Fr. Thomas M. Pastorius
November 15, 2015
Spiritual Ponderings
Scrupulosity

In last week’s Spiritual Ponderings we began to look at The Ten Commandments For the Scrupulous by Fr. Don Miller C.Ss.R. . This week I would like to look at the rest of those commandment as found in Fr. Santa’s C.Ss.R book: Understanding Scrupulosity: Questions, Helps, and Encouragement.

6. You shall not consider yourself guilty of bad thoughts, desires, or feelings, unless you can honestly swear before the all-truthful God that you remember clearly and certainly consenting to them.
Spirituality above all is an exercise in honesty. We must admit to ourselves that we are not angels and we are not demons. We are somewhere in the middle. God knows this better than anyone and has shown that He is not willing to give up on us. He is the Good Shepherd in search of his lost sheep and the Good Samaritan heals and binds our wounds.

7. You shall not disobey your confessor when he tells you never to make another general confession of past sins already confessed.
I identify a general confession as someone coming in and not confessing any new or recently committed sins but rather the person has come to the Sacrament in order to ask forgiveness for sins that have already been forgiven in a previous Sacrament of Reconciliation. Trust that the it is the same power of God working through the priest in the Sacrament that worked through Jesus. Jesus did not try to heal people and only sometimes succeed. He always succeeded. It is also important to realize that God promised us the forgiveness of sins and not “good feelings.”

8. You shall believe and act accordingly, so that whenever you are in doubt as to whether or not you are obliged to do or not to do something, you can take it for certain that you are not obligated.
God does not expect us to follow commandments and rules that we do not know of. If tomorrow the bishops declare that all Catholics should abstain from meat on all Fridays and not just the Fridays in Lent and a person does not learn about the new rule and thus eats meat on Friday he or she did not commit a sin. If however he or she knew about the rule and broke he or she did commit a sin.

9. If, before you perform or omit an act, you are doubtful whether or not it is sinful for you, you shall assume as certain that it is not sinful and shall proceed to act without any dread of sin whatsoever.
This commandment is specifically designed for people who are suffering from scrupulosity. When I was in therapy from depression I learned that I carried around in the back of my head a lot of ANTS (Automatic Negative Thoughts)and that affected the way I was living my life. In order to deal with these ANTS in a healthy manner, I learned that each morning I needed to thank God for three things that made me special. If I was a prideful person this would be an exercise in vanity but since I learn toward depression it is a healthy exercise. For scrupulous people who are worried about sinning every moment of their lives this rule helps balance them out. Remember the virtue is always in the middle of two vices.

10. You shall put your total trust in Jesus Christ, knowing that he loves you as only God can love, and that he will never allow you to lose your soul.
I think St. Paul has the best commentary in his letters to the Romans.
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access [by faith] to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us. For Christ, while we were still helpless, yet died at the appointed time for the ungodly. Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath. Indeed, if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, once reconciled, will we be saved by his life. Not only that, but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:1-11)

A Helpful Prayer For the Scrupulous
I behold the Christ in you. I place you lovingly in the care of the Father. I release you from all anxiety and concern. I see you as God sees you a spiritual person, created in the image of God, endowed with qualities and abilities that make you needed, and important—not only to me but also to God and His plan. I believe that you have the understanding you need to choose life. I bless you, I have faith in you. I behold Jesus in you. (Recite to yourself as you look in a mirror).