Last weekend, Nancy and I went on a Star Wars binge. We watched all nine episodes and I saw many new aspects of the story that I missed the first time around including the relationships between the main characters.
One of the things we were amazed at was the many different ways the plot demonstrated the concept of the Force. Star Wars presented the force as a balance between the good and evil. Throughout all nine episodes the protagonists would defeat one evil force and in the next episode the evil side of the force would return under a different name only to be defeated again.
Although the plot was satisfying, it was frustrating to know that no matter how many times good conquered evil, evil always returned. This led me to wonder if this was the nature of things. Would there always be an evil force to overcome?
I began to ponder the nature of evil. Most philosophers have held to one of two views of evil. There is the Manichaean view which claims that good and evil are two equally powerful forces locked in as eternal struggle, the outcome of which is unknown. It seems to me that Star Wars is a good example of the Manichaean concept of evil. No matter how often the ”dark side of the force” is defeated, evil always comes back. One can barely overthrow evil without knowing it will return with a vengeance.
The second view of evil is the Augustinian belief that evil is the absence of good; evil is nothingness. Evil results from the loss of goodness. It. Is. As Augustine said, ”All which is corrupted is deprived of good.” According to this view evil happens when good people do nothing.
A perfect example of the Augustinian concept is the ”Lord of the Rings Trilogy” by J.R, R. Tolkien. At the conclusion of the story when Frodo throws the ring into the fiery cauldron, Tolkien describes the passing of Sauron as a mere shadow riding out of the land of Mordor and out of Mount Doom. The shadow reaches for the armies of men as if to seize them only to have the wind blow it away. The shadow disappears into nothingness.
Without going into too much detail, I want to discuss how these stories relate to us today. We are living in a world where evil runs rampant. One only has to see Trump in three years telling over 16,000 lies. We see a serial adulterer boast of his conquests. We see his supporters who range from the ten-tooth, know-nothings to well-dressed ministers praying in the Oval Office for the success of Trump. We see a corrupt Republican Party siding and abetting man who daily commits treason against this country. We see the evil of this man filtering down throughout the Country corrupting all of us. He destroys everything and everyone he comes into contact with.
What is really tragic is that even if Trump disappears tomorrow, another will come to take his place. After World War II we thought there would never be another holocaust. Yet we have concentration camps along our Southern borders, we have ICE raiding people’s homes. We have so many evil deeds committed by evil people.
No matter which view of evil you hold, the Augustinian view or the Manichaean view, it’s important to acknowledge that evil happens when good people do nothing. It’s important to remember that as inscribed on the Liberty Bell, ”Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.”
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