SPSA Church Giving (opens in a new tab)

Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty · Catechism · 1209

Faith Q&A › Catechism › 3. The Virtue of Obedience

Are children, and those who are meant to fully obey those over them, obligated to blindly obey commands that are contrary to a divine command?

The answer

When St. Mary reprimanded her Son, our Lord Jesus, because He remained in the Temple for three days conversing with the teachers and caused her and St. Joseph great anxiety (Luke 2:41–52), He did not apologize in order just to placate her. Rather, with a submissive spirit He calmly explained to her: “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?”

And when the Lord spoke about His crucifixion and death, St. Peter said to him, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” (Matt. 16:22), and the Lord turned to him and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” (Matt. 16:23).

Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty

Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty, Catechism of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Volumes 1 and 2, Books 1–7. First English Edition, 2023. Published by St. George Coptic Orthodox Church, Sporting, Alexandria, and Queen St. Mary & Prince Tadros Coptic Orthodox Church, South Brunswick, NJ. Copyright © 2023. Translation and Editing: Youth of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, Arabian Gulf, and Egypt.