Religious obedience

[santodomingo]

To my mind the recent scandal of the Legionaries of Christ is related to a problem of blind obedience. The members who learnt the sad truth about the founder, Marcel Maciel, were ordered to remain silent. And they did. Thereby many more innocent victims were fooled and abused by this man. Apparently their notion of obedience was copied from the Company of Jesus. As it was, it led to disastrous results. Instead of uncovering the truth at the start, Fr. Maciel was allowed to gain the favour of even JPII, as well as building a veritable empire thanks to his donours. Such scandal! IMO it would have been avoided if the legionaries´ concept of obedience had been less unquestioning.

 

[Sirach2]

Santodomingo:

The idea is to get people to dig up quotes from the doctors and saints of the Church from way back. There are some very clever and well-read people in this forum who could enlighten us all with their contributions. How did the great saints understand and live under obedience?

I was happy to see the thrust of your post, but I see that you have drawn the reader away from your initial request. Please consider keeping this on topic and not spoiling it with exposés like a couple of your posts have ventured into. (#14 & 21)

 

[santodomingo]

OK.

I would nevertheless be interested in reading what people have to say about St. Ignatius´ concept of blind obedience.

 

[thomas_jd]

I have not studied the vows of the third order.

In the novitiate we studied the Evangelical Counsels, the Vows, as made by religious and what they mean to us.

I would have to do research on the third orders and their vows as I am sure they are very different than how religious view and live out the Vows.

Thank you, there is only one vow, that of Obedience.
The vow has been on my mind the last few years. I will work it out.

 

[melchesidechpio]

I want to discuss the significance, difficulties and limits of religious obedience. I would be especially excited to hear from those who are presently living under obedience (that doesn´t include husbands BTW!) . I know there are a few religious on the forum. Brother JR comes to mind. How do you see obedience?

The idea is to get people to dig up quotes from the doctors and saints of the Church from way back. There are some very clever and well-read people in this forum who could enlighten us all with their contributions. How did the great saints understand and live under obedience? I would especially like to hear about the great founders of religious orders: St. Francis, St. Bernard, St. Basil, St. Benedict, St. Ignatius, St. Dominic, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Alfonsus, etc.

Is the present crisis of the Church a crisis of obedience? Is it possible to indirectly disobey by obeying the direct orders of one´s superior? What do you think of the phrase “led into disobedience through obedience”? Is the notion of BLIND obedience still valid today? Do the limits to obedience depend on the virtue or wisdom of your superior? When, if ever, is someone who has made a solemn vow of obedience justified in disobeying his superior? Is the obedience of a friar, monk, jesuit, etc. similar to the obedience promised by a lay member of a third order?

Moderator: I realize that this might seem more appropriate in the Spirituality forum, but since I only ever visit the Traditional forum, and I´ve got to know those who lurk here, it would be fun if it could remain here. Another reason is that I´m interested in discussing obedience, as understood TRADITIONALLY, not necessarily how it is generally seen nowadays.

There is a lot when it comes to obedience. In religious order secular and non secular, yes obedience to the Church, the Order, to Christ and to each other. Accepting dogma and accepting changes liturgically, but yet having reverence for everything that the Church has stood for. Obedience also in standing up for the faith. Just look at how Christ was obedient to Mary and Joseph and yet being obedient to his Father.

 

[Sirach2]

Thomas jd:

If I may ask, what are your feeling toward a Lay Carmelite’s vow of Obedience?

Lay Carmelites do not take vows, Thomas - they make a formal promise when they are professed, consisting of poverty, chastity and obedience according to their station in life. After final promises for life are made, they can petition the order for permission to make their promises as a formal vow, to enter into greater perfection and merit. This is a serious obligation they undertake, and permission is not granted lightly without thorough knowledge of person who requests this. From the Constitutions:

39. All of Christ’s faithful have the right to make vows. With the consent of the Council of the community and the permission of the Provincial, a member of the Secular Order may make vows of obedience and chastity in the presence of the community. These vows are strictly personal and do not create a separate category of membership. They suppose a greater commitment of fidelity to the evangelical life but do not transform those who make them into juridically recognized consecrated people as in Institutes of consecrated life. Those who make vows in the Secular Order continue to be lay persons in all juridical effects.

