Conscience Questions, Unchristianized Edition

A while back I found a link to a website which described 99 Questions to Complete Your Examination of Conscience. I thought the wide majority of the questions were rather insightful regardless of whether you were Catholic or not. I’ve decided to go through and repurpose the ones I found the most fitting to the everyday person, rephrasing them to be more friendly to even the atheists among us.

  1. Have I been ungrateful to life for its benefits?
  2. Am I open to the flow of life?
  3. Do I rely solely on myself and not on external events?
  4. Have I abandoned myself?
  5. Have I been faithful to myself?
  6. Am I unwilling to turn away from anything that is morally wrong in my soul?
  7. Have I blamed someone or something else for my failure, carelessly, in anger, or surprise?
  8. Have I cursed myself or others?
  9. Have I called down evil upon anyone or anything? (Not literally hexes. More like, “I hope X gets in a car accident”. Something like that)
  10. Did I get angry with my life?
  11. Have I angered others unreasonably?
  12. Have I broken a vow made to someone?
  13. Have I murmured or complained about life?
  14. Have I been willfully distracted?
  15. Do I distract others?
  16. Have I done unnecessary work?
  17. Have I disobeyed, insulted, or shown disrespect to others?
  18. Did I neglect my duties to my husband, wife, children or parents?
  19. Did I neglect to give a good example to my family?
  20. Am I disrespectful, impolite, or discourteous toward my family?
  21. Have I failed to meet my children’s physical, emotional, and educational needs?
  22. Did I fail to actively take an interest in the education and formation of my children?
  23. Did I cause tension and fights in my family?
  24. Did I care for my aged and infirm relatives?
  25. Did I kill or physically injure anyone?
  26. Have I entertained thoughts of suicide, desired to commit suicide, or attempted suicide? (I know that traditionally Catholics have looked at suicide as a sort of sin/stain against God. I think the logic there is less to be angry at depressed people and more to just convince people not to commit suicide. I would think of this question the same way — not as a sin, but moreso “Do I need help?”)
  27. Have I placed others in harm’s way?
  28. Have I failed to help someone in danger or in need?
  29. Do I drink or smoke excessively or abuse prescribed drugs?
  30. Do I deliberately harbor unkind and revengeful thoughts about others?
  31. Have I taken revenge?
  32. Have I used harsh or abusive language toward others?
  33. Have I spread gloom through my words and actions?
  34. Is there anyone with whom I refuse to speak, or against whom I bear a grudge?
  35. Have I taken pleasure in anyone’s misfortunes?
  36. Have I led others into sin? (Sin in this case you can say is just morally wrong actions)
  37. Have I willfully entertained impure thoughts or desires? (Once again, morally wrong stuff. I don’t care if you go fully horny mode once in a while, and honestly God probably doesn’t care either.)
  38. Did I respect all members of the opposite sex, or have I objectified them?
  39. Have I read, listened to, or viewed impure things? (Porn is scientifically bad for you!)
  40. Have I succumbed to occasions of impurity? (Jerk off in moderation!)
  41. Have I stolen money or property?
  42. Have I cheated?
  43. Have I failed to make restitution for what I stole?
  44. Have I intentionally damaged property?
  45. Have I accepted or bought stolen property?
  46. Have I helped someone steal?
  47. Am I dishonest in my business dealings?
  48. Do I gamble excessively?
  49. Have I borrowed without permission? (I.e. stolen with the intent of giving back)
  50. Have I failed to return things borrowed?
  51. Did I waste time at work, school or at home?
  52. Have I cheated myself of an honest day’s work?
  53. Have I refused or neglected to help anyone in urgent need?
  54. Have I lied deliberately?
  55. Have I deliberately misled or deceived anyone?
  56. Did I gossip or reveal others’ faults?
  57. Have I failed to keep promises or oaths?
  58. Have I signed false documents?
  59. Have I failed to prevent the defamation of another’s character?
  60. Have I revealed secrets and betrayed trust?
  61. Do I make false judgments and harbor false suspicions?
  62. Have I failed to forgive someone or held a grudge?
  63. Have I failed to apologize or make amends?
  64. Did I fail to keep secret what should be confidential?
  65. Have I disclosed another’s sins without serious reason? (Like before, sins = things they did that were bad)
  66. Am I greedy or selfish?
  67. Am I envious of someone’s possessions, talents, or blessings?
  68. Do I indulge in self-pity?
  69. Am I proud, vain, or desire to be praised?
  70. Have I exaggerated my success?
  71. Have I minimized or made excuses for my failures?
  72. Have I measured my charity by what others have given, rather than my ability to give?

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