Obedience, subservience to authority, submission, docility, accountability — these concepts are so prominent, and so interwoven within many Christian circles, that you’d think they were the foundation upon which Christ taught.

Part of preparing for each day is prayer, in which we seek guidance from God in how to interact with Him, and the people we encounter on this planet. The New Hat, original oil painting by Steve Henderson.

In other words, a good Christian does what he or she is told.

“Jesus was passive,” someone told me the other day, “and He taught His followers to be the same.” My speaker was expressing frustration with contemporary Christians, and Christianity, and while I agree with his assessment that followers are actively taught to be passive, I disagree that it is Christ who gives them this message.

Men say this, and they’ve been saying it for a long time.

Anne Bronte, in her book Agnes Grey, has a great quote about what men expect of other men, when it comes to obedience — and they expect a lot. Please follow the link to my article, Must We Obey Church Authority? at Commonsense Christianity, BeliefNet,  if for no other reason to read Bronte’s quote — 167 years old — that describes just how much lay people are expected to put aside their beliefs, thoughts, and independence in accepting the mandates of another.