 

[laszlo]

If a superior orders you to take off your habbit, stop praying the Rosary, etc. should he be obeyed?

Yes. In 1950 all religious houses (except 4) were dissolved by the the government. The superiors ordered the religious men and women to take off their habit and stop praying openly. (The communists required that, and the superiors hoped that some negotiation will be possible. The religious men and women (except a few hothead) obeyed. Interestingly almost all the hotheads broke their vows and married within a few years.

The obedience is the strength of the Church and the key for the survival. The disobedience, the spirit that ‘you will know good and evil’ comes from the Adversary.

 

[Friar_David_O.Carm]

Yes. In 1950 all religious houses (except 4) were dissolved by the the government. The superiors ordered the religious men and women to take off their habit and stop praying openly. (The communists required that, and the superiors hoped that some negotiation will be possible. The religious men and women (except a few hothead) obeyed. Interestingly almost all the hotheads broke their vows and married within a few years.

The obedience is the strength of the Church and the key for the survival. The disobedience, the spirit that ‘you will know good and evil’ comes from the Adversary.

Where did this happen?

 

[JReducation]

I’m readint this thread with great interest. What keeps repeating itself is a serious anxiety about “blind obedience.” I believe this fear comes from a misunderstanding of the term. I think that Francis of Assisi and Ignatius of Loyola captured it best. St. Ignatius has already been quoted. He does teach blind obedience, so does St. Francis of Assisi. In fact, Francis of Assisi was so convinced of its value that he wrote it into the rule, into the admonitions and into the testimony. He obviously wanted to make sure that we got the message. His final writing on the subject was his Testimony.

Br. David may not like this one and that’s why he is called to be a Carmelite and not a Franciscan. Francis does not allow for dialogue. His commands of obedience is linear and the line is vertical and horizontal. Let’s explain the horizontal first. The friars gather in a General Chapter where they make laws for themselves. The superiors are bound to enforce these laws. In this sense, the superior is subordinate to those whom he governs. The governed, in chapter, write the laws.

Now let’s look at the vertical. There is the law of God. There is the pope. There is Francis and there is the Rule. The chapter may never make laws that contradict any of these. In essence, Franciscan obedience is grounded on the cross.

Francis, did not stop there. He received permission to damn to hell any friar who disobeyed a command from him or his canonically elected successors. There is no room for dialogue, unless the superior wishes to have a dialogue. This is where Francis introduces what comes to be kown as a loving obedience. In order to elicit a loving obedience from his brother, the superior must behave as loving brother. He must do whatever is necessary to make obedience easier for his brother. For some brothers, this means a dialogue and for others it is a simple command, no questions asked. People feel more comfortable with different expressions of authority. However, what is never up for discussion is the final decision of the superior. The fact that he may give you permission to share your thoughts, does not bind him in any way. He has to look at the bigger picture, that means your welfare and that of your brothers.

Francis said, ** The Lord says in the Gospel: he “that doth not renounce all that he possesseth cannot be” a "disciple " and “he that will save his life, shall lose it.” That man leaves all he possesses and loses his body and his soul who abandons himself wholly to obedience in the hands of his superior, and whatever he does and says—provided he himself knows that what he does is good and not contrary to his [the superior’s] will—is true obedience. And if at times a subject sees things which would be better or more useful to his soul than those which the superior commands him, let him sacrifice his will to God, let him strive to fulfill the work enjoined by the superior. This is true and charitable obedience which is pleasing to God and to one’s neighbor. **

Franciscan obedience makes several demands on the Franciscans (including the Secular Franciscans). You abandon yourself into the hands of your superior. You should always be happy that you are doing the superior’s will. This is true obedience, to abandon your will. The other part of this is that the superior does not have to be right. He may be wrong and you may know that he’s wrong, but you still have a moral obligation to obey. Here is the most interesting part. You obey because it is pleasing to BOTH God and to man. Obedience is an act of charity toward God and man. Francis ties obedience in to the Great Commandment. Love God above all things and neighbor as yourself. You please God and your neighbor.

Blind obedience is not the same as moral recklessness. Francis understood this. He wrote ** If, however, a superior command anything to a subject that is against his soul it is permissible for him to disobey, **

However, in another part of his writings, Francis writes a list of virtues that he extrapolates from the scriptures. When he speaks about that which is contrary to one’s soul, he is referring to that list of virtues. The superior cannot command against the virtues that Francis and the Church have identified. In other words, it’s not about your conscience, unless your conscience agrees with Scripture, Church and Francis. We’ll get back to this later.

