The Power of the Gaze

Living constantly under the gaze of God, in listening to His Word, allows one to overcome many weaknesses and obstacles. This idea emphasizes the transformative power of awareness and divine presence in daily life.

Neglect in a World of Excess

In a time and world where words and movement predominate, where extravagances and competitions are supposed to please hearts and give meaning to existence, the most delicate and simple things are often neglected or despised. This reflects a broader cultural trend that overlooks quiet, meaningful moments.

Baudelaire on Perception

Charles Baudelaire notes that "he who looks from outside through an open window never sees as many things as he who looks at a closed window" (Le Spleen de Paris, "Les Fenêtres"). This quote highlights the depth of perception and the value of looking inward rather than outward.

The First Gaze

The first gaze everyone has already experienced is a simple gaze that discovers a world, that transforms a life, that links two beings in friendship or love. This initial experience of seeing and being seen is foundational in human relationships.

The Mother's Gaze

Some gazes are never forgotten, remain engraved in our memories. Such is the first gaze that generally meets the gaze of the newborn: that of his mother who smiles. This moment marks the beginning of a child's journey to self-awareness and independence.

Transcendence and God

From this discovery, the child gradually learns to step out of himself, to forge his personality and to exchange in return, as Hans Urs von Balthasar has beautifully described. This is already an experience of transcendence because God wants each of His creatures to be independent, to be attracted freely to His beauty in order to resemble Him.

Saint Benedict's Teaching

Saint Benedict, in his Rule, invites each monk to the following disposition: In omni loco Deum se respicere pro certo scire ("In every place, hold it certain that God sees us" Ch. IV). This teaching emphasizes the awareness of being constantly observed by God, not in fear but with reverence.

God's Watchful Eye

The God who sees the monk is not an avenging eye suspended in the air but the Father who looks at the horizon without tiring, waiting for the return of the prodigal son, the Creator who supports each creature in the being advancing step by step. This portrayal of God contrasts with the fearful image often associated with divine judgment.

The Gaze of Christ

A single word can also overturn and turn, beat like the washboard, twist and straighten like the blacksmith's hammer. Like the gaze, the word can be a plank of salvation when it finds its source in Him who heals. This highlights the power of both divine gaze and word in transformation.

Jesus's Gaze and Word

The way our Lord looks at the crowds and each person — as reported in the Gospels — the way He uses few words that are sufficient to give hope, to grant forgiveness, to indicate the path to follow, are models to imitate as well as sources of comfort and confidence. These moments illustrate the profound impact of Christ's presence and teachings.

Divine Knowledge of Christ

In His Incarnation, Christ knows and loves all men, each in particular, through His beatific vision and infused knowledge. This divine knowledge underscores the personal and intimate relationship Jesus has with each individual.

The Gaze of Christ in Scripture

Each man must repeat to himself: "Jesus looked at me and continues to do so; He spoke to me and this has no end." Christ looks and speaks from heaven. He looks and speaks from every tabernacle. This belief reflects the enduring presence of Christ in the lives of believers.

Saint Gertrude's Vision

Saint Gertrude had the intellectual vision of this gaze of Christ present in the holy species, a mysterious and invisible gaze for the common mortals that we are. Yet His gazes and words are identical to those He cast and spoke in the presence of His contemporaries. This belief in the presence of Christ in the Eucharist is a cornerstone of Catholic devotion.

The Vocation of John and Andrew

This extraordinary gaze and word are beautifully and modestly expressed by Saint John reporting his vocation and that of Andrew: "Turning around and seeing that they were following Him, He said to them: 'What are you seeking?' They said to Him: 'Master, where do You dwell?' He said to them: 'Come and see.' And they remained with Him that day" (Jn 1, 38-40). This moment marks the beginning of their discipleship.

The Rich Young Man

It is also the moving episode of the rich young man coming to see the Master, full of generosity that collides with his limits. It is specified that Jesus fixed His gaze on him, already knowing the content of his heart: "Jesus, having looked at him, loved him, and said to him: One thing you lack; go, sell all that you have, give it to the poor, and you will have a treasure in heaven; then come, follow Me" (Mc 10, 21). This encounter highlights the transformative power of Christ's gaze.

Peter's Repentance

And then, of course, the crucial moment of Peter's repentance during the Passion, when the Christ's bound gaze replaces all words, after the triple denial of the prince of the Apostles: "And the Lord, turning around, looked at Peter. [...] And Peter, having gone out, wept bitterly" (Lc 22, 61-62). This moment of divine gaze leads to deep repentance and renewal.

Transformations in Silence

The most radical transformations, the most marked revelations do not tolerate chatter and fluttering: they are realized in sobriety, contemplation, inner silence. This reflects the power of quiet, reflective moments in spiritual growth.

Henri Lacordaire's Insight

During a sermon, the famous Dominican Henri Lacordaire notes that "there is in the gaze that meets the splendor of the true a shiver that touches on ecstasy" (Les conférences de Notre-Dame de Paris, 1848). This highlights the profound emotional impact of encountering divine truth.

The Gaze and Word of God

The gaze and word of God are purifying, sanctifying, pacifying, unifying, as dom Godefroid Bélorgey says in his work Sous le regard de Dieu. These divine attributes offer guidance and healing in human life.

Living Under God's Gaze

By inscribing this certainty in our mind and heart, we will restore the order destroyed too often by sin, because these gazes and words are our life preservers. Living constantly under the gaze of God, in listening to His Word allows one to overcome many neglects.

The Stigmata of Saint Francis

When Saint Francis of Assisi received the stigmata of Christ on Mount Alverne, it is said that the seraph with three pairs of wings, with the face and wounds of Jesus, struck him with five rays without uttering a single word: only the exchange of gazes remained, that of Francis being in acceptance since, in his prayer, he had just asked for the grace of participating in the sufferings of the crucified Christ. This moment of divine encounter transformed Francis's life.

Love and Suffering

A prodigious, noiseless shift, which shaped the poor of Assisi into the Poor, allowing him to live perfectly this word of Saint Augustine: "When one loves, there is no pain, or if there is pain, even this is loved!" (À propos des bienfaits du veuvage, XXI, 26). This quote captures the essence of love and suffering in the spiritual journey.

Looking and Contemplating

It is not enough to be looked at by the Master and to listen to His voice. One must also look at Him, contemplate Him, speak to Him with few words in order to be able afterwards to look at every being as Christ looks at us, to speak to every suffering man as Jesus addresses us. This reciprocal relationship with the divine is essential for spiritual growth.

Living with Divine Presence

Feeling this gaze on us, hearing these consoling words invites us to put more love into every action. Being inhabited by this force of God's gaze and word allows us to continue the pilgrimage despite all obstacles, all uncertainties and doubts. This divine presence offers strength and guidance.

Spiritual Dryness

Spiritual dryness is not a sign that God is absent. It is a purifying action, such as the fourteen years of absolute emptiness experienced by Saint Teresa of Avila. Even if we do not reach the heights climbed by this strong woman, we can at least allow ourselves to be looked at by God as our mother looked at us at our birth. This perspective offers hope and resilience in times of spiritual challenge.