Post by JediKaren on Feb 8, 2007 9:59:02 GMT -5
This was written for the Jedi sites that I belong to, but I thought any Jedi fan might be interested in reading this.
I am seeing a lot of anger, jealousy, fighting, pride, and underlying bragging among the Jedi. It is not just limited to the Prax or TOJO, but it is on many of the other Jedi sites. There are many reasons for this negativity and unlike Jedi behavior, but they all seem to link to rank. In my opinion, rank is not a bad idea for the Jedi, but it is causing all these problems that are coming from mistreatment and misunderstanding of rank. So let go into what is rank, why it is there, what rank means concerning the Jedi, what the ranks of the Jedi mean, and how to approach someone misusing rank.
The first thing to ask is where does rank occurs. All over the world, in all countries, in all governments, and in all groups of any topic there is a ranking system. What happens is you take a bunch of people that have the same interest or beliefs. In this group, a leader will be chosen. All groups need a leader because that is the way human society works. So the group either votes on a leader from the group, someone names themselves as the leader, or the group silently decides to listen and obey the orders of one person in the group. It is understood that the group has to listen to the leader in order to keep the peace and accomplish things.
The leader of this group usually will like and trust one or two people more than the rest. The leader will often go to these people first for ideas, advice, or for second opinions. If the leader is missing for any reason, he or she will publicly announce these favorites are to take the place of the leadership. The group is to understand they will have to respect and obey the orders of the favorites, if the leader is gone. So now the group has a leader and a second in command.
The group, in order to grow, survived, and succeed have to invite or accept new people into the group. The new people are interviewed about their reasons for joining the group, their views on the subject the group is based on, and their personality. The new person may be very knowledgeable about the subject, but because they do not know the group or the way the group is run, the new person must start from the bottom and move up in rank, should they want to.
Rank comes from the level of respect one person gives to another. The group respects their leader so the leader has a higher level of rank. Rank is often based on experience because experience brings respect for a person. Rank is given to a person who shows organization skills and leadership qualities. Some people think rank is given because of age or outside titles. Rank is not given, but earned. Age and other titles will not always earn a person rank. A person can be in their fifties and not be very high in the ranking system if they lack respect for and by others, or are not organized.
The group will respect a person if that person can respect the group. A leader has to listen, respect, and obey the wishes of the group. Otherwise, the leader will find the group will rebel and throw the leader out. If the rank is not respected, the meaning of the rank will be meaningless, and the organization of the group will fall apart. Although some ranks have more power, it is essential that everyone is given respect.
The Jedi Order is no different from any other group. There are five ranks that a person can earn. These ranks are earned through training, teaching, and action. In order to earn a title, a Jedi must show they have the knowledge and maturity to handle the responsible and rights that come with that title. Age does not matter as one would think when it comes to being a Jedi. Plenty of the Jedi who are apprentices or initials are thirty or forty are not as mature as a twenty year old knight. Because we are all the forerunners, the forces to get the order set in motion, none of us have much experience. There are Jedi who have been a Jedi for fifteen years, but have not joined an order. They have studied the ways of the Jedi alone, practiced alone, and formed their own believes about the Jedi. While this is good and is to be respected, these people need to expand their knowledge of the Jedi by joined a site and read the ideas of others. These loners must start from the lowest rank and learn the meanings of the ranks and why to achieve a certain rank.
The first rank is called many names such as Jedi student, newbie, initial, and pre apprentices. These people are put in this rank because they are either new to the ways of the Jedi path, or they have to prove what they know the Jedi. Because they do not know how to act with a group of Jedi they are considered to be initials. Their job is to read all the material provided on that site and possibly going on to other sites to get a boarder view. They are to introduce themselves to the Jedi, talking about their past, their history with the Jedi, why they wish to become a Jedi, their goals once they are a Jedi and to show they are capable of learning and being taught. If an initial is young, generally sixteen years old or younger, they will have to wait until they are older to move up to the next rank. This is to ensure they are mature enough to handle the pressure and have the maturity needed to be an apprentice. If a student is young, but can show they are older than their ages tells, then they may be able to move up.
It is also the responsibility of the initial to find a knight or a master to train them. Of course, the student must understand they have to show they are ready to be train and this can only be show through posting and chatting with various knights and masters in chatrooms or instant messengers. The initial should never be put down, even if they have not gotten a master yet. The initial should be given respect, because they have the courage and will power to humble themselves enough to start a long and difficult path.
Once an initial been asked, or has received an approval from a knight or master to be trained by them, the rank title is changed to apprentice. The experience of being an apprentice is unique to everyone. Every knight or master has a slightly different lesson plan. The student may learn to focus on certain points or skills different from another apprentice. This is why it is important for the apprentices to talk to each other every so often, to see what is being taught. There is a quote in one of the Star Wars books that goes “Is it what the teachers teaches or what the student learns?” A teacher may want to emphasis a certain point or lesson, but the student may miss it or learn a different lesson.
