The Interconnection between Freedom and Obedience in the Human Response to God's Call as Both Risk and Opportunity for Spiritual Maturation

This paper explores the relationship between obedience and freedom as constitutive elements of the human response to the Word of God. Together with Dorothee Slle, it critically reflects on authoritarian interpretations of obedience which suppress subjectivity and lead to distortions in theological anthropology, Christology, and spirituality. It presents, in contrast, theMarian model of free obedience, as developed by Adrienne von Speyr: aform of self-surrender that does not undermine personal integrity, but enables deeper participation in God’s life. The paper calls for arenewed theological understanding of obedience within the analogy of faith and its liberation from reductive or power-driven interpretations.