What does it mean to obey?

The homily this week was a really good one, given thoughtfully by our church deacon. I love listening to him, because he always seems to be talking to each of us personally, instead of delivering a missive. He was talking about relationships; specifically, God's relationship to us, and how, like any friendship, the relationship was/is worked out gradually over time. For Creation and Creator to come to know one another more fully, it took/takes baby steps, and we will likely spend the rest of human existence exploring the depths of that relationship. Deacon Steve also pointed out (and this I found both amusing and humbling) that we can look to the sky with a telescope and see infinite variation, and we can peer through a microscope and see infinite variation, and we can look at everything in between: we, and it, are all Creation. We are connected, in our infinite variety. We are all treasured and loved as part of one larger scope of existence. 

Then he went on to talk about what relationships need in order for them to work. Compassion, caring, friendship, and, at times, even obedience. Now, obey is not a word that we like to hear, at least not often. Deacon Steve explained, though, that the etymology of the word is not rooted in a power dynamic. Obey, if you trace it back to its Latin beginnings, asks us to harken, to listen near, and, in essence, to pay careful attention. If we are in a caring relationship, we ought to listen with care. It's not so much about service, though to give someone that kind of careful attention is a form of willing service, but instead, it's about honoring the other person or people with whom you are in a relationship. 

That all made me stop and think quite a bit. We tend to bristle when we are told to obey, and in the common contemporary sense, that is understandable. I think that it is meant to be more closely related to the idea of namaste, rather than being ordered to do something. To obey, in its original sense --to harken, listen, and show careful attention-- is a gift we give to those we love and to ourselves. 

Have a good day,

C

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