 

[JReducation]

But let’s look at how Francis commands us to deal with a superior who commands us to sin. **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. **

This is where Franciscans often suffer criticism from the two extremes in the Church. St. Francis commands that we love and stay close to the person in authority. If the bishop, the pope, or the superior commands something that is sinful, we may refuse to do it. But we may never say anything against him or allow others to do so. We must love that person, especially when they are persecuted for their errors. Why is this? Because it as Francis de Sales would say several hundred years later. There is an obedience that is mandatory. Avoiding sin is such an obedience. Then there is an obedience that is voluntary. Choosing to love and protect that superior who is being persecuted for his mistake is not mandatory. It’s not found in the Gospel or the laws of the Church. It is an act of love. Francis commands us to such acts of love. Therefore, we never express our opinions against any person in authority without permission, even if we believe that they are in error.

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. This kind of love is laying down one’s life. Franciscan obedience is based on the cross. We lay down our lives for our brothers, even when they mistaken. We do not sin, but we do not abandon the superior who is in error, nor do we allow others to persecute him.

Francis begins his rule with obedience and ends his life writing on obedience, obedience which is always absolute, without complaints and reservations, while at the same time it complies with the moral law of the scripture, the Church and the founder. Obedience was so important to him that he begins his rule speaking on it.

** In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. This is the life that Brother Francis begged might be conceded to him and confirmed by the Lord Pope Innocent. And he [the Pope] has conceded and confirmed it to him and to his brothers present and future. Brother Francis, and whoever may be at the head of this religion, promises obedience and reverence to our Lord Pope Innocent and to his successors. And the other brothers shall be bound to obey Brother Francis and his successors. **

Franciscans have a very intimate relationship with our Seraphic Father, because from the early days, the brothers and later the sisters gathered around him. What he said was the voice of Christ. He always pointed to Christ. On the other hand, to avoid idol worship or a personality cult, Francis makes it very clear that he obeys the pope and his successors (this includes the bishops, because they govern in union with the pope). The brothers are bound to obey him and his successors. What is interesting was that end of the end of his life, he reminded the brothers that he still governed the order, even from the grave, because “no one revealed to me how we were to live, except the Lord Most High”. To this day, we believe that the holy rule was a private revelation from God to Francis through a series of events and persons. If you disobey Francis, you’re disobeying the Holy Spirit.

It’s very demanding, but also very liberating. You simply do as your told, say what you’re allowed to say and hold your tongue when you’re told to do so. Unless it would be a sin to act otherwise, you offer the sacrifice that you make as a penance.

The Franciscan family is one of the few families in the Church that actually has obedience to the pope, bishops and other hierarchy in its statutes. There are many more, but too long to post them all.

I should add here that Francis preached this same level of obedience to the laity and he wrote letters to the laity commanding them to live a life of penance grounded in obedience. His friars were to be examples for the laity to follow.

Unlike Benedict whose monks obey for their sanctification, the Franciscans obey for their sanctification AND as a form of teaching to the laity. It is the only ministry that we are commanded to do for the laity, to teach the laity a loving obedience to God, Church and all legitimate authority. All other ministries are according to gifts and needs of time and place. Obedience as Christ obeyed, is a way of life and a message that the Franciscan carries through the world.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[itsjustdave1988]

**Thomas a’Kempis, ***The Imitation of Christ, *on obedience…

---

"OBEDIENCE AND SUBJECTION
IT IS a very great thing to obey, to live under a superior and not to be one’s own master, for it is much safer to be subject than it is to command. Many live in obedience more from necessity than from love. Such become discontented and dejected on the slightest pretext; they will never gain peace of mind unless they subject themselves wholeheartedly for the love of God.

Go where you may, you will find no rest except in humble obedience to the rule of authority. Dreams of happiness expected from change and different places have deceived many.

Everyone, it is true, wishes to do as he pleases and is attracted to those who agree with him. But if God be among us, we must at times give up our opinions for the blessings of peace.

