A monthly recollection is a chance to step back from the whirlwind of daily tasks for a few hours of quiet prayer spent looking at God, the world, and ourselves. It is not always easy to find time to pray, but it is always worthwhile.

The best way to enjoy this recollection is to find a time that you can commit to spending with our Lord, and a calm place—free of distractions—where you can pray. Set aside other tasks, switch your phone to “do not disturb,” and grab a notebook. It is a good idea to make note of resolutions and ideas throughout the recollection, but the most important thing is to put yourself in front of our Lord, to look at Him and to let Him look at you.

I. Introduction

II. Meditation: Suffrages for the Souls in Purgatory (30 minutes)

III. Spiritual Reading (10-15 minutes)

IV. Holy Rosary (20 minutes)

V. Examination of Conscience (5-10 minutes)

VI. Meditation: Called to Happiness and Holiness (30 minutes)

I. INTRODUCTION

"Jesus is calling you and sending you forth to spread goodness in our world. His call is one of service, a summons to do good, perhaps as a physician, a mother, a teacher or a priest. Wherever you may be, you can hear his call and realize that he is sending you forth to carry out that mission. He himself told us, I am sending you out (Lk 10:3). It is part of our being friends with him. For this friendship to mature, however, it is up to you to let him send you forth on a mission in this world, and to carry it out confidently, generously, freely and fearlessly. If you stay trapped in your own comfort zone, you will never really find security; doubts and fears, sorrow and anxiety will always loom on the horizon. Those who do not carry out their mission on this earth will find not happiness, but disappointment. Never forget that Jesus is at your side at every step of the way. He will not cast you into the abyss, or leave you to your own devices. He will always be there to encourage and accompany you. He has promised, and he will do it: For I am with you always, to the end of the age (Mt 28:20)" (Pope Francis, Dilexit nos, no. 215).

II. MEDITATION

In the month of November, we recall the deep bond we have with the whole Church, on earth, in heaven, and in purgatory. We pray especially for the Church suffering, the souls in purgatory, undergoing final purification, and we reflect on the reality of death and the hope of the resurrection. Listen to this meditation here:

The most important part of the meditation is your personal conversation with our Lord. You can use the priest's prayer to inspire your own. 

This meditation is part of the podcast "Blessed Meditations." You can subscribe on SoundCloud.

III. SPIRITUAL READING

“You write,” says St. Josemaria in The Way, no. 117: “'In my spiritual reading I build up a store of fuel. It looks like a lifeless heap, but I often find that my memory, of its own accord, will draw from it material which fills my prayer with life and inflames my thanksgiving after Communion.'”

We suggest spending 10-15 minutes reading or listening to "Dilexit nos" ("He loved us"), Pope Francis' fourth encyclical, on human and divine love in the heart of Christ. Afterward, you can spend a few minutes with the Gospel, reading, for instance, St. John's account of the resurrection of Lazarus in chapter 11 of his Gospel.

IV. HOLY ROSARY

The Holy Rosary is an ancient Christian prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother, asking her to pray for all her children in our time of need. You can find a description of how to pray the Rosary here.

V. EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE 

The questions below can help us consider in the presence of God how we’ve responded to His love in our acts and omissions. It may help to begin by invoking the Holy Spirit and to end with an act of contrition, expressing our sorrow for our sins and imploring God’s grace to return and remain close to Him. The act of contrition can be any we like, including one as simple as Peter’s words to Jesus after the Resurrection: "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you" (Jn 21:17).

1. “Work in itself is not a penalty or a curse or a punishment: it is time for us Christians to shout from the rooftops that work is a gift from God” (Christ is Passing By, no. 47). Am I passionate about shaping the world through my professional work? Do I know that through it I participate in Christ's redemptive mission, even when I undergo pain and meet the Cross?

2. Do I know how to give my work a deep apostolic sense, seeing it as an instrument to serve souls? Do I finish my work well even when it is difficult, without leaving things half or poorly done?

3. Do I move through the world with the confidence of a beloved child? Do I take advantage of the opportunities my work offers me to share the source of my supernatural joy with others?

4. When I offer my work to God, do I also struggle to carry it out with love and to do the tasks entrusted to me with great respect for the dignity of the people it affects, love for their freedom, charity, justice, etc.?

5. “God, who is beauty and greatness and wisdom, declares that we are his, that we have been chosen as the object of his infinite love. We need a strong life of faith to appreciate the wonder his providence has entrusted to us” (Christ is Passing By, no. 32). Do I try to discover the provident hand of my Father God in everything that happens to me? Do I transmit joy and serenity to those around me, commenting on the positive side of things, avoiding giving excessive importance to failures, and trying to encourage a vision of faith?

6. Does the thought of the happiness of Heaven fill me with hope to fight against what keeps me from being united to God now? When I feel discouraged, do I consider that God is even more determined than I am to take me to Heaven?

7. Does the reality that I will die one day help me to make the best use of the time God gives me? Do I understand that making the best use of time means living charity by forgetting myself in service to God and others for His sake?

8. Do I realize that many small devotions to our Holy Mother Mary, such as the scapular, the Angelus, and the Hail Mary, prepare me to trust in her motherly protection at the time of my death?

9. “I ask the Mother of God to smile upon us if she wishes, if she can... She will indeed do so. Moreover, she will reward our generosity a thousandfold here on earth. A thousandfold, that’s what I am asking her for!” (The Forge, no. 281) Am I convinced that my Mother, the Virgin Mary, is pleased with the steps I am taking towards holiness, however small they may seem? Do I take refuge in her love for me?

VI. MEDITATION

God made us for deep and lasting happiness, which means being close to Him in heaven. We have innumerable examples from the saints who have gone before us, and while we admire them, are we also ready to put our desires in action and imitate them? Listen to this meditation here:

The most important part of the meditation is your personal conversation with our Lord. You can use the priest's prayer to inspire your own.

This meditation is part of the podcast "Blessed Meditations." You can subscribe on SoundCloud.