou hast turned thy back on thyself, but I will show thee thyself, and set before thy face what is now behind thy back. Thou shalt behold thy filthiness, not to cleanse it, but to be put to shame." Thus does St. Augustine apply this passage to God's rebuke of the wicked at the last day. He then continues—"Is he, then, to whom these things are said to despair? In nowise. Do thou, whoever thou art, do to thyself what God here threatens. Cease to turn thy back upon thyself, hiding from thine own eyes, set thee before thyself. Go up to the judgment-seat of thy conscience, let fear terrify thee, let confession break forth from thy lips, say unto thy God—'For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.'" The holy Doctor takes God's judgment as a model of that we should exercise upon ourselves in this life, and shows that the first step to conversion is the knowledge of our faults and of the injury they do to us. Now such knowledge is the fruit of this Examen.

In conclusion, we may observe that among the rules laid down for this self-examination, some are essential, the very soul, so to speak, of this Examen, and these are the inward acts of the mind, as, for instance, the morning resolution, the careful and watchful passing of the day, the inquiry, at regular times, into the number of our falls, contrition, and purpose of amendment, the comparison of different periods, so as to take account of one's improvement. In these does the very essence of this Exercise consist. Other details, though not indispensable, yet are useful as helping to make the Examen more easy, and to expedite improvement; such are the outward actions of laying our hand on our breast when we fall, of noting our faults in a book, of comparing the morning and evening account, that of to-day with yesterday's, &c. These form the body of this Exercise, and enable us to set our falls before our eyes, and to feel with our hands, as it were, their diminution. This is no recent invention, but long since in use among those who strove earnestly for their advancement. John Climacus, in his Spiritual Ladder, writes as follows—"Perceiving that a Brother carried hanging to his girdle a small book, I got to know that he daily set down his thoughts therein, and was wont to give account of them to his Prelate. He was not, by a good many, the only one whom I saw practise this in that monastery. I learned that it was a rule imposed on them by their ghostly Father." Further on—"He is a most clever banker who daily at eventide takes account of his gains and losses, which cannot be done with accuracy unless they be hourly set down on tablets. For when entries are made every hour, the day's account is easily balanced." Whoso takes this method of uprooting his defects cannot fail of the victory.

For this unwearying, unintermittent diligence is of such avail, that it must needs work a change in a soul sunk in the grossest and most inveterate evil habits, uproot sin, and implant virtue. In truth, it will more readily enable those whom the rebellion of nature has subjected to heinous faults, to scale the summit of perfection, if they will but persevere therein, than milder, more pliable, and gentler characters, who are less energetic and diligent in watching over themselves. Most truly it is stated in the Imitation of Christ—"He that is diligent and earnest, though he have more passions to fight against, will be able to make greater progress than another with fewer passions, but withal less fervent in the pursuit of virtue."

Thus much concerning the method of this Examen, now pass we to its matter.