What is a Limerick and how do I write one?
There are two types of people in the world: those who just enjoy watching the original Star Wars trilogy, and those who recognize it as the monumental religious foundation that it is. You could guess that I’m a member of the second group, and you would be right. I am a true believer. When I say that Star Wars is a religion, I mean that in the very best sense of the word. Like the holiest scriptures of yore, the modern sci-fi epic performs all the highest functions of a sacred text — providing moral instruction, metaphysical exposition, psychological examination, and social cohesion — while steering clear of the faults and transgressions that have in recent times sullied the reputation of organized religions almost beyond the point of forgiveness.
The Virtues of Star Wars Mythology
Let us begin by considering the virtues of Star Wars mythology that distinguish it from the kinds of religious doctrines that we are probably more familiar with in the contemporary western world. Unlike the forms of Levantine monotheism that have come to dominate our cultural heritage over the past couple thousand years, the legends of Jedi heroics do not lend themselves to a dogmatic interpretation. From the opening words, “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”, we are directed to think of this as the distant past, yet the outer space setting is decidedly futuristic. In the first few seconds we confront our first paradox: we are in the future, we are in the past. Thus