Unless you?ve been living under a rock, you at the very least have an idea that a new Star Wars film is set to hit theatres in about a month. The?opening day of ticket sales crashed the internet (and the first full trailer)! If you are like me, you have your tickets and are anticipating the film. You?ve probably watched the trailer more than once and each time are excited. If not, then I don?t know what?s wrong with you!
So here?s the thing, with the trailers and posters and buzz that is Star Wars: The Force Awakens there has been one common discussion?where is Luke Skywalker? And?who is Kylo Ren really? There are many theories that have made their?way to the Internet with this shocking theory rising to the top:?Luke Skywalker turned. They think that at some point in the thirty-plus year timeline since Return of the Jedi, that Luke Skywalker embraced the Dark Side. There was even one very interesting article that makes many valid and interesting points as to why Luke turned during Return of the Jedi and that we all saw him but didn?t accept it or realize it.
First, he gave in to his rage and attempted to kill Emperor Palpatine (and opposite of a Jedi).
Second, the result of his final battle with Darth Vader was a fight filled with rage and hate rather than the Jedi code.
Third, Palpatine’s attempt to kill him was more of fear that Luke would take his position rather than Luke not accepting to go fully into the Dark Side.
Last, He separated himself when having the funeral for Vader.
When you break down these points, it is very likely that yes, Luke did turn, and that in the years to follow he fully embraced it and even raised a prot?g? that later becomes Kylo Ren. And the truth is, Luke did go to the Dark Side. I have no doubt Luke turned in Return of the Jedi. He gave in to his rage and gave into the dark forces that were calling out to him. Here is the man that in essence killed his father, killed his family, killed his mentor, and now has threatened all that he holds dear, too. Luke in that final battle knew that if he didn?t win that everyone that is left that he cares for would parish. He dipped into all that fear, all that anger and he unleashed it at the Emperor and Vader. The moment he attempted to strike down the Emperor, Luke had fully fallen to the dark side. He went as far as doing to Vader what Vader did to him. A Jedi does not seek revenge, and Luke sought it by cutting off Vader?s hand.
However, as I see him standing over his father, an old man beaten, we see him come back. It?s what everyone saw. Did you ever try to cover a light? No matter what you do, without fully extinguishing that light, it finds a way to creep out. That is what made him much stronger than his father ever could have been. The light inside him was too strong and therefore required more to be extinguished. The Emperor wasn?t scared that Luke would take his position; he realized that Luke was much stronger than any Jedi master he had vanquished. If he didn?t stop him there, it was over. He saw Luke turn, he saw Luke embrace the Dark Side. And then he saw Luke come all the way back. That scared him more than Obi Wan or Yoda could have ever done. And ultimately, it was that light in Luke that finally brought his father back. If even for a brief moment, everything that the Dark Side took away from him was returned. For that, he would always be grateful in the light.
John 1:5 ?The light shines in darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it?
A perfect Bible verse that tells us just how Luke went into the darkness, but the light prevailed. The theories are great and make you think really hard. JJ Abrams has done a great job (and Disney marketing) in giving us very little but yet all types of conversation exist about a film that is still a month away. But I leave you with this, my theory: Luke did not turn and will train the new Jedi?s. Kylo Ren is a Skywalker; the question is who the parent is?
