Slings and arrows

Of Perfect and imperfect obedience – 1   If, however, a superior command anything to a subject that is against his soul it is permissible for him to disobey, but he must not leave him [the superior], and if in consequence he suffer persecution from some, he should love them the more for God’s sake.   For he who would rather suffer persecution than wish to be separated from his brethren, truly abides in perfect obedience because he lays down his life for his brothers.   For there are many religious who, under pretext of seeing better things than those which their superiors command, look back and return to the vomit of their own will. These are homicides and by their bad example cause the loss of many souls.

Whenever someone asks us to do anything that is against our own conscience we are permitted to disobey- in fact we must.   For those of us in religious life, though we do so (disobey) we ought to remain with our Superior, Guardian, brother or sister Shepherd; even when as the result of our disobedience we suffer persecution from our fellows in religion.   These slings and arrows are to move us to greater love for them, such a love like unto dying for them. Being like Christ for them.   If I have made proper sense of his writing, it appears here that it might be possible for a Subject to mistake the bridling of their own will for the pangs of conscience that would suggest to them that they do not enact the request.   Disobedience in this case is like returning to the vomit of our own self-will. Losing ground after we have come so far.

1 Firstly, because Francis wrote these words of admonishment for himself and his brothers I have decided not to sanitize his words by rendering them gender neutral – as I do sometimes.

What to make of his last sentence: “These are homicides and by their bad example cause the loss of many souls”?