Christmas and Star Wars aren’t two things that often go hand in hand – especially in Advent church services.
But at 10am on Sunday 20th December, a special service is set to take place in the Zion Church in Berlin Mitte.
The theme? Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.
The service will include scenes from the film with music to match, Berlin Stadtmitte Evangelical Church told DPA on Monday.
Trainee pastors Lucas Ludewig and Ulrike Garve came up with the idea.
Even if one is trying to be all ‘hip’ and ‘relevant’, Return of the Jedi came out in 1983. That’s like playing early U2 songs in your services, you idiots.
“We are holding a Star Wars worship service on the 4th Sunday of Advent in Berlin Mitte… #lovestrangersyoumust #starwars”
But what links Star Wars to the Christmas celebration?
“In the decisive scene of Episode VI, Luke Skywalker is being persuaded to join the Emperor’s side – the evil side,” Ludewig explained.
“Luke resists, with the words: I will never turn to the Dark Side.”
This corresponds with the Bible verse: “Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.”
Not seeing a link, because not seeing God made flesh in that narrative.
But it’s likely that most die-hard Star Wars fans may miss the service, as it comes just two days after the release of the newest episode in the series on December 17th.
By then, the truest Force followers may well be curled up in bed recovering from marathon queueing sessions to get into the earliest showings.
Yes, and Millennial prog geeks couldn’t be arsed to get out of bed for church, anyway.
If I may borrow their way of speaking: #epicfail.
Patriactionary 
superslaviswife
December 14, 2015 at 2:23 pm
Why is there apparently this idea in many churches that anything too modern could be “troublesome” or “not relevant”, but as soon as a theme, piece of pop culture or meme ages “enough”, it’s suddenly Christian? Nobody (I hope) would hold a Fury Road Christmas service, but, in ten or twenty years, you can bet anything you like it will be a thing.
infowarrior1
December 14, 2015 at 6:21 pm
All that is needed is the Jesus fish symbol 10-20 years after the fact to make it: “Christian”
feeriker
December 14, 2015 at 11:14 pm
*YAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWNNNNNNNNNNNN*
Another pseudo-religious social club in the Post-Christian wasteland that is Western Europe finds a new and more tasteless way to show just how dead the Christian faith is thereabouts. So what else is new?
News would have been an announcement of a city-wide prayer service for, say, Pastor Saeed Abedini (the Iranian-born American pastor who has been languishing in an Iranian prison and enduring torture for nearly four years for evangelizing) or a city-wide evangelical outreach event to mark the Savior’s birth. THOSE would be shocking news for anywhere in Western Europe. In fact, I would be seriously skeptical that they would be able to pull either one off without it being diluted by the surrounding culture – or being harrassed by godless government agencies.
feeriker
December 14, 2015 at 11:20 pm
All that is needed is the Jesus fish symbol 10-20 years after the fact to make it: “Christian”
That’s pretty much all you need on your business card or store marquee to get listed in the “Christian” Yellow Pages down here. You sure don’t need to demonstrate Christ-like behavior in your business ethics to qualify (I suppose it’s superfluous of me to mention that I use said directories only for the purpose of adding businesses to my “black list”).
Will S.
December 15, 2015 at 2:53 am
@ SSW: I don’t know if it’s conscious, or if that’s simply how long it takes for some evangelicals to notice some pop culture memes. “Hey, them young folks like U2, don’t they? Let’s have a U2-charist!” 😉
@ infowarrior1: Yep!
@ feeriker: Yes, not entirely surprising. But still slightly so. It’s like, “Really? This is where they’re at, now?”, even though it should be expected.
Mark Citadel
December 15, 2015 at 8:51 am
Churches are ever more becoming laughable circuses. THIS IS A HOUSE OF WORSHIP!!!! This is like pissing on the altar.
Matt Cochran
December 15, 2015 at 11:01 am
They should just cut to the chase and make it a “Life Day” service. Suggested sermon hymn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRrm59Z_0w4
Will S.
December 15, 2015 at 12:28 pm
@ Mark: Indeed.
@ Matt: Ha! I’ve seen that whole Star Wars Holiday Special; it is hilariously awful. 🙂
feeriker
December 15, 2015 at 2:47 pm
I really wish Western Europeans would just drop the last vestiges of pretense that they have any residual respect whatsoever for their Christian past. This idiocy in Berlin is just plain insulting to the intelligence and sensibilites (assuming the majority there possesses either). As Matt suggested, they should call it a “life service,” a “Winter Solstice Festival” or a “Winterferienfeier” (“winter holidays party”). Just leave anything remotely having to with Christ out of it, since it has nothing to with Him anyway. A more import question is, who are they trying to impress (or defer to) by painting a Christian veneer on this event? I can’t imagine why they think they need to keep up appearances.
Maybe God will demonstrate that He will not be mocked by having a horde of Muslim migrants crash and trash this event (we should be so lucky).
Will S.
December 16, 2015 at 1:38 am
“Hypocrisy is the tribute vice renders to virtue”, LaRochefoucauld said.
infowarrior1
December 20, 2015 at 4:09 am
Symptom of a general problem:
Will S.
December 20, 2015 at 12:05 pm
Indeed.