INTRODUCTION TO THE DEVOUT LIFE

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PART III, Chapter 11: Obedience

Charity alone establishes us in perfection. But obedience, chastity and poverty are the three great means of acquiring perfection. Obedience consecrates our will, chastity our body and poverty our material possessions, all to the love and service of God. These are the three branches of the spiritual cross, all the three however, based on a fourth, which is humility. I shall not say anything about these three virtues in so far as they are vowed solemnly nor even in so far as they are vowed simply, because they concern the religious. Although the vow gives many graces and much merit to every virtue, yet to make us perfect, it is not necessary to take the vows but to practise them.

If the vows are taken, especially the solemn vows, they place a person in the state of perfection. Yet, to make him perfect, it is enough to practise them. Still, there is a difference between the state of perfection[1] and perfection itself: all the bishops and religious are in the state of perfection though they are not perfect as it is but too plainly seen. Let us then strive, Philothea, to practise these three virtues well, each one of us according to one’s own state of life[2]. Although they do not place us in the state of perfection, yet they will lead us to perfection itself. In fact, all of us are obliged to practise these three virtues, though not all in the same manner.

There are two kinds of obedience, one necessary and the other voluntary. By necessary obedience, you should humbly obey your ecclesiastical superiors such as the Pope, the Bishop, your parish priest and those who have been authorized by them. You have to obey the civil authorities: your Prince and the officers he has appointed over your country. You have to obey your household superiors: your father, mother, master, mistress. This obedience is called necessary because no one can exempt himself from the duty of obeying these superiors since god has given them authority to command and govern, each one in the area he has charge over us. Do then what they command you as of necessity.

But to be perfect, follow also their counsels, even their desire and inclinations in so far as charity and prudence will permit. Obey them when they order you pleasant things such as eating and taking recreation; for although it appears to be not a great virtue to obey in this case, however, it would be a great wrong to disobey. Obey in indifferent things like wearing such or such a garment, going by one way or another., singing or being silent, and this will be a very praiseworthy form of obedience. Obey in unpleasant, severe and difficult things and this will be a perfect obedience. In short, obey gently without retort, promptly without delay and cheerfully without murmuring. Above all obey lovingly for the love of him who for the love of us made himself obedient till death on the cross (Phil. 2:8). About him, St. Bernard says, he chose to lose life rather than obedience.

In order to learn to obey your superiors easily, comply readily with the will of your equals in giving in to their opinions in what is not evil without being quarrelsome or obstinate. Accommodate yourself willingly to the wishes of your inferiors, in so far as reason permits it, and so long as they are good without exercising any domineering authority. It is an error to believe that we would obey easily if we were men or women religious, when we find it difficult and hard to render obedience to those whom god has placed over us.

We term voluntary obedience that to which we bind ourselves by our own choice and which is in no way imposed on us by another. We usually do not choose our prince and bishop, father and mother; often women do not even choose their husbands. However, we choose our own confessor and director. Now in choosing either we make a vow to obey him (as is told of Mother Teresa that besides obedience solemnly vowed to the superior of her Order, she bound herself by a simple vow to obey Fr. Gratian) or without a vow we dedicate ourselves to obey someone. This obedience is always called voluntary since it has its basis on our will and choice.

We must obey all our superiors, each one, however, according to the particular charge he has over us. We must obey our princes as regards administration and public affairs, bishops in ecclesiastical matters; father or mother, master or husband in household affairs. For our individual guidance we obey our particular spiritual director and confessor.

Get your spiritual exercises, which you ought to practise, enjoined by your spiritual father because they will be the better for it. Thus they will have a twofold grace and goodness: one from the deeds themselves because they are spiritual, and the other from obedience which ordered them and in virtue of which they are performed. Blessed are the obedient, for god will never let them go astray.

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[1] The term “state of perfection” used by theologians meant a stable state of life consecrated to seeking perfection. In this sense, Bishops and the Religious were considered to be in a “state of perfection”. However, the Second Vatican Council does not use “state of perfection” for any form of life approved by the church and consequently not for religious life. All the faithful are invited and have the duty to seek holiness and the perfection of their own state of life (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, No.42). The emphasis of Vatican II is on the universal call to holiness and on the practice of perfection, and no on the “state of perfection”. The thought of Vatican II and of St. Francis de Sales in this matter are very similar.

[2] The originality of St. Francis: the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience are to be practised by every Christian each according to one’s state of life.

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