Examination of Conscience – Using the 10 Commandments

[1] I am the Lord your God. You shall not have strange gods before me.

• Do I give God quality time every day in prayer?
• Do I seek to love Him with my whole heart?
• Have I been involved with superstitious practices or have I been involved with any occult?
• Do I seek to surrender myself to God's Word as taught by the Church?
• Have I ever received Communion in a state of mortal sin?
• Have I ever deliberately told a lie in confession or have I withheld a mortal sin from the priest in confession?

[2] You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

• Have I used God's name in vain: lightly or carelessly?
• Have I blamed God for my trials and suffering?
• Have I wished evil upon another person?

[3] Remember to keep holy the Lord's Day.

• Have I deliberately missed Mass on Sundays or Holy Days of Obligation?
• Have I tried to observe Sunday as a family day and a day of rest?
• Do I do needless work on Sunday?

[4] Honor your Father and your Mother.

• Do I honor and obey my parents?
• Have I neglected or complained about my duties to my spouse and children?
• Have I given my family good religious example?
• Do I try to bring peace into my home life?
• Do I care for my aged and infirm relatives?

[5] You shall not kill .

• Have I had an abortion or encouraged anyone to have an abortion?
• Have I physically harmed anyone?
• Have I abused alcohol or drugs?
• Did I give scandal to anyone, thereby leading them into sin?
• Have I held on to anger or resentment toward someone?
• Have I harbored hatred in my heart?

[6] You shall not commit adultery.

• Have I been faithful to my marriage vows in thought and action?
• Have I engaged in any sexual activity outside of marriage?
• Have I used any method of contraception or artificial birth control in my marriage?
• Has each sexual act in my marriage been open to the transmission of new life?
• Have I respected the bodies of others, or have I thought of other people as objects?
• Have I used pornography?
• Do I seek to be chaste in my thoughts, words and actions?
• Am I careful to dress modestly so as not to lead others to sinful thoughts?

[7] You shall not steal.

• Have I stolen what is not mine?
• Have I returned or made restitution for what I have stolen?
• Do I waste time at work, school or at home?
• Do I gamble excessively, thereby denying my family of their needs?
• Have I mounted up unnecessary debt?
• Do I seek to share what I have with the poor?

[8] You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

• Have I lied?
• Have I gossiped?
• Have I spoken behind someone else's back?
• Am I sincere in my dealings with others?
• Am I critical, negative or uncharitable in my thoughts of others?
• Do I keep secret what should be kept confidential?

[9] You shall not desire your neighbor's wife.

• Have I consented to impure thoughts?
• Have I caused them by impure reading, movies, or internet pornography?
• Do I seek to restrain my imagination from sexual desires?
• Do I pray at once to banish impure thoughts and temptations?

[10] You shall not desire your neighbor's goods.

• Am I jealous of what other people have?
• Do I envy the families or possessions of others?
• Am I greedy or selfish?
• Are material possessions consuming more of my time, money, and my life?
• Do I trust that God will care for all of my material and spiritual needs?