Every boy growing up in the 1980s remembers this iconic line for Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back —
“No. I am your father.”
My brothers & I knew the line so well, we could recite it at any time, whenever an impromptu light saber battle came up.
Later, in Return of the Jedi, there is another line that is as equally important for men to recall, from the scene where Luke Skywalker completes his training with Jedi Master Yoda
Luke says, “Then I am a Jedi.”
Yoda delivers his most important lesson—
Oh!
Not yet.
One thing remains...
Vader.
You must confront Vader.
Then, only then, a Jedi will you be.
In the next moments, Luke struggles to comprehend, and struggles to accept what he must do. He later says, “I can't kill my own father.” Of course, Yoda told him to confront Vader, not necessarily kill him. Later we find out that Luke did not kill Vader, but saved him (saved his soul, not his life),
(Luke, to Vader): “I've got to save you.”
(Vader): “You already have, Luke.”
What this movie sequence teaches all men is the necessity of confrontation, and not only physical confrontation of our enemies, but confrontation of falsehoods with the truth. Luke had to confront the false reality with the truth of his father’s identity and his own identity.
As men, and knights, we are called to regularly confront the false realities that we encounter in our lives.
Looking at the New Testament, we can now see a lot of Vader Confrontation moments.
John the Baptist confronted the Herod the tetrarch, for marrying his own brother’s wife, in Matthew 14.
Peter confronted his fears multiple times, and he confronted his false perception of who the Messiah would be.
Thomas confronted his doubts as to the reality of the Resurrection.
Jesus confronted Saul / Paul in Act 9. “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
Paul confronts Peter in Galatians 2.
In fact, many of Paul’s letters to different cities are corrections or confrontations.
So we see, as men, how often we have our own Vader to confront. We might have a family member to confront about his destructive behavior. We might have a boss at work to confront about an untenable employment situation.
I had a Vader Confrontation moment in 2021 at my place of employment. My employer had implemented some COVID-related requirements, like masking in the office, and I had already done some mild confrontations regarding that, but to no immediate avail. Then they went further to add not a vaccine mandate but an extra fee to our insurance bill for those who had not yet uploaded a proof of vaccination.
I had several options, such as asking for a religious exemption, but after much prayer and contemplation, I decided to really confront the issue and launch a series of complaints and legal cases against my employer. That got their attention. But what really showed I was serious was that I said, “No” and opted out of the health insurance plan entirely.
Yes, I went a whole year without health insurance over a $10 a month fee for the unvaccinated. I bet my employer couldn’t believe it. Whatever extra income they thought they would generate from that fee was wiped out by my not participating in their plan. Of course, their goal was not simply revenue but to ensure compliance. But I showed them that compliance would not come easy. I gave them something to think about. I made them confront their own misconceptions about how “fair” and “safe” they were being.
They did not tell me much of what was happening behind the scenes, but a year later, they dropped the $10 fee and I re-started my insurance plan with them. And a little while later, having such a bad taste in my mouth about being employed there, I searched for other employment and found something better and I promptly left them behind. This is how proper confrontation works — it is very uncomfortable at first, to the point where a man is not even sure it is the smart, practical decision, but he trusts in God and trusts that the truth is worth fighting for, even to the point of enormous personal sacrifice.
Men, what are the Vaders in your life that you must confront?
Great work. That's how it needs to be done. Too bad so few do it. As Tucker Carlson would say, "Where are all the dads?"