A Ramble About Knighthood

I was browsing the shelves at Goodwill the other day and came upon an old friend. It's a small paperback volume called “The Legend of Huma,” which is a part of the “Dragonlance” series of books published by TSR. I loved these books when I was in early High School, although I later gave them up when I felt I needed to for a while in order to concentrate on Christian things. I read “The Legend of Huma” during a time when the Lord had really started to call me towards Him, and Huma, the main character, had become a kind of hero for me when I was fourteen because of his devotion to his god and his beliefs. I remember consciously almost praying at that time that I wanted to do or be for my God what Huma had done for his.

The story of Huma is set in the fantasy world of Krynn, where there are gods, monsters, knights, elves, dwarves, and most of the familiar personages and characters you would find from contemporary epic fantasy. Huma, in the story is a Knight of Solamnia, a holy order of knights which was established by the god Paladine (the chief god of good), and his sons Kiri-Jolith and Habbakuk. The knights live their lives by a strict religious code of chivalry, loyalty, honor, and virtue which had been given to them by their gods in order to hold back the darkness of the evil gods of Krynn.

As I became acquainted with this old friend again over the past couple of days there were a couple of lines which caught my eye and set me thinking. In the passage, Huma's friend and love interest is torn between her duty and her love for Huma. She must lead Huma to a set of trials which, if he fails he will die, but if he succeeds he will find the key to defeating the armies of darkness which have overrun his world:

“Were it not Krynn itself that would suffer, I would tell you to turn from here now, before it is too late.”

The knight stiffened. “Even if you told me to, I would not. I cannot. Not—and remain what I am.”

“Is the knighthood so much to you?”

“Not the knighthood. What it teaches.” He had never thought of it in those terms before.

(p. 184, Knaak, Richard A. The Legend of Huma. Lake Geneva, WI; TSR Inc., 1988)

It's this last line which caught my attention, “not the knighthood. What it teaches.” It wasn't the fact he was a knight which meant something to him, nor was it the order of knights themselves. As with any organization, no matter how honorable or well meaning their intentions, there was often a difference between what they stood for and taught and the internal workings and politics of the order which at times actually went completely against the teachings of their gods. Fallible human beings remain fallible human beings, even in fantasy novels. It wasn't the organization of fallible human beings that meant anything to Huma, but the teachings of his god which that organization represented.

The priesthood of the Church is also made up of fallible human beings. It doesn't matter which denomination you look in you'll still find internal politicking, selfish ambitions, avarice, political interference outside of the denomination, and abuses of every kind. It varies from local church to local church, from diocese to diocese, and from denomination to denomination, but it can usually be found to some degree or another in just about any church you look in. It is because of these things that many have left the local churches altogether, switch denominations, and some leave the Church and even our Lord completely. They have lost faith in either their church in particular, or the Church in general and feel betrayed and lost.

It doesn't help the situation, and hurts a great deal, when churches and denominations “circle the wagons” and hide as much of these failings as possible from the general public. I have a dear friend who grew up as a missionary kid in Papua New Guinea with one of the largest, most well known and well respected missions organizations in the world for which her parents were missionaries. For a long time after meeting her we knew that something wasn't quite right. When other friends and I were finally able to get her to talk about why, she told us that one of her close friends had been raped by a gang of New Guineans who had broken into the Mission compound there. This was bad enough, but the Mission board had made her and everyone else who knew about it swear silence on the subject, and they weren't allowed to talk about it to anyone. It had so traumatized our friend that she became self-destructive.

Beyond this are the now well known cases of sexual abuse by members of the Roman Catholic clergy, and the subsequent denials and cover-up by the leadership of the various dioceses and possibly by the Vatican itself. There is also the merciless emotional abuse inflicted by certain, domineering evangelical churches upon their members. There is also the inconceivable avarice and vanity of some “pastors” living in wealth and luxury and plastering their picture and name all over their houses of worship to the point where you wonder who the congregation is actually worshiping. I could go on with more indictments against just about every church and organization I have seen, but it isn't necessary. Most people have only to look at their own local church with an honest and critical eye.

I have been finding it instructive to look back at the lives of the Saints as well. Though the Church hails them now as examples and heroes of the Faith, during their lives many were the targets of the local clergy for abuse and derision. St. Ignatius of Loyola was hounded by the Inquisition in Spain and thrown in prison on the suspicions of local priests and monks. Because of his extreme dedication to Jesus Christ and his embrace of a life of poverty, many people chose to adhere to his rule and practice his Spiritual Exercises which caused dramatic changes to their lives and devotion to Christ. It scared the local clergy and authorities who then reacted to try and re-establish the status quo. St. Ignatius was labeled a troublemaker and was verbally and physically abused for no other reason than he lived and practiced what Jesus Christ and His Church actually taught.

So then the question for many becomes, “Is the Church so much to you?” Another way of saying this question is, “Is it so important for you to remain within the Church that you are willing to risk all of this?” For many now, the answer has become “no.” They can only see what the visible Church is as the human beings within it practice it, and it is a great disillusionment and disappointment.

For St. Ignatius though, it wasn't the practical, visible Church itself, but what the Church teaches that meant everything to him. It wasn't the clergy who berated him which meant anything, but the God who established that clergy and the rule of Faith which bound them both. Much like Huma with his knighthood.

The greatest question, or one of them anyway, which we can ask ourselves is “why do we do what we do?” The answer to that question will either see us through the tests and trials which could cost us everything in this world, or it will trip us up and see not only our bodies destroyed but our souls as well. We can either dedicate ourselves to the fallible human beings in an organization, or we can dedicate ourselves to the teachings of the God who established it.