“Love the virtues of your sisters and do not think about their faults” (Saint Teresa of Ávila).
This exhortation from Saint Teresa reflects the way our Father looks at us: with a loving gaze. Today’s phrase certainly does not mean that we should overlook all mistakes; rather, it emphasizes the primacy of charity. Saint Teresa addresses her sisters in the community, knowing how easy it is to become obsessed with the real or perceived mistakes of others, allowing them to dominate our thoughts and feelings. We give the faults of others a weight they generally do not deserve.
Let us remember the comparison made by our heavenly Father in the Message to Sister Eugenia, telling us that the little gold we offer Him—and by this He means love—weighs infinitely more than the iron we often give Him, in reference to our sins and faults.
When we focus on the virtues of those around us, we discover them more and more, and our hearts open more easily to them. We will be able to overcome the wall of mistrust that arises when we focus on the faults of others. At the same time, we will break down certain “power structures” that are consolidated when we point out the mistakes of others. To avoid misunderstandings, it should be clarified that sometimes it is inevitable to perceive the faults of others, especially when one is in a position of authority, and to point them out in a spirit of fraternal correction.
But the loving heart of Saint Teresa speaks wisely: discovering the virtues of others, rather than focusing on their faults, can lead to a profound personal freedom that, in turn, will set others free.