"The Rise of Skywalker" Academy Award Nominated Flim
February 9, 2020 Isaiah 58: 1, 8-12
Carolyn Smith John 1: 1-9
- OOOhhhh Okay - I’m going to betray myself here…. Since When did being a
fan of Adventure movies become a weakness? Since ALWAYS somehow- and
somehow to be a fan means shedding intellectual minds and our staid and
respectable selves. But here goes.. If I have one hero that rises above the rest, it is General,
Princess Leia Organa of the Rebel Alliance.
The suggestion to have a Preaching theme on Academy Award Best Picture
Nominees is a good one - movies carry strong themes that sometimes take our
breath away, and, express our humanity in some fashion. And I happen to know
that Adventure Movies, as universally loved as they are, and as deep and
intellectual are their undercurrents, they are rarely awarded “Best Picture.”
So today, I borrowed one from farther down the list - The Nominees for Best
Original Score, Best Sound Editing and Best Special Effects are: Star Wars,
The Rise of Skywalker. It is possible that some of you have never seen even one
on the movies. It is possible that some of you aren’t really fans of the Sci-Fi
Fantasy Adventure genre, but it is impossible for anyone to have escaped 2nd hand
influence from the Star Wars universe. And that means, despite never being
awarded Best Picture, and being treated as childlike and dare I say,
Nerdy, the adventure sci-fi fantasy genre resonates deeply in our culture.
A long time ago … (in a galaxy….) in 1977, Conference Annual Meetings of the
United Church were held on the last weekend of May. A group of Ministers were
tired of the proceedings and instead of heading to the planned workshop for that
evening, they banded together and went to see the new movie playing in town. It
changed the course of history, and theology!
My dad was one of those truant ministers - he promptly came home, bundled his
young family in the car and took us to see Star Wars: A New Hope. I remember
riding home in the car that night, replaying the swoop of x-wing fighters to burn
into my memory! Years later it was apparent that our understandings of good and
evil within our house were interconnected with faith, with justice, with world
events, and with the Movie.
The Force as panentheist Spirit: As the wise old character Obi Wan Kenobi
describes: “It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and
penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together.” A familiar and appealing sense of
God!
And people use the Force for dark reasons or turn they find the light. Let’s twist
that a bit and we get Epiphany - the light of tiny stars shine brightly against such
darkness, and we must choose which we will follow.
Or the companionship of wholesome, misfit friends banding together against the
forces of evil - that’s familiar territory, of making it through school, of finding
friends, times of feeling inadequate, and timeless like lowly fisherman, turning
from their nets with a new hope.
And remember George Lucas’ fascination with colonization of the Americas and
it’s impact on Indigenous people. The Empire sweeps through the galaxy speaking
with cold and high British accents. Their dark uniforms resemble Nazi officers.
The worlds they trample are tribal, simpler, and vulnerable. Such themes are
barely disguised from how we know them now on earth. And some of the darkest
villains - they are just so awful because of betrayal - they are the friends who
turned to the Dark side; but rather than getting revenge which is just so human, so
Hollywood, Star Wars wins them back, reconciles people back to one another,
triumphs over greed and darkness. The characters all celebrate Redemption with
joy, and even love. Writer George Lucas was onto something that met human
longing, rekindling a sense of faithful hope, of divine compassion, of triumph over
all that had made people shudder and say Never Again.
And the rising of an unlikely person, in the face of adversity, growing into a hero.
Every culture, every era, Every corner of the earth has myths and legends that tell
of characters fictional or not, who begin lowly and grow into heroes. Think of
your favourites- can you share some to spark some imagination? I mentioned
(Robin Hood…. Lowly characters, facing adversity, heroism!)
The Rise of Skywalker is the final chapter in the Story of the original Star Wars
characters. (Luke Skywalker and his sister Leia. Han Solo and Chewbacca, C3PO
and R2D2, the robots…. Darth Vader)
Now, I’m not sure this story happened exactly this way or not, but I know this
story is true. The story is a Myth, maybe a legend, similar to some of our favourite
scripture stories - Truth, but not like factual, evidence truth. Real, but not in a way
you will piece together what happened, more in a sense that your heart and gut and
mind and your soul are enthralled all together.
In The Rise of Skywalker, A young determined crew has tumbled together through
destiny onto the front lines of the Rebellion against the Empire. Poe Dameron, the
pilot; Finn a redeemed stormtrooper, a robot called BB8, and Rey - the odd one
out, Rey with no history, no purpose but for scavenging parts and surviving. She is
our unlikely and reluctant hero in a battle too big to win, willing but somehow
she’s the flashpoint of the clash of light and dark. She is clumsily strong with the
Force, training with the mystical and wise Jedi Religion that honors and connects
and coaxes that powerful energy within and around all things and all people. And
she in a bewildering mind-to- mind-lock across time and space with a haunting
Kylo Ren, the lost friend who turned to the Dark Side. And if that’s not enough,
Rey discovers she is not just a nobody, but to her horror, she is heir to the one who
wields the full power of the dark side of the force, The evil Emperor Palpatine.
