Each Oblates makes a promise to a life of continual conversion. The following is a brief examination of conscience that could be followed each evening before bed.
“Concretely, my examen might include the following steps:
— I begin with a moment of grateful remembrance of God’s gifts to me this day and ask for divine help now to make this examen fruitful;
— I quickly replay the day to see whether my words and activities have been born out of a sense of God’s presence and as a response to the call of love in each situation;
— honestly, but without depression or shame, I ask God for mercy and healing, confident that God loves me in spite of my frailty and brokenness;
— finally, I commit myself and the rest of my life to God as his faithful servant for the future.
Such an exercise need take only a few minutes, but if it seems too elaborate, the first two steps can easily be omitted.”
Charles Cummings, OCSO
Monastic Practices, p. 79