Furthermore, who is so wise that he can have full knowledge of everything? Do not trust too much in your own opinions, but be willing to listen to those of others. If, though your own be good, you accept another’s opinion for love of God, you will gain much more merit; for I have often heard that it is safer to listen to advice and take it than to give it. It may happen, too, that while one’s own opinion may be good, refusal to agree with others when reason and occasion demand it, is a sign of pride and obstinacy."​

 

[Friar_David_O.Carm]

I’m readint this thread with great interest. What keeps repeating itself is a serious anxiety about “blind obedience.” I believe this fear comes from a misunderstanding of the term. I think that Francis of Assisi and Ignatius of Loyola captured it best. St. Ignatius has already been quoted. He does teach blind obedience, so does St. Francis of Assisi. In fact, Francis of Assisi was so convinced of its value that he wrote it into the rule, into the admonitions and into the testimony. He obviously wanted to make sure that we got the message. His final writing on the subject was his Testimony.

I think part of the anxiety is that blind obedience does not mean that a superior is free to order those under him to sin in any way.

Br. David may not like this one and that’s why he is called to be a Carmelite and not a Franciscan. Francis does not allow for dialogue. His commands of obedience is linear and the line is vertical and horizontal. Let’s explain the horizontal first. The friars gather in a General Chapter where they make laws for themselves. The superiors are bound to enforce these laws. In this sense, the superior is subordinate to those whom he governs. The governed, in chapter, write the laws.

I have no problem with this. As Saint Albert wrote into our Rule, the voice of our superior is the voice of Christ.

The dialogue that we enter into today is not enshrined within our Rule or our Constitutions (as far as I am aware of, I do need to take the time to really study them) it is a courtesy that my prior provincial gives. He could assign without our (name removed by moderator)ut but that is not the way we have evolved. We have (name removed by moderator)ut in our assignments today. I will honor that but I will go where the superior asks me to go. Again, I can only speak for myself and the way I will live out my Vows.

 

[maurin]

Where did this happen?

I believe in Hungary? Is that correct Laszlo?

 

[melchesidechpio]

But let’s look at how Francis commands us to deal with a superior who commands us to sin. **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. **

This is where Franciscans often suffer criticism from the two extremes in the Church. St. Francis commands that we love and stay close to the person in authority. If the bishop, the pope, or the superior commands something that is sinful, we may refuse to do it. But we may never say anything against him or allow others to do so. We must love that person, especially when they are persecuted for their errors. Why is this? Because it as Francis de Sales would say several hundred years later. There is an obedience that is mandatory. Avoiding sin is such an obedience. Then there is an obedience that is voluntary. Choosing to love and protect that superior who is being persecuted for his mistake is not mandatory. It’s not found in the Gospel or the laws of the Church. It is an act of love. Francis commands us to such acts of love. Therefore, we never express our opinions against any person in authority without permission, even if we believe that they are in error.

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. This kind of love is laying down one’s life. Franciscan obedience is based on the cross. We lay down our lives for our brothers, even when they mistaken. We do not sin, but we do not abandon the superior who is in error, nor do we allow others to persecute him.

Francis begins his rule with obedience and ends his life writing on obedience, obedience which is always absolute, without complaints and reservations, while at the same time it complies with the moral law of the scripture, the Church and the founder. Obedience was so important to him that he begins his rule speaking on it.

** In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. This is the life that Brother Francis begged might be conceded to him and confirmed by the Lord Pope Innocent. And he [the Pope] has conceded and confirmed it to him and to his brothers present and future. Brother Francis, and whoever may be at the head of this religion, promises obedience and reverence to our Lord Pope Innocent and to his successors. And the other brothers shall be bound to obey Brother Francis and his successors. **

Franciscans have a very intimate relationship with our Seraphic Father, because from the early days, the brothers and later the sisters gathered around him. What he said was the voice of Christ. He always pointed to Christ. On the other hand, to avoid idol worship or a personality cult, Francis makes it very clear that he obeys the pope and his successors (this includes the bishops, because they govern in union with the pope). The brothers are bound to obey him and his successors. What is interesting was that end of the end of his life, he reminded the brothers that he still governed the order, even from the grave, because “no one revealed to me how we were to live, except the Lord Most High”. To this day, we believe that the holy rule was a private revelation from God to Francis through a series of events and persons. If you disobey Francis, you’re disobeying the Holy Spirit.

