By Fr Stephan Alexander
General Manager, CCSJ and AMMR
Something incredible happens when we look into the eyes of another human being, and we are able to see that person. To see their heart, their pain, their desires, their needs, and most importantly, to see that they are me and I am them.
When we see beyond our fears, biases and the misguided notions within modern culture that seek to convince us that we are not alike, we experience the presence of divinity within each other. Then, we can reverence that divinity. We allow it to become incarnate within us and our interactions change as love overflows.
That’s been the message of Pope Francis since the commencement of his papacy and it’s also what all Catholic Social Teaching (CST) seeks to communicate to us.
Friends, in many ways it begins with a gaze. Yet that gaze isn’t initially ours because it is Jesus who first gazes at us and sees us.
Remember how “he looked hard” at Simon Peter (Jn 1:42) and then renamed him, empowering him for mission? We would later see in Sacred Scripture where Peter returned Jesus’ gaze as He looked hard at Him and was able to discern Jesus’ identity as “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Mt 16:16–17).
Just as God used Peter’s gaze to reveal Jesus’ identity to the world, He uses our gaze to reveal the truth of our identity as His children. Personally, I believe this is why human beings are so interesting and attractive, it is so we would look at each other. That’s our starting point, looking at each other.
At some point our casual and often dismissive glances at each other must be transformed into a divine gaze. To follow Christ is to look at others as He looks at us. It is to see the truth of who we are and discern the deepest desire of every human heart to be seen, known, and loved.
We must look hard at each other. We must gaze at the beauty that exists within each person and reflects the anthropological truth that we are each created in God’s image and likeness. Friends, we are beautiful because we resemble God, who is beauty itself.
Let’s look at each other because that’s where God’s revelation begins. As you look, try to look beyond the surface to the core of the person. I know this is difficult to think of and even harder to do because it is such a deeply personal act.
It is impossible to look at someone in this way without their looking at you. The temptation would be to run away from this challenge, to avoid it, yet this is the challenge of Christianity, and we must embrace it since this is the only way to ensure our spiritual growth.
To see a person, to connect with their joys and their fears, their successes and defeats will help us to understand why CST is built upon the sanctity of life and the dignity of the human person.
Such a gaze reminds us of our rights and responsibilities toward each other, inspires solidarity, and intensifies the desire to seek the common good of all, especially the poor and vulnerable in society.
I remember my first gaze. It was of an underaged prostitute in the Dominican Republic. At that time, I had a very judgmental attitude and a moralistic understanding of the world so looked at her with scorn.
The encounter occurred just before 6 a.m. She was returning from ‘work’, and I was leaving seminary for weekend ministry. Fortunately, our eyes locked and I saw into her soul, and she saw into mine. That gaze changed me forever. It helped me begin the necessary work to become more loving and less judgmental.
I would later learn that this young woman and many others like her were being forced into prostitution. Some of them were victims of human trafficking.
This is why I openly interact and engage with migrants and refugees in the way that I currently do. It is why I look at people and especially why I am urging support for the many victims of human trafficking brought to our shores as well as those who have been taken away from here.
On February 8, the Feast of St Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese nun, the world annually commemorates the International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking. As a child, St Josephine had the traumatic experience of being a victim of human trafficking.
The theme of this year’s activities is Journeying in Dignity: Listen, Dream, Act. We are being invited to a greater awareness of the reality of human trafficking through our listening and journeying with victims and survivors. Some of these victims and survivors are the ones we look at with scorn.
Let us gaze with respect and new understanding. Prayerful listening must inspire creative actions. Events connected to the previously mentioned World Day of Prayer and Awareness, including the Online Pilgrimage of Prayer on February 8, 2024, can be accessed online.
