There is a first time for every major error in Christian history, and the error of our day-the rejection of tradition as good, right, normative, trustworthy, and providential-is an error that never existed before in this naked, austere, unmitigated form. As a consequence, our crisis raises questions about authority and obedience, for the simple reason that the revolution that took place and continues to dominate was initiated and consolidated by so-called “authorities” who claimed the unquestioning allegiance or obedience of all subordinates. Just as every earlier major crisis in Church history led to the clarification of hitherto ambiguous or underdeveloped concepts, so too our crisis will lead to-and has already begun to produce-a better, more realistic, transfigured understanding of Church authority (especially the nature and limits of the papal office) and the corresponding virtue of obedience.
In order to grasp our situation, however, we must dig into what I will call “Satan’s masterstroke,” whereby the devil lays his hands on the most subtle weapon of all: the twisting of obedience until it becomes a means of spiritual suicide or bureaucratic euthanasia. If obedience is a great virtue, its corruption is a great vice.
(A lecture given in Bozeman, Montana, on September 9, 2023.)
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