Starwars, the force and God

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Can the force and fit in the Christian thought or philosophy? Is there any similarites between the force and God?
 
Of course there is!

Force = Holy Spirit.

Shmi Skywalker: Concieved of the force, in fulfillment of prophesy.
Mary: Conceived of the holy spirit, in fulfillment of prophesy.

Both prophesies speak of one who will destroy the power of evil in the world.

With regard to more practical implications in life:

As a Jedi, one dedicates their life to service ot the force. As a Catholic, one dedicates their life to God through the Holy Spirit. This calls for love and compassion, and a respect for all life and service to others in both instances. However, in both cases we must be detached from all things aside the will of God/the force. Jedis must remain celibate to aid in their complete devotion and service, as do our priests.

One becomes aware of the will of the force/holy spirit through patience, meditation, and searching through their feelings. The force/HS can, if they so choose, to reveal glimpses of truths to us, and empower us to live as we are called.

Josh, O.J.K. (Order of Jedi Knight.)
 
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threej_lc:
Of course there is!

Force = Holy Spirit.

Shmi Skywalker: Concieved of the force, in fulfillment of prophesy.
Mary: Conceived of the holy spirit, in fulfillment of prophesy.

Both prophesies speak of one who will destroy the power of evil in the world.

With regard to more practical implications in life:

As a Jedi, one dedicates their life to service ot the force. As a Catholic, one dedicates their life to God through the Holy Spirit. This calls for love and compassion, and a respect for all life and service to others in both instances. However, in both cases we must be detached from all things aside the will of God/the force. Jedis must remain celibate to aid in their complete devotion and service, as do our priests.

One becomes aware of the will of the force/holy spirit through patience, meditation, and searching through their feelings. The force/HS can, if they so choose, to reveal glimpses of truths to us, and empower us to live as we are called.

Josh, O.J.K. (Order of Jedi Knight.)
Actually, wasn’t Anakin supposed to bring “balance” to the Force? Jesus wasn’t about balance, He was out to kick devil butt!
 
Momofone:
Actually, wasn’t Anakin supposed to bring “balance” to the Force? Jesus wasn’t about balance, He was out to kick devil butt!
It all depends on your sense of “balance.”

“You were supposed to destroy the sith, not join them!” -Obi Wan Kenobi, Episode 3.

I’d say Christ brought balance to the world by redeeming it. Now instead of being a prison of sin, there is a way out.

Josh
 
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threej_lc:
It all depends on your sense of “balance.”

“You were supposed to destroy the sith, not join them!” -Obi Wan Kenobi, Episode 3.** No fair quoting from episode 3! I haven’t seen it yet!**

I’d say Christ brought balance to the world by redeeming it. Now instead of being a prison of sin, there is a way out. **Good point. **

Josh
 
I can quote from episode three if its a line that was in one of the trailers. 😃

At least… I think that part was in the trailer…

Josh
 
Star Wars is a wonderful peice of Fiction. Just as is always the case with good fiction, there is something in it that rings true with our experience. Writers call this Verisimultude (spelling?)

This is why we do have to be vigilant about the fiction that we read and especially about the fiction our children read. Much fiction contains beauty and truth, but these days, even more contain great error.

Some error is blatant like Million Dollar Baby. The way that woman’s life was marked down in value like a cloth with imperfections at K-mart, was not only tragic, but unrefuted in the movie.

More insideous is the portrayal of good and evil as Ying and Yang. In Eastern philosophy, good and evil are the opposite halves of the same coin. That translates into good gods bad gods demigods. The Bible teaches that in the beginning there was One God and He was good, and all He created was good. A jealous being messed around with that. God, being the Good and Loving Creator He is gave man the free will to chose good or evil.

Jesus frequently used fiction to teach a point. The Prodigal Son, for example, there is no evidence that the story is about any single soul, yet generation after generation gains insight from this peice of fiction about the nature of God’s Mercy.

I myself have told folk tales from Native American tribes long gone, from the Bantu in Africa, the highlands of Scotland before the Good News was brought to them. I find many perfectly good truths in these stories, many dangerous falsehoods in other. I pick the ones that have truth in them for the true value they have to teach the children.
 
