When developing the religious sages of his fictional Star Wars universe, George Lucas looked to real-life examples for inspiration. Some were deliberate choices, while others are mere coincidences.
Whatever the case may be, it is hard to deny the similarities between certain Christian religious orders and the Jedi that Lucas invented. Here are five such examples of religious who not only look like Jedi, but also act like them and share similar spiritualities.
Franciscans
The simple brown habit of the Franciscans (especially when the hood is up) looks strikingly similar to the traditional brown cloak of the Jedi Knights. In both cases the brown garb distinguishes them from everyone else and is a summary of their spiritual charisms.
For the Jedi the brown cloak was most often used by those advanced in the Jedi Order, such as Jedi Knights and Jedi Masters.
Similarly, Franciscans are only allowed to wear the habit after completing a time of postulancy. The brown habit also symbolizes humility and poverty.
Carmelites
Another religious order that bears an outward resemblance to the Jedi Knights are the Carmelites. One could say they wear an “inverted” Jedi robe as they wear a brown habit with a tan cloak that goes on the top. This reverses the Jedi’s garb which consists of a brown cloak and tan clothes underneath.
Carmelites are known for their spiritual wisdom, practicing meditation and contemplation that brings them to great spiritual heights.
While the Jedi’s religious beliefs are more akin to Buddhist teachings, they also practice meditation and are sought out for their spiritual insights.
Jesuits
On the outside the Jesuits don’t have any particular resemblance to traditional Jedi Knight robes. On the other hand, Luke Skywalker’s appearance in Return of the Jedi is very similar to the “black robes” of the Jesuits.
Spiritually speaking the Jesuits have much in common with the Jedi. For example, St. Ignatius of Loyola teaches about the “Two Standards,” an exercise in which the soul pictures itself on a battlefield, seeing the standard (or flag) of Christ and the standard of Satan. The soul must make a choice between these two standards and choose which master he wants to serve. In essence, the soul must chose between the Light Side and the Dark Side.
Another point of similarity is St. Ignatius’ concept of being a “soldier of Christ.” The Jesuits were even called the “foot -soldiers of Christ,” for their strong desire to go out to all the world and win souls for Christ. They are true “spiritual warriors” going out to save the world from the influence of the Dark Side.
Knights Templar
Referring to a now disbanded religious order, in the early drafts of the Star Wars story George Lucas wrote about a 16-year-old who enters the “Intersystems Academy to train as a potential Jedi-Templar.” Of note is the use of the word “Jedi-Templar,” in a subtle nod to the Catholic religious military order known as the “Knights Templar.” The word Templar was soon abandoned, but Lucas did not drop the idea entirely, referring to them throughout his films as “Jedi Knights.”
Writer Terrance MacMullan explains how the Knights Templar “were esteemed above other knights for their austerity, devotion, and moral purity. Like the Jedi, they practiced individual poverty within a military-monastic order that commanded great material resources.” Even the Jedi’s garb is reminiscent of the robes worn by the “Christian warrior-monks who took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.”
Unfortunately, rumors grew about secret rituals and heretical teachings being taught to new recruits of the Knights Templar, and King Philip IV of France took advantage of the situation to confiscate the order’s riches. It’s possible that this episode also influenced Lucas, as it was pointed out, “Much like the Great Jedi Purge ordered by Chancellor Palpatine in ‘Revenge of the Sith,’ France’s King Philip IV annihilated the Knights Templar after arresting hundreds of them on October 13, 1307, and subsequently torturing and executing them for heresy.”
Irish Monks
At the end of Force Awakens and at the beginning of Last Jedi, Luke Skywalker inhabits what is believed to be the “First Jedi Temple.” His physical surroundings were filmed at a real-life monastery atop an island off the coast of Ireland. The monks of Ireland were very similar to Jedi Knights and shared parts of the Jedi’s spirituality.
They also thought of themselves as “spiritual warriors” who were on the frontline of a spiritual battle. However, instead of going out into the world like the Jesuits, they retreated from the world to battle the demons within (and without).
These Irish monks were also known to “pray without ceasing,” in similar ways to the warrior monk Chirrut Îmwe in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
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