The Way

Beth Lindon: I have recently been watching The Mandalorian on Disney +. This hit Star Wars spin off series follows Din Djarin on his various adventures across the galaxy.

The Mandalorian is full of religious language. The way of the Mandalore is a religion followed by the main character. There are rules to be followed, character traits to be admired and creeds to be spoken.

There is much to admire about the way of the Mandalore. They prize honour and loyalty; they protect one another and take in foundlings. However, to me the way seems fairly empty. It is unclear where this way is taking them or where it comes from. It mostly seems to be an arbitrary set of rules and traditions.

Interestingly early followers of Jesus called themselves followers of the way. In fact Jesus says in the Bible that he is the way.  John 14:6 says “I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Like the way of the mandalore this is exclusive – there is only one way. Unlike the Mandalorian the Bible is clear about where this path takes us. Jesus is the way to the Father, the way to eternal life.

The way in Christianity is not to follow an arbitrary set of rules and traditions. The way is a person. Yes the Bible does contain rules and tells us how God wants us to live and these are important, these rules help us to live our best life and be the best version of ourselves. But all of us break the rules. None of us is perfect. We all go the wrong way. If that was the way we would all fail, no one would reach the final destination. Instead there is a person who has done the hard work for us. Jesus lived a perfect life and took the punishment we deserve. If we put our trust in Jesus and follow him we are on the only path to God.

This is the way.

Beth Lindon, 01/05/2023