Appendix. On Penances More Usefully Imposed

535. • 1. Vocal prayers: the Our Father, Hail Mary, Creed, Litany of the Blessed Virgin, the Rosary or its third part; morning and evening prayers.

2. Mental prayers, discreetly and according to the capacity of the penitent; for the uneducated, some thought concerning hell, death, or the Passion of Christ, in the morning or evening, for example, for the length of one Hail Mary.

3. Acts of Faith, Hope, Charity, contrition, confidence in God, conformity to the divine will, and a purpose of not sinning..., so many times ¹..., for example, morning and evening, especially in temptations or dejection of mind.

¹ These and other things of this kind seem to be matter for counsel rather than for any obligation, because they are easily delivered to forgetfulness and consequently give place to anxieties. The same is also to be said of the things which the Author proposes in the following number.

4. An offering of oneself to God first thing in the morning; the sign of the cross; various aspirations or ejaculatory prayers to Christ, to the Heart of Jesus, to the Blessed Virgin, or to the Guardian Angel. Ordinarily these are not to be multiplied.

5. The exercise of the Way of the Cross, especially when it is made in common; novena prayers in honor of the Blessed Virgin or some Saint.

6. Hearing sermons or catechism; attendance at the Offices of the Church, for example, solemn Mass, Vespers, etc.; or at spiritual exercises, the pious exercise of the Marian Month, or other things of this kind, at least several times.

7. A general examination of conscience in the evening, at least for a short time; likewise a particular examination concerning some defect or some evil habit, with a firm purpose of amendment ².

² These things are generally too difficult and exacting, unless perhaps there is question of persons already accustomed to this or that exercise.

8. A visit to any Church or Altar, or to some particular one, in order to pray for something there or to ask for the grace of sinning no more.

9. Pious reading, for example, for a quarter of an hour on Sunday, or one or another chapter, for example, of the Imitation of Christ, the Lives of the Saints, or another pious book, etc.

10. Frequenting the Sacraments on such a day, or at such a time, or so many times. Here the Confessor should act cautiously and should not impose upon those who confess rarely the obligation of approaching the tribunal of penance once or twice a month for a year; but he should not enjoin this except for one, and perhaps another, occasion, and only upon penitents who willingly accept it ³.

³ Add: and who offer a prudent hope concerning the future execution of the purpose.

1. Fasting, either complete according to the laws of the Church or partial according to the physical and moral strength of the penitent. Nevertheless, a penance of this kind is not to be imposed except rarely and only upon those who will willingly accept it.

2. Some subtraction of food which can in no way harm the health of the body or the duties or labors of the penitent, for example, half of the customary breakfast on Friday, Saturday, or the vigil of some feast, etc.

3. Abstinence from wine or intoxicating liquor on such a day or at such a time, or not exceeding a certain quantity.

4. Some subtraction of ordinary sleep, especially by rising earlier in the morning, or at a determined hour as a remedy for sloth, or even for guarding against impure temptations.

5. Praying on bended knees or with arms extended in the form of a cross ⁴; kissing the ground for the sake of humility; making brief pilgrimages.

⁴ But a prayer of this kind ought to be brief, namely, lest it harm health.

6. Sometimes offering to God illnesses, diseases, or other miseries of life that occur, by bearing them patiently ⁵.

⁵ These things also are matter rather for counsel and exhortation. The last particular, however, is enjoined altogether less prudently, because it furnishes an occasion of sinning in many ways; moreover, even setting this aside, it will remain too obscure and uncertain how far this obligation extends and what certain matter of it exists.

7. Sometimes depriving oneself even of an honorable recreation, for example, a walk ⁶; repressing excessive curiosity in hearing or seeing; not lingering so long at the door or windows of the house. This is especially fitting for girls excessively devoted to vanity.

⁶ Say rather, the solace of the theater or another spectacle. For a walk is not only honorable but useful for health.

8. Chastising the body moderately by a discreet mortification, some scourging, or an uncomfortable posture. But these things are to be enjoined most rarely ⁷; indeed, they are to be permitted with great discretion.

⁷ Among those things which ought to be enjoined most rarely, Cardinal De Lugo also numbers abstinence from receiving the Most Holy Eucharist, adding further that this is fitting only when, on account of a defect of reverence and disposition, it is better that someone be kept from it. Thus he: We have shown that the frequent use of Communion is not a thing so determinately good that it cannot sometimes and in some circumstances be better to abstain than to approach, even if there is no consciousness of mortal sin.... Since, therefore, the Confessor can command honorable works and works of virtue as penance, there does not seem to be doubt, speaking in general and of possibility, that he can sometimes command the penitent to abstain from Communion on such a day; namely, when it is established that it is then better to abstain than to approach, which can prudently be gathered from the state of the penitent and a defect of reverence and disposition. Provided, however, that this omission of Communion is not an occasion for others to judge that it was imposed as a penance by the Confessor, lest perhaps in this way the penitent be compelled to manifest his confession. Regularly, however, it is not expedient to impose such a penance, although in a most rare case it cannot be denied that it can be usefully imposed.

536. Since, generally speaking, contraries are cured by contraries, the following penances can be enjoined, or only counseled, yet with discretion, attention being given especially to the character and greater good of the penitents.

1. Upon penitents who pray rarely and badly, let brief prayers be imposed, to be performed morning or evening for about a week. Upon the tepid, pious readings or ejaculatory prayers to be made several times a day, yet few in number and for only a few days, lest they be omitted through forgetfulness or distress the penitent. Upon those tempted against Faith and Hope, acts of Faith, Hope, or confidence, or the recitation of the Apostles' Creed, etc.

2. Upon blasphemers, external reverence toward God and the Cross; for example, reverently kissing the Crucifix or sacred images, or saying devoutly: Blessed be the name of the Lord. Praised be Jesus Christ.

3. Upon lovers of the world and its pomps, some meditation concerning the vanity of worldly things, for example, when they rise in the morning or go to bed, or a renewal of the promises made in Baptism.

4. Upon those who often omit Mass, some supererogatory Mass to be heard, for example, two on Sunday, or one on a weekday; or some visit to the Most Holy Sacrament to be made several times, etc.

5. Upon those who preserve hatred, some work of charity toward their neighbor, for example, greeting or speaking to an enemy, yet prudently; prayer and an act of charity for one's neighbor in general, and also especially for enemies; recitation of the Lord's Prayer for them, especially of these words: Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.

6. Upon the lustful, some mortification or subtraction of conveniences, especially flight from occasions ⁸, prayer, frequenting the Sacraments, frequent renewal of a firm purpose, remembrance of the last things, etc.

⁸ Understand this concerning occasions at least somewhat remote, for the natural law commands that proximate occasions be avoided.

7. Upon thieves and the avaricious, some alms according to their means, even if at times a single as were to be spent upon the poor or upon the Church. Grave alms, however, are never to be imposed unless they are willingly accepted.

8. Upon the proud, certain offices of humility, for example, kissing the ground, visiting the poor or kindly assisting them, treating them humanely, or eliciting various acts of humility, for example, saying with the publican: Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.

9. Upon gluttons and drunkards, some subtraction of foods; abstinence from food and drink outside the customary meals; abstinence from wine on such a day; or a prohibition against exceeding such a quantity of wine at meals, etc.

Add also the works of mortification which were indicated in the preceding section.