It’s very demanding, but also very liberating. You simply do as your told, say what you’re allowed to say and hold your tongue when you’re told to do so. Unless it would be a sin to act otherwise, you offer the sacrifice that you make as a penance.

The Franciscan family is one of the few families in the Church that actually has obedience to the pope, bishops and other hierarchy in its statutes. There are many more, but too long to post them all.

I should add here that Francis preached this same level of obedience to the laity and he wrote letters to the laity commanding them to live a life of penance grounded in obedience. His friars were to be examples for the laity to follow.

Unlike Benedict whose monks obey for their sanctification, the Franciscans obey for their sanctification AND as a form of teaching to the laity. It is the only ministry that we are commanded to do for the laity, to teach the laity a loving obedience to God, Church and all legitimate authority. All other ministries are according to gifts and needs of time and place. Obedience as Christ obeyed, is a way of life and a message that the Franciscan carries through the world.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

Oh Br. JR. So beautiful. With St. Francis I understand his obedience and to have you explain obedience, it just feels like I read a book about St. Francis and how he dealt with certain situations. I never stop learning about this wonderful Saint and founder.

 

[JReducation]

If a superior orders you to take off your habbit, stop praying the Rosary, etc. should he be obeyed?

Let’s look at this through the eyes of St. Francis.

Is the habit a moral command? No.

Is the Rosary a moral command? No.

Is the wearing of the habit a doctrine? No.

Is praying the Rosary a doctrine? No.

Does the habit make one a religious? No.

Does the rosary make one a religious? No.

Is the superior right? It does not sound like it.

Is the superior commanding somehing immoral? No.

Must the superior be obeyed? Absolutely and without complaining, because such obedience is pleasing to God and man, says St. Francis. The truth is that the superior is not commanding sin. It may be very silly on his part, but it’s not a sin.

This is the kind of obedience that hurts. It’s much easier to obey when the superior and I reach an agreement through some compromise.

Not every religious tradition grants this much authority to the superior. As Br. David has said, the Carmelite Priors don’t have this kind of authority. The Franciscsans hold that popes, bishops, superiors, civil authorities, and your boss at work must be obeyed as long as he does not command you to do something THAT THE CHURCH SAYS IS A SIN, not that you say is a sin. Your job is form your conscience according to the mind of the Church.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[itsjustdave1988]

St. Thomas Aquinas on obedience…

…he who obeys is moved at the bidding of the person who commands him, by a certain necessity of justice…. there are two reasons, for which a subject may not be bound to obey his superior in all things. First on account of the command of a higher power…. Therefore if the emperor commands one thing and God another, you must disregard the former and obey God. Secondly, a subject is not bound to obey his superior if the latter command him to do something wherein he is not subject to him…. Consequently in matters touching the internal movement of the will man is not bound to obey his fellow-man, but God alone.… Wherefore servants are not bound to obey their masters, nor children their parents, in the question of contracting marriage or of remaining in the state of virginity or the like. But in matters concerning the disposal of actions and human affairs, a subject is bound to obey his superior within the sphere of his authority…

Accordingly we may distinguish a threefold obedience; one, sufficient for salvation, and consisting in obeying when one is bound to obey: secondly, perfect obedience, which obeys in all things lawful: thirdly, indiscreet obedience, which obeys even in matters unlawful.

Summa Theologica IIb, 104, 5]

“We must abide rather by the pope’s judgment than by the opinion of any of the theologians, however well versed he may be in divine Scripture” (Questiones Quodlibetales, IX:8).

 

[itsjustdave1988]

St. Catherine of Siena on obedience…

“He is insane who rises or acts contrary to this Vicar who holds the keys of the blood of Christ crucified. Even if he was a demon incarnate, I should not raise my head against him, but always grovel and ask for the blood out of mercy. And don’t pay attention to what the demon proposes to you and you propose under the color of virtue, that is to say to want to do justice against evil pastors regarding their fault. Don’t trust the demon: don’t try to do justice about what does not concern you. God wants neither you nor anyone else to set themselves up as a righter of the wrongs of His ministers. He reserves judgment to Himself, and He reserves it to His Vicar; and if the Vicar does not do justice, we should wait for the punishment and correction on the part of the sovereign judge, God Eternal.” (Letters, Vol. I. Letter No. 28).

