Obedience
Obedience , noun
[French obédience, Latin obedientia, oboedientia. See Obedient, and compare Obeisance.]
1.
The act of obeying, or the state of being obedient; compliance with that which is required by authority; subjection to rightful restraint or control.
Government must compel the obedience of individuals.
2.
Words or actions denoting submission to authority; dutifulness. — Shakespeare
3.
(a) (Ecclesiastical) A following; a body of adherents; as, the Roman Catholic obedience, or the whole body of persons who submit to the authority of the pope.
(b)
(Ecclesiastical) A cell (or offshoot of a larger monastery) governed by a prior.
(c)
(Ecclesiastical) One of the three monastic vows.
(d)
(Ecclesiastical) The written precept of a superior in a religious order or congregation to a subject. — Shipley