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threej_lc:
I can quote from episode three if its a line that was in one of the trailers. 😃

At least… I think that part was in the trailer…

Josh
I thought it said in the trailer: “you were the chosen one!”?
 
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wabrams:
I thought it said in the trailer: “you were the chosen one!”?
Ah, that’s right. THe quote isn’t that revelatory though. 😛

Josh
 
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wabrams:
Oh yeah, unless you’ve never seen the other five.
Then you both would probably not care about episode 3 at all, and had your head stuffed in a hole so you never heard it ever mentioned anywhere else in your life before either. 😛

Now back to your regularly scheduled thread.

Josh
 
Star Wars is one of those stories that, in my opinion, does not work on an allegorical level - we aren’t meant to find a one-to-one correspondence between things in the story and things in real life, or our faith, or other religions. If you try to figure out the religious principles of the Force in terms of religions here on earth, you will end up with a mish-mash.

Rather, it’s meant to be a fantasy or mythic story, and I think it’s better to look for broad thematic elements that are compatible with our faith. For example, I think the theme of life, death, and resurrection can be observed in the story arc of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. That’s not to say he represents Christ in a strict allegorical sense - the details of his life are quite different, and in many ways completely unlike Christ. But his story is one of a life of great hope and promise, and then a spiritual death, followed by a spiritual rebirth, which is like the Paschal mystery lived out on a spiritual level.

We also see a universe in which there is a distinct good and evil, and good is objectively preferable to evil. The forces of good embody values such as compassion, valor, honor, and freedom, whereas the forces of evil embody hatred, treachery, and coersion. What’s more, I don’t think good and evil are presented as evenly matched, or flip sides of a coin, or yin and yang. The dark side may prevail for a time, but the good wins in the end, not just by chance or dumb luck, but precisely because they are good, and good is truly superior to evil. These things are all compatible with Christianity.
 
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threej_lc:
Then you both would probably not care about episode 3 at all, and had your head stuffed in a hole so you never heard it ever mentioned anywhere else in your life before either. 😛

Now back to your regularly scheduled thread.

Josh
?
 
Hello All,

Star Wars is Modern Mythology in the same way The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, Star Trek, and The Matrix are. They are a look at a world different to our own, and in a interesting way, it is a reflection of our own. The Force is the Star Wars concept of God. Anakin Skywalker is the “Christlike” figure because, in the end, he destroys the devil (The Emperor) and brings balance to the Force.
 

I do enjoy the movies - always have - and will probably see #3 on the first or second weekend.

I was very distubed, however, by a national magazine interview George Lucas did at the time The Empire Strikes Back was released. In that interview, Lucas revealed that he was a New Age practioner - he really did believe all that stuff about an “all-powerful force” which could be accessed by anyone who had the spark.

What better way is there to draw our kids away from Jesus than to package New Age beliefs glamourously? As a 20-year-old in 1979, The Force was VERY appealing to me and my friends.

Consequently, when the original trilogy was re-released in 1997 and I was a parent, I had serious discussions with my kids about understanding the difference between spiritual truth and New Age fantasy before I let them see it.*
 
There is no emotion, there is peace
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge
There is no passion, there is serenity
There is no death, there is the Force
Sounds a bit gnostic, slightly manichean and a little katharian. 😉

But admittedly less so when you think more on it.
 
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threej_lc:
Jedis must remain celibate to aid in their complete devotion and service, as do our priests.
I finally saw the movie last night, and I must say the means/end dilemma Anakin faces as a result of breaking his vow of celibacy provided a great starting point for a long discussion of priestly celibacy within the Church.

Points to ponder: Would married priests face the same conflict between their calling to selfless service and the well-being of their families? Did Anakin parodoxically make himself less free by refusing to be obedient to Jedi authority–and does Catholics’ disobedience have the same effect?

Discuss amongst yourselves! :hmmm:
 
I always saw the Jedi as “priests” because they cannot marry and cannot forge emotional bonds with others, they must only align themselves with the force. (Not to say that priests dont have emotional bonds, I’m talking about romantic attachments.) If the Jedi were to have a “Pope” it would be Yoda. 😃
 
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