"Just as Moses lifted up the serpent...."

When we have learned to turn our gaze upon perfect purity, only the limited duration of human life prevents us from being sure we can reach perfection here below, unless we sell out.  For we are finite beings and the evil in us is also finite.  The purity offered to our eyes is infinite.  No matter how little evil we destroy with each look, if we would repeat that operation often enough, one day all evil would be destroyed....

One of the capital truths of Christianity, almost unknown to anyone today, is that the look is what saves.  The bronze serpent was lifted up so that people lying mutilated in the depths of degradation would look upon it and be saved.

In these moments when we are in a bad mood (lit. disposed to evil) as they say, when we sense ourselves incapable of the elevation of the soul fitting to sacred things, it is then that the look turned toward perfect purity is most effective.  For it is then that evil, or rather, mediocrity comes to the surface of the soul — the best position for being burned by contact with the fire....

There are those people who try to elevate their souls like someone who continually jumps from a standing position in the hope that forcing oneself to jump all day — and higher every day — they would no longer fall back down, but rise to heaven.  Thus occupied, they no longer look to heaven.  We cannot even take one step toward heaven.  The vertical direction is forbidden to us.  But if we look to heaven long-term, God descends and lifts us up.