“He left you this sweet key of obedience; for as you know He left His vicar, the Christ, on earth, whom you are all obliged to obey until death, and whoever is outside His obedience is in a state of damnation” (Dialogue, Treatise on Obedience)

“For divine obedience never prevents us from obedience to the Holy Father: nay, the more perfect the one, the more perfect is the other. And we ought always to be subject to his commands and obedient unto death. However indiscreet obedience to him might seem, and however it should deprive us of mental peace and consolation, we ought to obey; and I consider that to do the opposite is a great imperfection, and deceit of the devil.” (Letter to Brother Antonio of Nizza)

 

[itsjustdave1988]

Here’s another from St. Thomas Aquinas…

Obedience is a special virture, and its specific object is a command tacit or express, because the superior’s will, however it become known, is a tacit precept, and a man’s obedience seems to be all the more prompt, forasmuch as by obeying he forestalls the express command as soon as he understands his superior’s will.

[Summa Theologica IIb, 104, 2]

 

[JReducation]

I think part of the anxiety is that blind obedience does not mean that a superior is free to order those under him to sin in any way.

I have no problem with this. As Saint Albert wrote into our Rule, the voice of our superior is the voice of Christ.

The dialogue that we enter into today is not enshrined within our Rule or our Constitutions (as far as I am aware of, I do need to take the time to really study them) it is a courtesy that my prior provincial gives. He could assign without our (name removed by moderator)ut but that is not the way we have evolved. We have (name removed by moderator)ut in our assignments today. I will honor that but I will go where the superior asks me to go. Again, I can only speak for myself and the way I will live out my Vows.

When I said that you would not like this part, I was not trying to pick on you. You know this. You know me well. What I was referring to is precissely what you’re saying about how the two families have evolved.

The Carmelites have evolved toward collegiality. Franciscans are much more linear. Francis is the Holy Father and all of his successors are Ministers whose service to the fraternity is to guide us according to the vision and commands of the Holy Father, because the Holy Father is the Perfect Christian, which we all aspire to be.

Francis did like dialogue. He consulted a great deal with hsi subordinates. But he always made it very clear that he was Father (not in the clericall sense, because Francis was a layman). He was the patriarch. He did not give up that role, even when he resigned from the office of General Minister or when priests and bishops joined the order. He was their father and they were simply Brother N.

We’re probably one of the few religious families who at one point has a General Minister and a Father who trumped the superior general. While Francis no longer governed the order, because he was too sick to do so, the General Minister was bound to obey him, because it was in the rule. The brothers and sisters were bound to obey the General Minister. Francis sent them direction and guidance through the Minister.

To this day, we have some dialogue, but we have not lost the Patriarchy. Is there such a word?

In other words, when in doubt, “What would Francis do? What would Francis command us? How would Francis use this opportunity to become more like Christ?”

When I made that statement, I was pointing out the differences in vocations. Carmelites don’t use Albert as the teacher. He is the Law Giver. Your Priors can expand the options according to their discretion.

For us, Francis is Fahter and teacher. Dialogue has boundaries. The conclusions must be consistent with the way to Christ that Francis teaches and commands. We don’t contradict the Father and teacher, because he has proven himself to be the Mirror of Perfection.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF

 

[JReducation]

St. Thomas Aquinas on obedience…

How did that disappear?

I was going to point out how Thomas is really echoing what Francis and Dominic had already taught about obedience. Authority has defintions or boundaries. One must obey within those boundaries.

One thing that authority cannot do is to command sin. Another thing that authority cannot do is to command against a higher authority. The superior of my house cannot command me contrary to the Major Superior. The Major Superior cannot command contrary to the pope.

What Thomas does not mention in this citation, but we now the he lived it, because it’s part of the Dominican way of life, is the pope has the authority to expand the power and jurisdiction of superiors and he often does. It was done for Bernard, Francis, Dominic and later for Ignatius of Loyola.

Thomas is right. The superior (authority) may not exceed his jurisdiction. But that jurisdiction can be expanded by the Church. One of the concerns that Thomas had, as did many theologians, was that some superiors served as confessors or spiritual directors of their subjects. They governed in what we call the internal and external forum. It is to that which Thomas is speaking.

Superiors may not be the confessors or spiritual directors of their subordinates. Their jurisdiction must be in external affairs.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF