(Rivista Internazionale - December 1998: The Vow of Obedience - 3/3)

Obedience is not a divine virtue, and St. Thomas Aquinas tells us why: «Obedience does not have God as its direct object, but an order imparted by a Superior in an explicit and incisive manner». Hence obedience is a moral virtue and object of the virtue of the worship due to God. This, in turn, invites us to respect our superior’s orders in the profound respect of the authority with which he gives them.
Thus, the aim of obedience is the accomplishment of God’s will through the authority established by God. If, therefore, the superior refers to the vow of obedience in an explicit and formal manner this means that the pledge of obedience is important; on the other hand, the superior will only explicitly request obedience in serious cases and situations.
Thus the aim of obedience also requires, on the part of the superior, that wisdom, experience of life and sensibility which will permit him to assess if the subordinate is able, in his condition of sociological life, to psychologically face and fulfil the command given. So before giving a concrete command, the superior should sometimes have a private, explanatory talk with his subordinate; in fact, the ultimate aim of both the superior and the religious who has to obey is to encourage a greater worship of God.
Only meditation and prayer, also of the superior and his subordinate, can sometimes clarify the question «what is God’s will?» expressed in the superior’s words. In the final analysis, however, the superior’s commands - who in turn bears the responsibility of having given an order - have to be carried out. At this point, the religious must accept, looking at the Lord and saying: «Fiat voluntas tua».

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