Vow of obedience

In the Catholic Church, the vow of obedience is one of the three vows of professing to live according to the evangelical counsels. It constitutes one of the religious vows which are made both by members of the religious institutes and diocesan hermits.

The 1983 Code of Canon Law (canon 601) defines it as follows:

"The evangelical counsel of obedience, undertaken in a spirit of faith and love in the following of Christ who was obedient even unto death, requires a submission of the will to legitimate superiors, who stand in the place of God when they command according to the proper constitutions."

In relation to Christian discipleship, the Second Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church speaks of "liberty strengthened by obedience".

Description

The vow of obedience is stipulated in

Secular clergy

Secular clergy promise obedience to their diocesan bishop but they do not take a vow to this effect. The Second Vatican Council's Decree on the Life and Ministry of Priests spoke of "willing responsible obedience" as a manifestation of how they should "conform themselves to Christ".

References

  1. ↑ Code of Canon Law, Canon 601, accessed 22 July 2022
  2. ↑ Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, paragraph 43, published on 21 November 1964, accessed on 28 January 2026
  3. ↑ Rule of St Benedict, Chapter 58.17, accessed on 28 January 2026
  4. ↑ La Rue, C., Ask the Register: priestly promises?, Southern Nebraska Register, published on 28 April 2023, archived on 6 March 2025, accessed on 14 October 2026
  5. ↑ Second Vatican Council, Presbyterorum ordinis, paragraph 15, published on 7 December 1965, accessed on 14 October 2026

Attribution

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Religious Obedience". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.