Be like the Jedi

Not the Sith

Just the other day, my daughter and her boyfriend, and I went to see a showing of the “Revenge of the Sith” on the 20th anniversary of its release. My kid called me because she knows that I am a huge Star Wars fan. To be honest, I could do without Jar Jar Binks and some of the acting in a number of the films, but I endure it because I just love the franchise. The first film (A New Hope) came out when I was about 9 years old, and I was hooked. Revenge of the Sith (#3 if you are keeping track) came out when my daughter was only about three years old, but I distinctly remember getting a babysitter (not something I did regularly) so I could see it on opening day.

Anytime I watch a Star Wars movie or any film that shows the epic battle between good and evil, I of course want to write and talk about it, which we did after the showing. So, here goes.

A few weeks ago in my Comparative and International Education class, while I was introducing the idea of cosmopolitanism, I invoked Star Trek and Gene Roddenberry’s creation of the United Federation of Planets, and NONE of the 19 students in the room had seen Star Trek (the original, Next Generation, etc)! I found this deeply disturbing and made it a homework assignment (not really) for them to watch. A few students did say, however, that if I was talking about Star Wars, then they’d be right there with me. Whew.

In Revenge of the Sith, as we watch Palpatine be his rotten-ass self, I was thinking so much about how humans fall prey to charismatic leaders or leaders who find our weaknesses and use them to pull us into their tangled web of deceit, to their dark and dangerous side. On our way out of the theatre, the three of us were reflecting on how the Palpatine shenanigans seemed quite similar to what our “leader” is doing now. We wondered if George Lucas was like, “now seems like a good time to show this again…”. It’s compelling to watch a power-hungry sociopath run the show and bring mindless (or hurting or confused) people into his fold. Better to watch it on screen, though, not in real life.

Since the “dark side” is clearly about power and gain and control and destruction, I hope that everyone would rather be a Jedi. I’ve wanted to be a Jedi for a long time. (Side note: I do wish there was more representation of Jedi’s in women’s bodies before Ray’s appearance). I also love that being a Jedi is grounded in not knowing and not clinging. I’ve often said, and I’m sure I’m not the only one, that Jedi are Buddhists. So I guess by the transitive theorem, I am a Jedi.

The powerful message though comes at the end of the film when we witness the head to head battles between (Bad Ass) Yoda and freaky Palpatine, and Obi Wan and Anakin Skywalker. You see the venom and hate and anger in the eyes of those operating from the dark force, while the Jedi countenances are ones of acceptance and love. I really needed to see that. There is so much in this world that crushes my spirit on a daily basis, and I need regular reminders that my work is grounded in love. Doing the work of peace and justice, and transformation requires love, and I need to remember that over and over again. That’s why I have this hanging in my study:

“At the risk of seeming ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by a great feeling of love. It is impossible to think of a genuine revolutionary lacking this quality.” - Ernesto Che Guevara

Probably one of the most horrific moments in the film is when we see the results of Anakin’s “following orders” in the slaughter of the “younglings”. Interesting that Lucas used that term instead of children. (Hmmm….) The three of us saw it as truly horrible (my daughter was devastated by that scene), and it got me thinking about how many people who think they are on the “good side” have sat and watched for 20 months, the slaughter of Palestinian younglings, and don’t speak out. Anyone who was troubled by the scene of those Jedi-in-training littering the floor of the temple and yet is not horrified by the same images coming out of Gaza, well, you might just be on a path towards Sith-dom.

Let’s all be more like the Jedi. May the 4th be with you.

(Art by Ricardo Levins Morales)