Obedience in communication is a continuous process – listening to the interlocutor (whether he hears you, whether he understands what you are telling him, whether he accepts what he is given both in word and deed), and to yourself (what you say, how you act, how you behave); and – if you are a Christian – at all times being vigilant to the will of the Holy Spirit (His voice-breath in you). For example, during a phone conversation: the interlocutor has hung up, and I, like a fool, shout into the phone for three hours, get angry, prove something, tear my throat… and the interlocutor (with whom I “communicate” – as I think) has long gone to drink tea, or has gone to sleep!!! Therefore, all good starts with obedience, is done in obedience, and ends in obedience! Where there is no obedience – there is no good, there is selfishness, self-love, pride, word-deed in one’s own name, for oneself, for oneself, and not for the Other, not for the sake of the Other. Because if you want to do something for someone, you must fulfill his (his! Other’s!) will, not your will-desire! And since the will of free beings is dynamic, continuous obedience is needed – at every moment (over time to clarify the will of the Other – I speak in a worldly manner) to find out the will of the Other, in whose name I act-speak. The Christian at all times must know the will of God, the will of Jesus Christ (Christians do everything in the name of Jesus Christ, for Christ – therefore they renounce their will at all times and try to fulfill the will of God). The Lord Jesus Christ was obedient to the Father, did not do His will but the Father’s will, so we must not live for ourselves but for Jesus Christ: whether we live or die, whether we eat or fast, whether we speak or keep silent… – all for Jesus Christ to the glory of God the Father! Glory to You, God! Glory to You, God! Glory to You, God the Father Almighty of everything in unspeakable Cross Love! Glory to You, Lord Jesus Christ, forever!
The same is true in communication, good deeds with the image of God – between people. The principle of communication for free hypostases (Divine and created) is the same. Love is one state (way of being), the principle of being eros-self-giving-self-denial-service!
The Fathers give the novices (those who are being taught to listen, to heed, to hear, and who are being prepared for the science of sciences – prayer) not a prayer rope, not a prayer book or Psalter, not a catechism or a textbook on dogmatic theology, but a shovel, an ax, a scythe, rakes… and they teach them to listen, to be obedient. They primarily ensure that the novice (catechumen) is capable of listening, hearing, and seeing, without which (the ability to listen and hear) there can be no announcement or teaching. To convey something to someone, the listener must first and foremost have ears to hear, and to show them something, they must have eyes to see. Otherwise, you speak and show in vain – into the void. Therefore, the Fathers first take care to open the ears, eyes… all the senses so that the person becomes capable of receiving instruction. Only after the “shovel-hoe-ax” phase does the actual instruction in the Commandments of God (word and deed) and the teaching of prayer begin!
Thus, the saints (Christians) first, before catechesis, check hearing, vision… the ability to listen and perceive the teaching-preparation (for the Examination-Judgment by the Holy Spirit). They determine the degree of disobedience of the novice and work on developing obedience – the ability to perceive, understand, and fulfill the Commandments of God, and only then do they introduce the first stage: the direct preparation for the operation (descent into hell) – catechesis! Therefore, at first, they treat disobedience by preparing with physical obedience – external work (digging the garden, carrying water, mowing grass, chopping wood…), which is performed without question. A person is a holistic being – a hypostatic psycho-somatic reality (the soul and body are energies of the single human essence, like light and heat are energies of the sun). And physical obedience (the feat of self-denial) generates the ability for mental obedience, and mental obedience leads to Spiritual obedience! Teaching is preceded by acquaintance: the one who will catechize learns everything about the one who wants to be catechized – his abilities, measure, the ability to listen and learn. Then comes the treatment of disobedience, and only then begins the period of catechesis. (Let’s recall: we are talking about logic, the logical sequence of the process of salvation, not chronological; we are interested in the essence, principle, law, not various combinations-cases).
In the process of catechesis, both the catechist and the catechumen must be obedient. Imagine a situation. A wonderful teacher (with a world-renowned name) is invited to a school to give a lecture. Due to certain circumstances, the teacher was late, in a hurry he confused the classes and entered the classroom of deaf-mute children, and since he was late, he immediately began to present the material (there was no time to get acquainted with the students, and he did not expect a response to his greeting – he was in such a hurry to make up for lost time!?). So, the teacher delivers the lecture, convinced that the students understand him (he was supposed to lecture the best students – prize-winners of international Olympiads!), but when he saw that they did not grasp the basic things and shook their heads, indicating they did not understand (they simply could not hear, and consequently – could not understand what was being discussed!), he began to get irritated, angry at the students (and those who invited him to the school). Absurd! It is not the listeners’ fault that they do not understand (basic, trivial, obvious things), that they do not “hear” the teacher, that there is no communication, but the teacher’s, who did not take care of the most important thing in the educational process, in communication – that it is first necessary to get acquainted with the students (if possible comprehensively), to listen to them, to learn from them first: who they are, what their abilities are, what level of knowledge they have, what language they communicate in, etc. And the teacher could have lectured to the end, considering that he completed everything planned – saying goodbye and leaving, thinking to himself that he fulfilled his duty and being proud of himself… while in reality, no one heard anyone (neither the teacher the students, nor the students the teacher). – What good is that? – Just pointless labor from both sides: one was speaking, proving something to himself, and the others were sitting and waiting for the break, for this nightmare to end! Or this teacher could have exploded, arranged a scandal, and slammed the door… But it is his own fault – disobedient! (most conversations have such a sad final result). Phenomenal knowledge-abilities without obedience – nothing! Therefore, the main thing is obedience (continuous and mutual: the teacher listens to the catechumen, and the catechumen – to the teacher)! A wise teacher, knowing that he will not be heard, remains silent (e.g., the Lord at Pilate’s trial, before the Sanhedrin – “you will not believe and will not let go”!