We have long heard the word "obedience" bandied about in Catholicism. John Chuchman's reflection today attempts an examination of what an enlightened believer might make of the meaning of this word. We are all called to various forms of obedience in our lives: to the laws of the land, to the laws of science, to the methodologies of communication if we want to be effective communicators. What does obedience mean in a religious and spiritual context?

To Obey

The word Obedience
comes from the root audire
to hear.

Obedience,
in its essence,
is
Listening followed by Acting Freely
(not simply doing what another tells me).

Jesus,
time and again,
is quoted as
calling us to Listen.

It seems there are a number of areas
in my life
to which I must be tuned in.

I try to listen to
the wild word of God
as presented in Scripture,
hoping it warms my heart
and pierces it
with Love.

I try to listen to
Church,
as defined in Vatican II
as We, the Body of Christ,
men and women of all denominations and faiths
whose judgment I respect.

I try to listen to
Unbelievers,
who speak their Truth,
knowing I can learn from them,
also Children of God.

I try to listen to
the signs of the times,
the voice of social change
in society,
knowing human experience to be
the very stuff of Spirituality.

I try to listen to
Children, The Handicapped, The Sick,
The Dying, The Bereaved, The Aged
by tapping in to their
directness and simplicity
which offer a special access
to Truth.

I try to listen to
The Word of God in My Heart,
guided by conscience,
motivated by the promptings of
the Holy Spirit.

Simply doing as I am told
by whatever authority,
without Listening
to all possible sources of Wisdom,
is spiritual death.

I can
live and act with Wisdom
only
if I heed the call of Jesus
to
Listen.

Love, John Chuchman

This reflection is also published on John Chuchman's blog.

IMAGE CREDIT:
The background used to support John Chuchman's reflection has been sourced from stock.xchng one of the sources for free images on the net provided by people who voluntarily upload their work for others to share. Daniel Cubillas who is located in Spain provided today's image. A gallery of Daniel's freely available images can be found at: www.sxc.hu/gallery/dcubillas. The image used in the headline is sourced from the ex-christian net website: new.exchristian.net/2011/02/loving-father.html

John Chuchman

[Index of Commentaries by John Chuchman]