The Empire Looms
I've seen the trailer for the new Star Wars film, Revenge of the Sith. And I'm scared.
I'm scared because we all know what happens this time, at least we know the basics: Annikin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader. And Darth Vader is really, really evil, and he runs an evil empire, and he roots out the Jedi Knights, who are the paragon of all that's good and true.
Of course we also know that Darth Vader sires Luke and Leia. And we know that they manage, with a lot of luck and the help of some talented friends, to turn the tide of history against the Empire, and the Emperor, (Darth Vader's boss), and ultimately restore good. But the movies where that happens have already been made! The movie we're going to see this year is about the rise of evil, and it's eerily familiar given the way that certain real-world empires look right now.
And the Jedi are scatttered. I mean the people who fight for freedom, dignity, nobility, health, love, and family. These words that were their mantras have been taken hostage; they're being used against the warriors of peace now. They've become weapons of the Empire.
I've talked to some of the Jedi recently. They're tired. They're worried. They feel like their voices barely rise above the din. They're taking cover in classrooms and pubs and church basements and health practices, and hoping that what little they can do will hold the fort until the tides shift again, as they always do.
The Jedi are tired, not because their cause is hopeless, not because the Empire looms so large. Not because they doubt what they are doing. They are tired because the people they would free have forgotten they are enslaved. They are scared because the fires of faith around them have dwindled so low, they need to be re-kindled from cooling coals.
All around us lies the darkness. People of the world, please call to the light! Your small voices joined together, in song, in prayer, in faith, in love, will recharge the flagging spirits of the Jedi. They will kindle that fire, and we will all gather in its warmth and light.
Please, do this now. Remember what you live for, and remember why it matters. Do this, and the Jedi will conquer and evil will fall. I saw it in a movie once, and I know it must be so.
I'm scared because we all know what happens this time, at least we know the basics: Annikin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader. And Darth Vader is really, really evil, and he runs an evil empire, and he roots out the Jedi Knights, who are the paragon of all that's good and true.
Of course we also know that Darth Vader sires Luke and Leia. And we know that they manage, with a lot of luck and the help of some talented friends, to turn the tide of history against the Empire, and the Emperor, (Darth Vader's boss), and ultimately restore good. But the movies where that happens have already been made! The movie we're going to see this year is about the rise of evil, and it's eerily familiar given the way that certain real-world empires look right now.
And the Jedi are scatttered. I mean the people who fight for freedom, dignity, nobility, health, love, and family. These words that were their mantras have been taken hostage; they're being used against the warriors of peace now. They've become weapons of the Empire.
I've talked to some of the Jedi recently. They're tired. They're worried. They feel like their voices barely rise above the din. They're taking cover in classrooms and pubs and church basements and health practices, and hoping that what little they can do will hold the fort until the tides shift again, as they always do.
The Jedi are tired, not because their cause is hopeless, not because the Empire looms so large. Not because they doubt what they are doing. They are tired because the people they would free have forgotten they are enslaved. They are scared because the fires of faith around them have dwindled so low, they need to be re-kindled from cooling coals.
All around us lies the darkness. People of the world, please call to the light! Your small voices joined together, in song, in prayer, in faith, in love, will recharge the flagging spirits of the Jedi. They will kindle that fire, and we will all gather in its warmth and light.
Please, do this now. Remember what you live for, and remember why it matters. Do this, and the Jedi will conquer and evil will fall. I saw it in a movie once, and I know it must be so.
posted by David Newland at 10.11.04
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