'Try not. Do or do not, there is no try...' [Yoda]

The wise prophet behind it all...
...he may be small and green, but everyone listens when he has something to say.

'Size matters not! Judge me by my size, do you?' [Yoda]

Lets take a look at some other blogs addressing the Jedi faith and see what their opinions are:

The Spitting Vessel

'This "religion" may be an offshoot of an erosion of faith in the established churches, other institutions of society, and government; in their search for meaning, justice, and equality among men. Honor and integrity are valued and hungered for, but their search has led them to worship the "force" and seek to be with "it". Little do they realize that it is the force of insanity they have embraced, much like insatiably greedy businessmen and power hungry politicians have.
Its mantra is "May the force be with you". Perhaps it should be "May the Farce be with you".'

Against the Grain
Steve in 2006 encourages people to list Jedi as their religion in the Australian census.

The Yoda Sermons (not much there)
A Jedi deciphering the wisdom of the 'prophet' Yoda.

Blog Me

'So I'm a Jedi...ish
Not 1 of those Jedi church Jedi cos that really lame. Have you looked at it? It should just be call the religion where we quote Star Wars lots but don't try to find true meaning in it all cos were just massive Star Wars nurds.
So I've came up with my own way of looking at the whole Jedi religion.'

Merely glancing at these four different blogs and their four very different opinions on the Jedi faith which they express, just goes to show how much controversy has been stirred up over the issue of the Jedi faith.
While I am by no means a believer of Jediism (although I do love the books and films) I do not see the problem with people following the Jedi philosophy as a religion. After all there is nothing very negative in the Jedi code, in fact it is all quite positive and people have believed in worse.

'A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind.' [Yoda]

I have just realised I haven't addressed the issue of membership... until now that is.
The Jedi Church is an accessible website and so too is it's membership. While there is no fee to join the Jedi Church they do ask for you to part with some cash and support them by purchasing a certificate of membership of the Jedi Church.
But you don't just get the membership certificate, oh no, there's more.
All certified Jedi Church Members get:

• An A4 glossy laminated certificate as above.
• Access to the inner circle forum, where Jedi orders from around the world discuss what they are doing with their orders, without the clutter of the public forum, and access to a Treasurers summary of the Jedi Churches financial accounts.
• Their own optional web ministry page, that they can update themselves. These pages facilitate those ordained members who wish to set up their own orders.
• Participation in suggesting questions for the voting section of our website.
• Discounts on some businesses advertised in the new Jedi Economy page

As I live in Britain the price for joining would be £12, which may not sound that bad if I was a devotee of the Jedi faith and wanted membership. However if you don't pay for the certificate and want to join the Jedi Church then you are excluded from the Jedi Council area of the website; which sounds all mysterious and will remain a mystery as I'm not coughing up the money to join.

While the Jedi Church website is quite open with its membership this is not the case for all memberships in the Jedi community. For example the House of Sith requires all member to pass an initiation process and offer no other information to the public apart from a method of contacting them. Very (and here's that word again) mysterious.

'Many of the truths that we cling to depend on our point of view.' [Obi-Wan Kenobi]

Watching the Star Wars movies, and reading the books; particular in the Jedi training scenes, it is not hard to see why some people have adopted the Jedi philosophy and adapted it for a religious way of life.

Take a look at these Star Wars quotes:
"Do or do not - there is not try." ~ Yoda
"Your focus determines your reality." ~ Qui-Gon
"Sometimes, we must let go of our pride and do what is requested of us." ~ Anakin Skywalker
"There is no shame in falling. There is only shame if you refuse to rise once again." ~ Jedi Master Pernicar (Darth Bane: Path of Destruction)
"Before one can learn truth, one must unlearn lies." ~ Nom Anor, Traitor
"Life is more a matter of choosing than of knowing. You can never know the eventual destination of your path, but you can always choose in which direction to take each step." ~ Jacen Solo, Traitor
"An understood emotion is not unreasoning. That is why the route to mastery is through self-knowledge." ~Vergere (Traitor)
...some where taken from the films and some were taken from the books, but all could be adopted and adapted for Jedi spirituality.

The formation of Jedi Churches and individuals claiming the Jedi faith, is a simple transition of adopting a spirituality and way of life portrayed in films and books into reality.
Is this for everyone? maybe not. However while the emergence of the Jedi philosophy as a faith has proved controversial it must be remembered that the Jedi philosophy and faith already existed, even if it was only fictional.
The books and films portrayed the structure of the ways of the Jedi, their beliefs, ritual and practices; it could be said that George Lucas was the founder of this fictional 'religion'. With all this evidence does any of it make Jediism less of a religion? After all what is religion?

To finish up the very memorable scene of Luke's training scene with Jedi master Yoda on the planet Dagobah.

'Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid.' [Han Solo]

“To be a Jedi, you must construct your own lightsaber. Finding the right crystals and metal pieces to forge your own weapon can be difficult, but the Star Wars Force FX Lightsaber Construction Set makes it easy for you. In just seconds, you can assemble 5 pieces, a blade, and some batteries to forge one of over 700 possible configurations of lightsaber! Use a variety of pommel, handle, and detail parts to create a personalized weapon that looks just like the ones that belong to Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Anakin Skywalker, or Obi-Wan Kenobi… or something totally new that’s uniquely you!”

This was said in the star wars section of fanboy.com by Michael Pinto on Jun 4, 2008.

Various lightsaber constructions sets are available for purchase on the Internet, as well as videos for constructing a lightsaber, customising a lightsaber, demos, training manuals and training videos.
The following video is the first from a series of lightsaber training videos available on youtube, which starts with teaching the basic strikes and forms need to fight using a lightsaber and continues on to more advanced moves.

'You must unlearn what you have learned.' [Yoda]

I suppose that I am a product of the modern Internet age, for when I am faced with something new I always have to go and...
... that's right wiki it. (well the logos a really big clue)
Come on! It's what we all do.
At first I couldn't find it on wikipedia when searching for 'Jedi,' 'religion' & 'faith'. I started to hyperventilate, how could wikipedia not have an entry on the Jedi faith? It knows everything, it's a god of knowledge...hmm...now that would have been interesting a blog on wikipedia - the god of knowledge, I feel a sequel blog coming on...but at a later date.
Anyway don't worry kids I found the entry I was looking for under 'Jediism'.

According to wikipedia 'Jediism' is a 'non-theistic new religious movement based upon the philosophical and spiritual ideas of the Jedi as depicted in Star Wars media.
The real-world Jedi assert the existence of the Force, and advocate adherence to the Jedi code. According to recent censuses in some English-speaking countries, over 500,000 people declared their religion as Jedi, and at least three Jedi churches exist in the USA and the UK.' (Holyhead Jedi Church, Temple of the Jedi Order, and the Jedi Praxeum.)
The wikipedia entry then goes on to list the Jediism philosophy - the Force and the side of the Force vs. the Potentium theory, and the controversy that Jediism has had with censuses, the media and politics.

All the facts of 'Jediism' is listed here, but what do you as readers of this blog make of the wikipedia entry?
The wikipedia entry appears to be quite short and basic, maybe someone whose reading this and is a practicing Jedi could add to it.

Getting married by a Jedi minister...

- a serious expression of faith or the latest craze?