THE FOLLOWING OF CHRIST

The Following of Christ
BY THOMAS A KEMPIS
Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur, 1941

------PRAYERS FOR CONFESSION------

Before Confession.

O MY God, although I have been so ungrateful to Thee in times past, yet now I beseech Thee to accept me, returning to Thee with an earnest desire to repent, and to devote myself to Thee, my Lord and my God, and to praise Thy holy Name forever.

Grant me, I beseech Thee, perfect contrition for my sins, that I may detest them with the deepest sorrow of heart. Send forth Thy light into my soul, and discover to me all those sins which I ought to confess at this time. Assist me by Thy grace, that I may be able to declare them to the priest, fully, humbly, and with a contrite heart, and so obtain perfect remission of them all through Thine infinite goodness. Amen.

Here examine your conscience.

Acts of Contrition.

O MY God! I am very sorry that I have offended Thee, because Thou art so good: and I will not sin again. My Lord and my God, I sincerely acknowledge myself a vile and wretched sinner, unworthy to appear in Thy presence; but do Thou have mercy on me, and save me.

Most loving Father, I have sinned against and before Thee, and am unworthy to be called Thy child; make me as one of Thy servants, and may I for the future be ever faithful to Thee. I am now resolved, with the help of Thy grace, to be more watchful over myself, to amend my faults and fulfill Thy law. Look down on me with the eyes of mercy, O God, and blot out my sins.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

After Confession.

O ALMIGHTY and most merciful God, Who, according to the multitude of Thy tender mercies, hast been pleased once more to receive me, after so many times going astray from Thee, and to admit me to this Sacrament of forgiveness: I give Thee thanks with all the powers of my soul for this and all other mercies, graces, and blessings bestowed on me; and casting myself at Thy sacred feet, I offer myself to be henceforth Thine. Let nothing in life or death ever separate me from Thee. I renounce with my whole soul all the sins of my past life. I renew my promises made in Baptism, and from this moment I give myself eternally to Thy love and service. Grant that for the time to come I may hate sin more than death itself, and avoid all such occasions and company as have unhappily brought me to it.

Now say your penance.

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