He Leadeth Me: An Extraordinary Testament of Faith

by Walter J. Ciszek

Jesuit houses at home a “daily order.” As soon as we were awakened in the morning, I would say the Morning Offering; then, after the morning trip to the toilet and wash-up, I would put in a solid hour of meditation. The five-thirty A.M. rising hour and seven o’clock breakfast in Lubianka were almost identical to the daily order in most of the Jesuit houses I had lived in, so the days began to fall into a pattern for me again. After breakfast, I would say Mass by heart—that is, I would say all the prayers, for of course I had no way actually to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice. I said the Angelus morning, noon, and night as the Kremlin clock tolled the hours over Red Square a few blocks from Lubianka Street. At noon, I would make an examination of conscience as suggested by Saint Ignatius in his Spiritual Exercises. I would make another examen before going to bed at night, and also prepare the points for my next morning’s meditation. Each afternoon, I said three rosaries—one in Polish, one in Latin, and one in Russian—as a substitute for my breviary.

Wow talk about allowing the Lord to save you. Through ritual he was able to save his mind. He was never alone bc he had God.