Gaze on the Father Through the Eyes of Christ Crucified

Archbishop Luis Martinez of Mexico was a holy man of God who understood the spirituality of living in the Divine Will. In 1928, he gave a directed retreat to Concepción Cabrera de Armida, a holy mystic who was a mother and housewife. She, too, knew this divine science of holiness, living in the Divine Will of God. Both Archbishop Martinez and Concepción are still little known in our present day, yet their light radiated to Heaven in the 20th century.

These brief meditations were given by Martinez in his first meditation for the retreat. They are taken from Concepción's book, To Be Christ Crucified. May they ignite a desire within our own souls to know our God as intimately as He assuredly knows us.

You must be Jesus for the Heavenly Father. Jesus is the only one in whom the Father is pleased. Just as all who love want to see the image of the beloved everywhere, so the Father wants to see Jesus reproduced in souls. How many graces He lavishes on you in order to accomplish this loving design! What marvels He has realized in your soul in order to transform you into Jesus!

The more an artist advances in his work, the more enthusiastic he is about it, and so much the more does he desire to finish it. So also the Holy Spirit feels divine enthusiasm and holy impatience – in our way of speaking – to finish His work of love and suffering which consists in the perfect transformation of Concha into Jesus Crucified.

Gaze on the Father through the eyes of Jesus, or let Jesus gaze on Him through your eyes. What does He want? To see Jesus Crucified in your soul with His intimate sentiments, with His divine efficacy, with His holy fruitfulness in glorifying the Heavenly Father.

The gaze of your soul must be the reflection of Jesus’ gaze on the Father. This gaze must be the heart of your interior life.

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. We love you. Save souls. Amen.