St. Teresa of Avila famously wrote, “Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you, all things will pass away God never changes; patience obtains all things, whoever has God lacks nothing. God alone suffices.”
Waiting is a huge key to success. It is easy to wait when there is an assurance of the end result, but it is much more difficult to be patient in the middle of suffering.
The anticipation of Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker is particularly challenging for me. I had an initial apprehension about the new trilogy. Why reinvent the wheel? George Lucas’ original trilogy ended in epic fashion. The redemption story of Darth Vader is something we take for granted, but at the time it was a big plot twist.
Darth Vader disposing the Emperor and choosing the light side was fitting. But the return of Darth Sidious in the Episode IX trailer invoked shock and excitement. The patience of the Emperor paid off in Episodes 1-3. How will he return in The Rise of Skywalker? The simple answer is to wait and be patient. Time will tell.
Should Truth Unite or Divide?
Re-watching Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, I witnessed the transformation of Anakin Skywalker into a Sith apprentice. Chancellor Palpatine pulled various swings by orchestrating the Clone Wars of Episode II and leading the Jedi to believe that General Grievous or Count Dooku were the masterminds behind the Separatist attacks.
Palpatine allowed political tensions to convince the Senate to slowly give authority over to him. He also planted seeds of doubt in Anakin about the Jedi Council’s intentions. In the short term, Palpatine’s lies paid off— for several decades even!
Trust builds unity that lasts and is natural, while lying promotes a false, unnatural, unity. Anakin trusted Darth Sidious, not out of sincere trust, but because Palpatine drove a wedge between him and the Jedi Council.
Revenge of the Sith ended with Anakin losing most of his limbs and having to be reconstructed into a cyborg. His tenable bodily integrity was an outward reflection that his unity with the Emperor was an unnatural partnership because its foundation was never based on truth from the beginning!
Regulate Your Emotions Padawan
Another reason Anakin was destined to become Darth Vader is because he succumbed to his own wrath. “I sense great fear in you, Skywalker. You have hate. You have anger. But your don’t use it,” Count Dooku told Anakin. Moments later, Anakin defeats the Sith Lord in a lightsaber duel. Palpatine revealed his true character when he told the Jedi to kill Dooku. Listen to the following exchange that happens next:
Anakin: “I should not have done that (killing Dooku). It is not the Jedi way.”
Palpatine: “It is only natural. You wanted revenge.”
How easy it is for us to justify our own rash actions by claiming they are only natural? The Enemy seeks to justify sin and rationalize it. We are not merely called to a natural life, but to a supernatural, divine life with God.
Anakin was not meant to live an ordinary life, he was “The Chosen One” to bring balance to the Force. His anger, and later his pride, caused a rift. Anakin went from serving the Galaxy as a Jedi, into a servile role playing a puppet to an evil Sith Lord.
Saint Augustine wrote, “It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.” Anakin lacked gratitude and humility at being permitted to join the Jedi Council in historic fashion [he was the youngest Jedi ever admitted to the Council!]. Instead of being thankful at this honor, Skywalker expressed disdain when talking to Obi Wan and later on with Palpatine about not being granted the rank of Master.
In fairness, the Jedi were not completely free from blame in the transformation of Anakin into Darth Vader. Obi Wan tells his apprentice that the Council wants him to spy on the Chancellor because his accumulation and consolidation of power worried them. The inherent unwillingness to obey his directives pushed Anakin closer to the Dark side.
Security over Freedom
Along with distrusting the Jedi and giving into his anger, Anakin Skywalker also sought to secure his life through unnatural means. Palpatine enticed the young Jedi with the story of Darth Plagueis.
Palpatine: It’s not a story the Jedi would tell you. It’s a Sith legend. Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could use the Force to influence the midi-chlorians to create life…”
Fear of losing his wife Padmé in childbirth, the potential for preventing death pushed Anakin closer towards the Dark Side. Instead of choosing freedom and peace, Skywalker sought control over life and death. This grasping for control ended with him being crippled (literally and mentally).
Patience obtains all things, while impatience obtains less things much more quickly. Anakin Skywalker’s transformation into Darth Vader began with seeds of distrust between him and the Jedi placed there by Palpatine. His inability to control his wrath and pride only quickened the shift to the Dark Side.
Lessons Learned
Finally, Anakin’s aversion to suffering and loss (of Padme) became a self-fulfilling prophecy—he lost his wife, his best friend in Obi-Wan Kenobi, and ultimately his freedom as Revenge of the Sith ended with Darth Vader’s birth to serve only the Empire.
We can learn from the failings of Anakin Skywalker to be careful to act in anger and to be wary of whom we place our trust in.
Matt Chicoine
Matthew Chicoine is a free-lance writer, a life-long Catholic, and an avid truth seeker. He earned an M.A. in theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville in 2014 and enjoys binge reading Tolkien, Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, Fulton Sheen and comic books. Visit his blog at https://thesimplecatholic.