If you are a Star Wars nerd like myself, you’ve probably been watching the eagerly awaited Ahsoka tv show on Disney+. Now that the writer’s strike is over, I can talk about something that has been gnawing at my mind. Ahsoka during the season finds herself in a space called, “The World Between Worlds” where she meets the balanced force ghost of Anakin Skywalker who finishes her training. During that time, we see Anakin seamlessly flow between Darth Vader and Anakin, while I believe this to be he can do this because he is finally perfectly balanced, there are other theories out there to be sure.
Ahsoka, after this encounter starts to walk down her second half of life as Ahsoka the White (for those not in the know, she is the Star Wars version of Gandalf). As this transition happens, we see some of her old traits come back in fleeting moments as the series continues. I love what Dave Filoni, the writer and show runner is doing with her in this new context because it is a great reminder that whenever we believe we have “arrived” we’re a trip away from resorting to old ways. Community engagement, working and caring for the marginalized is not easy if we are doing it correctly. What I mean by that is, care, love, these sorts of things factor heavily into the reason why we show up to our food pantry and Toledo Streets News lunches.
The inner work of engaging with ones community is as vital as outward work as well. Through the gospel texts we see Jesus wrestling with this as others prefer the outer work without diving deep within. The invert can also be true as well, sometimes we get so caught up in the inner work, the outer work can be seeped in piety, to the point where it feels like we, or our marginalized beloved ought to feel honored we’re in their presence. Striking the balance between these two and taking the middle path is a life long act; faith may save our souls but work restores our humanity.
This balance portrayed by Anakin was a nice reminder that while time may be our most finite resource, it’s never to late to achieve balance. In kind, this portrayal of Ahsoka is a refreshing reminder that although we may be working in our second half of life, we still trip, make mistakes because sometimes it’s comfortable to step into our former selves but it is not a space we can stay in. May we find a balance in a space between spaces, a world between worlds.
See you Sunday.
Grace and peace my friends.
George (he/him)