Rule of St Benedict Chapter 6
“For it befitteth a master to speak and teach; and it beseemeth a disciple to hold his peace and listen.”
In today’s culture it would appear listening is a lost art. I have always been amazed at spiritual novices who seem eager to one up those who are of greater spiritual maturity and advancement. They do not hold the elders among them with any regard and have not the discipline to hold their tongue, rather they are quick to rebuke and seek to dominate the teacher. What sin this is! A disciple will never grow in spiritual experience if he can not submit to true spiritual authority as would be befitting of the humble servant.
K.P. Yohannan writes in his excellent work Touching Godliness Through Submission:
“Over the years I have watched young people, with great potential, wreck their lives. One of the main reasons is, even with the call of God and the marvelous gifts He has so graciously given them, they became proud.
Within three to five years, these skilled individuals start thinking they know more than their parents, their pastors and the their elders. They no longer seek to learn and understand. The enemy now has the advantage.
It is like a five-year-old cedar tree. It truly is beautiful. It is the real thing, but it will take another 15, 20, even 30 years before the cedar can be a tree that achieves it’s unique potential. A young person who understands submission and chooses to respect his or her elders will make it in the end and also be blessed.”
The postmodern mind has gone beyond the simple questioning of authority to dictating with vehement contempt seeking eventual overthrow to establish itself as the authority it dis-respects . This is the pride of Lucifer in his power lust to sit in the very throne of God to be like the Most High.
The student is never above his teacher and the servant never above his master – even if the roles eventually reversed the teacher or the master was always first and is worthy of respect if for no other reason than the pre-eminence of position even then is a ‘like’ relationship (Matt 10:24-25). This is humility even acted out in the heavenlies when Michael contended with the devil over the body of Moses dared not bring a reviling accusation against the devil (Jude 9)
