I am one with the Force...

I recently saw a meme on Facebook which had a picture of a wand from Harry Potter and a lightsaber from Star Wars and asked “Which one would you choose?” This got me thinking, because just a few posts above it had been a picture of a scene from the latest Star Wars movie, Rogue One, involving probably my favorite character from the film.

I saw Star Wars: Rogue One the Monday after it came out. I’ve been a Star Wars fan since the original came out a couple of years after I was born, and my going to see its new, immediate prequel was inevitable. I really enjoyed this one, and the depth it brought to the story and the universe in which it takes place.

In it was a character called Chirrut Imwe, played well by Donnie Yen, a martial arts master and choreographer. We learn that Chirrut is a monk and a former guard of the Jedi temple on the planet Jedha, the source of Khyber crystals which are used to power the lightsaber weapons. He is also blind. It is made clear in the story, that neither Chirrut, nor his friend and constant companion Baze Malbus (who although also a former guard and monk has lost his his faith in the Force), are Jedi themselves. Neither appear to be able to make use of the Force in the supernatural ways that we have become accustomed to seeing in previous Star Wars stories. In spite of this, Chirrut has a deep faith in and understanding of the Force, and is easily the most spiritually attuned character in the entire Star Wars universe that we meet, with the possible exception of Jedi Master Yoda.

Throughout the movie, Chirrut’s constant meditation is, “I am one with the Force, the Force is with me.” We hear him chant it as a prayer over and over again, whether he is sitting at rest, or using his staff against stormtroopers. But what is more than this, in spite of his lack of Force talent, we begin to understand that it is not an empty mantra for him, but the foundation of his thinking and beliefs.

In his final scene in the movie, by his faith in the Force alone, he walks blind through heavy blaster fire towards a communications control panel that he can neither see nor yet feel nor hear, all the while chanting, “I am one with the Force, the Force is with me.” Through his act of absolute trust in the object of his faith, he is able, though physically blind, to locate a switch on the panel and make it possible for his team’s task to be completed.

It is shortly after that he is hit and succumbs to the blaster fire, and his companion Baze, who had lost his faith in the Force, rushes to try and rescue him. And as he lay dying in his arms, we hear him chant again, “I am one with the Force, the Force is with me.” And then he tells his friend, he is returning to the Force, and that just as the Force is everywhere, so he will be everywhere because he is one with the Force. In his final moments, the flame of Chirrut’s unwavering faith burns the brightest, and reignites the extinguished flame of Baze’s own faith, who then begins his own prayer and carries on their task, “The Force is with me, and I am one with the Force.”

The prayer and steadfast faith of Chirrut Imwe in the Force was more powerful than any of the skills or lightsabers of the Jedi in the series, and through it he brought about the redemption of his “lost” friend. I think if I was to choose, it would be neither lightsaber nor wand, but I would choose Chirrut’s faith as the most powerful and effective weapon.

As I have reflected on his mantra more, it keeps leading me back to a fundamental truth of the Christian faith. That through our baptism into His death and resurrection, we are one with Christ and He is always with us. The whole purpose of the Christian faith and practice is union with God through following Jesus Christ and remaining in Him, and yet this really isn’t emphasized or taught in favor of minor points of theology or morality which people shout loudly about but don’t really understand themselves. Like Baze, when things happen that tear down the world around them, they lose their faith because they didn’t understand the foundation of it to begin with.

Chirrut Imwe understood the foundation of his faith. His remaining steadfast in the Force saw him through the loss of all he knew, and gave him the strength and will to continue on because, in spite of his blindness, he saw deeply into the truth of things and knew that no matter what, the Force would always be there, and so would he through his union with it. In the same way for the Christian, we must look deeply into the foundational truth of our practice and come to understand that Christ is always there, and through our union with Him so will we be. When we remain in Him, we see our connection to Him and His life spreads through us like sap through a branch.

In closing, I submit a reworking of Chirrut Imwe’s prayer with a few lines from St. Patrick’s Lorica, something that we too can use to re-center ourselves in the truth of our faith in Jesus Christ:

I am one with Christ,

Christ is with me.

Christ with me,

Christ before me,

Christ behind me,

Christ in me.

I am one with Christ,

Christ is with me.

Amen.