Obedience is one of those words whose dictionary definition does not fully describe the dynamic that the vow expresses. According to "Webster", obedience refers to being deferential to authority or submissive while obey means to accept or comply with.
While the obvious expression of obedience is that given to the superior, obedience is also manifested in the mutual obedience shown to one another. It is also expressed in being punctual for The Divine Office and community functions.
Perhaps it is best expressed as "a listening as a return to God. Though obedience requires effort at the beginning, it is still service for Christ... On this way of obedience we 'go to God'[1]."
In looking at stability and conversatio morum, one find obedience already intertwined with them both. It is a needed and necessary element to bind that binds the three together and makes seeking God the aim and goal of the monastic's life in the monastery.
[1]Perspective on the Rule of St. Benedict by Aquinata Boeckmann. Liturgical Press, Collegeville, 2005. Page 123.
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