Over the past few years many have given their views on the state of the Jedi in the Galaxy today, we who always seem to be looking out at peers with as much distrust as we do those who seek to harm us.

To be Jedi today is to involuntarily become a party to a genre of politics and controversies some are able to ignore and maintain their focus on what is important in their mandate and service of the Force, yet there are also times where words of encouragement need to be aired, to remind us of who we are, not as one Order different from another, nor one affiliation compared to the next, but as the title simply is, Jedi. We who hold many differences, yet seek to do right by the people of the Galaxy, to serve the Force, to protect and if needs be, to fight in the defense of those who would surely suffer.

Mnemosyne is my homeworld, Kashyyyk the heart of my Order and while I am a Silver Jedi Knight, what concerns me is the distance that sets us, all Jedi, apart from one another. The Order of the Silver Jedi is no stranger to controversy. It has been around a long time and the recent considerations of the Silver Concord have affected our reputable standing among our peers in the New Jedi Order, and many other branches of the Jedi spread out across the Galaxy.

There seems to be confusion and uncertainty towards the Order of the Silver Jedi’s allegiances today, courtesy of Political considerations dating back to the Elder Compact. What is true then, is still true today in that the Silver Jedi hold no allegiance or pact of non-aggression to the Sith, whether the Empire or the recent emergence of other Sith groups such as the Lords of the Sith. I seek to tolerate the crimes of the Sith no more than I do the genocide of the Bryn'adul, and there are those who would undermine the Jedi of today on all sides, least of all the damage done by casting judgement among ourselves.

What remains true today is that, regardless of our differences, we are Jedi and we serve the Galaxy while walking the path of the Light.

A growing trend among our people today separates and weakens us to the Sith and those of the Darkside of the Force. We seem determined to look upon our fellow Jedi and see only what divides us, what fault of others may dignify the agenda of one’s own Order. This is an underlying habit that has been on-going for generations, dating back to my Fathers time before mine, the greatest harm we do unto ourselves by giving reason and premise to who among the Jedi of today are worthy, righteous or fallible. Remember that if we are to respect all forms of Life, this includes the rights and views of our neighbours, the who share different backgrounds, whose perceptions have been shaped by different perspectives and experience to our own.

Whether Silver or of the Galactic Alliance, the Outer Rim or other associated Jedi organizations out there across the Galaxy, we are all sentient and doing our utmost to serve the Light. We walk the path of greatest difficulty in order to seek to rise above such controversies, such self-serving premise that discourage our ability and resolve from serving the Galaxy at large.

These and other questions have greatly weighed upon my mind of late, and driven me to seek the wisdom of greater Jedi than I, Masters of experience and servants to society, held back not by the ‘who’s who’ of today. My experience has helped me to recognize that this is short-lived in the greater picture of what it means to serve dutifully and disciplined. The ‘political state of the Jedi’, this argument of derisive understanding of those who ought to be considered our brothers and sisters of the Path; It is a distraction and it will only cease when you make the decision to no longer allow yourself to be swayed away from your fellow Jedi by the propaganda of the Holonet and the agenda of those who benefit most from our division.

Regardless of one’s perception and understanding of the Jedi Code, of your affiliation to other branches of Jedi or your political views, your beliefs and what makes you who you are, no servant of the Light will be disregarded or sent away should they seek my friendship, assistance or the services that House Arenais may provide.

Each and every one of us shares our own strengths and weaknesses, our struggles and our efforts are all in collaboration to the greater presence of light in the Galaxy, whether we choose to acknowledge our peers or not. There will never be an end to indifference between Jedi, but it is a choice to seek wisdom in understanding, compassion and in unity.

Do not allow the light that you carry to be dimmed by the views of others, and do not allow yourself to be discouraged as I have allowed myself in the past. The path we walk is unique to us all, filled with struggles and achievements that the Force wills for us.

Trust in the Force, you who are and always will be. Jedi.

This is part of a personal character development journey that Caedyn Arenais has undertaken recently, incorporating shared content from across Chaos in helping to shape his outlook as a Jedi Knight and how he views the nature of service and duty within the Lightside of the Force, and the Jedi Path.