Imagine the darkened chamber, like a gothic cavernous church filled with a
relentless Sith Army, chanting and channeling the dark side, channeling power to
the Empire’s military forces. Now, that is an ultimate challenge for an unlikely
hero. A challenge that feels familiar, because it is an age-old story.
“The Hero with a Thousand Faces,” - its a book published in 1949 by Joseph
Campbell. Anyone who has studied literature, or is a fan of Tolkien’s Lord of the
Rings, or studied Carl Jung’s archetypes has likely heard of Campbell’s 12 stage
theory of the Hero’s Journey. It begins with Status quo - an average Joe faced with
a challenge. A question or decision, a task or trouble. Maybe just a sense of
discontent, but the challenge won’t be ignored. A mentor, a teacher a guide
offers encouragement - enough that our hero finds herself on the journey, now
conscious of the task ahead. Of course they face more challenges, more tests, and
they struggle further until an Ultimate Challenge, one that may result in Ultimate
loss. And in the moment of crisis, they rise again, to finally defeat the challenge,
gain the treasure, returning home a hero, Returning to status quo, but different. A
timeless framework for every hero we can think of. The Archetypal story of a hero
is timeless, and we are drawn to it, because in small and big ways we all find
ourselves on that journey at some point, with some struggles to overcome, that
teach us something. That display our character and wisdom. But an Ultimate
challenge is different, it is what creates a hero, when everything is torn down, and
only through courage and sheer determination. As an archetype, a myth, the
ultimate challenge is the impossible fight. It is hopeless. Who in their right mind
slays dragons or overthrows tyrany, or defeats Evil. Who challenges an army, or
fights Goliath or crosses the Red Sea? Who would leave stability and quiet and
safety behind, for a fools’ errand? You’re too weak, too afraid, too inexperienced,
too idealistic to see the bitter reality that good can’t win. Why bother fighting, why
stick your neck out for anyone else? Better to be smart like C3PO the nervous
Nelly of a droid, or cynical like Han Solo who said quite plainly, “Hokey religions
and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid.”
Sure - keep your head down, avoid trouble, give up, or get cynical and bitter.
Give up. It’s hopeless. We’re doomed.
- I am not always sure the story happened this way or not, but I know this story is true.
A boy, born in a stable, to a young mother, son of a laborer, Hopes and dreams for
his future. Hunted down by the king but escapes to quiet safety. But he doesn’t
forget and one day says to some folks on the shore,“Come and follow me.” And
they did, and more and more people followed, and began to call him Savior.
Messiah. Lord. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was
the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did
not overcome it.
Oh, it tried. We know how dark that story got. And we know the ending!
Jesus defines the hero’s life as Campbell lays it out. Jesus saw his people tired
from struggling, worn out from generations of challenge and exile. The status quo
was oppression from the Empire, the Romans’, whose motto was PEACE through
Victory. Which meant not peace at all in justice and joy and equality, but through
oppressive or violent Victory, rather silence, order. compliance. Jesus faced
down that challenge, again and again, never lifting a weapon, but in teaching and
sharing and healing the people around him until they remembered what Hope felt
like. Until they re-visioned Peace! And they called him Messiah, Savior, Lord,
and became Followers of the Way, a divine reminder of all that is possible. And
how could that not be worth living for? And dying for. Even more, living for again.
An element that didn’t make it into the steps of the Hero’s journey is evident time
and again in the best stories. We might have grand ideas of Cowboys riding off
into the sunset, but how lonely, what is the point?
Rey doesn’t defeat the Challenge alone. Just as Jesus was surrounded by
Followers of the Way, just as Harry Potter had Hermione and Ron and
Dumbledore. Just as Robin Hood had Marion and his Merry Men. The Spirit of
Hope rises with connection and hope for the future, with love that fuels our purpose.
Rey, our heroine has made it to the ultimate challenge. The Monstrous army of the
Empire is crushing the rebellion. Her friends are far away and she is the last hope.
From nothing, she is now Jedi, having mastered power and balance beyond all
knowing, even redeeming the loved one who was all but lost. Yet here in that dark
and evil cavern, she’s afraid and alone. The Emperor wields arrogance as his
hubris, and the Sith Army as his weapon as he looms before her. With droning of
the Sith around him, He growls: You are nothing. A scavenger girl is no match for
the power in me. I am All the Sith. Rey feels suddenly the calling of the Force,
it rises in her, surrounding all things, binding her to its energy- her spirit rises,
and her courage. And Rey returns back to the evil one : And I am All the Jedi.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
I’m not sure if it happened this way or not, but I know this story is true. Time and
again, in our faith story, in our lives, in the darkness of the world around us, the
Spirit binds us together, and hope rises. Our choice to turn to darkness or to rise is
in every moment, but the endings are the same: heaven on earth is a place of light.
We Rise together.
May the Force be with you!