Father Jeffrey Kirby: Why Your Examination of Conscience Is Too Shallow — and How to Fix It
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Christ in the Desert or Christ in the Wilderness. Artist Ivan Kramskoi. Year 1872. Tretyakov Gallery[1], Moscow
By Father Jeffrey Kirby, National Catholic Register, March 6, 2025
Father Jeffrey Kirby, STD, is the pastor of Our Lady of Grace parish in Indian Land, South Carolina, and the host of the YouTube channel “Daily Discipleship With Father Kirby.”
COMMENTARY: The desert of Lent is a place where we can examine our conscience with honesty and transparency.
During the Lenten season, the Catholic Church echoes the call of the Lord Jesus for us to accompany him in the desert. The desert is an uncomfortable place. It strips us of our excesses. It humbles us and shows us who we are. It can be unsettling since it is a place of purgation and purification.
The desert is also an opportunity for us to meet Jesus Christ and soberly evaluate where we are in our relationship with him. There is no hiding place in the emptiness of this spiritual wilderness. The things that hinder us from loving and serving the Lord are in full array before us.
In the desert, we should never be surprised by what is revealed about us. We are a fallen race with wayward hearts. King David sings in Psalm 51:
“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence, and blameless when you pass judgment. Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me.” …
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