to obey contrary to God; the second, when the work is voluntary; the third, when it is pure from the standpoint of a holy purpose, in accordance with the Saviour's teaching, when he said: "If thine eye is single, thy whole body shall be full of light," Matt. 6:22. The fourth condition is when the work is judicious, because neither defect nor excess infects it, and the fifth, when it is permanently persevered in, as an obligation, even to the end. From this it is clear that an inferior, recognizing a superior's injudicious command, that it is known or should be known as fitted to hurt the church, by drawing away from the worship of God and the profit of souls unto salvation,—he ought to resist that superior. For such resistance is true obedience done not only to God in view of the law of fraternal correction but also to the superior himself, for no superior has the right to command anything except what is good. Since, therefore, an inferior is obligated, for obedience's sake, to do that which is generically good and commanded by the superior, it follows that he is obeying in so resisting him, as he ought; for he thereby does what is good, and turns away from what is evil. Hence, it is clear that a subject, in obeying his prelate in that which is evil, is not excused from sin, for the Saviour says: "If the blind guide[1] the blind, both fall into the pit,’’ Matt. 15:14.
This means that if a "blind man," that is, an ignorant or bad prelate, guides "a blind man," that is, an ignorant or bad subject, by commanding him to do something, they both fall into the pit of error. Hence, Christ aptly says to his disciples in regard to the scribes and Pharisees—who taught that it is a sin to eat bread with unwashen hands, when it is nevertheless not a sin:—"Let them alone, they are blind leaders of the blind." What does "let them alone" mean? The Gloss says, "Leave them to their own will; they are blind," that is, they are obscured by traditions.
And this rule of Christ the very brute animals observe,
- ↑ Præbit ducatum. Vulgate: prestet ducatum.