The role of the apprentice is to learn about the Force, the path of the Jedi, philosophy, religion, obedience, independent thinking, logic, and how the world works. Although it is argued what point is more important, if other points should be added or taken off, these are the main points. The apprentice is considered to be an important part of the order and should not be put down for speaking up or suggesting ideas. Sometimes, a tall person will not see the lower, smaller details in life and will have to ask the smaller person to look for them. An apprentice may not be aware of how to run a whole order, but they understand the small day to day details. The goal of being an apprentice is to learn all the lessons and to move up to the rank of a knight.
A knight can be seen as an advance apprentice who has shown maturity and wisdom through posts, essays, and some sort of diary that a knight should have. There are really two types of knights. There is the young knight, who has to settle down into the role of a knight and learn how to go about their duties on a day to day basis. They are testing their skills at being independence and continuing to perfect their skills learned while being an apprentice. They are expected to go beyond what was taught to them and dive deeper into the pool of knowledge in them and around them.
The second type of knight is the mature knight. This is the stage where a knight should consider taking on an apprentice if they wish to. They know their role well. They know what to do, how to do it, why to do it, and have felt the need to pass on what they know to a student. It is said that one really knows a skill or a job if they can teach it to someone who is brand new. The mature knight is teaching the student so to not just teach the Jedi way, but to learn more about themselves and the role of an apprentice. This rank is considered a reflection period and then a correction period for both the knight and apprentice. A Jedi may wish to stop at this stage and not go on to being a master. This is not to be looked down because the Jedi has shown plenty of maturity.
Taking on an apprentice and having the apprentice become a knight does not automatically make the knight become a master. This is just a qualification that is required to become a master. There is no way to work up to being a master. The title of master is given when the masters have recognized your skill and maturity as a Jedi. To earn the rank of being a master, a Jedi must show sincere care and dedication to the promotion of the order and the fulfillment of services provided by the order. A master must illustrate they are proficient at organizing the younger Jedi to protect the weak and uphold justice. A master is called a master because they have mastered all the skills taught to them as an apprentice and have gone far beyond the lessons and skills that are needed to know. The Jedi has to learn to fully control their emotions, learn to plan before they act, and concur with the wishes of the Jedi council.
The last rank that can be achieved is a very rare and hard one to obtain. It is called a Jedi council member. Unlike the movies, the Jedi councils of different sites have been known to hold eight to twelve members. These members are the best of the masters, specializing in different skills that are crucial to establishment of the order. They are the most experienced of the Jedi. These Jedi are responsible for understand the past, being in current, presence time, and keeping in mind of the near and far future of the order. They are the ultimate organizers because they order the rest of the Jedi for missions and projects. The council members are also to maintain their skills and to teach or train students. They are responsible for deciding who comes into the order, who becomes an apprentice, knight, and master. Any one of them could take on the position of Grand Master of the Order, but of these councils members, only one can be given that title by voting.
The last point to be talked about and understood is the misuse of these ranks. The problem starts with the apprentice. All apprentices are utterly impatient to become a knight. They are constantly reminded the need to improve themselves and to act like the knight that they are not. The time they are close to truly becoming a knight, they understand this impatience, but it is human nature to want something we feel that we must gain for personal advancement. To become a knight is to put aside this want for a time being in order to gain it. This act will show the maturity of a knight and is hard to do.
The young knight who is recently promoted may feel the need to celebrate. This is all good, but should be done in moderation and kept in restraint to prevent bragging to the apprentices. The knight should also not be tempted to challenge or question the masters. This shows the knight has not settled into their role and has not respected what was just given to them. It is natural that the knight may want to expression their ideas, concerns, and opinions about the order, now that they are closer to the leaders of the order. If they feel this way, it must be done in respect and honor of the higher rank.
The same thing applies to the mature knight and master. They must not question the skill or promotion of the knight, because this would be to question the master of the newly made knight and the Jedi council. The master must not scold the new knight for not advancing to a master, if the knight does not wish to go that far. Once doubt is put into the power of a title, the title is eroded of its importance and the order of the Jedi is gone. This is why the Jedi have a ranking system and why it is more then important to understand and respect each level of the path. No one is truly better than anyone if they are serious and committed to a job of good service for the world.
I am seeing a lot of anger, jealousy, fighting, pride, and underlying bragging among the Jedi. It is not just limited to the Prax or TOJO, but it is on many of the other Jedi sites. There are many reasons for this negativity and unlike Jedi behavior, but they all seem to link to rank. In my opinion, rank is not a bad idea for the Jedi, but it is causing all these problems that are coming from mistreatment and misunderstanding of rank. So let go into what is rank, why it is there, what rank means concerning the Jedi, what the ranks of the Jedi mean, and how to approach someone misusing rank.
The first thing to ask is where does rank occurs. All over the world, in all countries, in all governments, and in all groups of any topic there is a ranking system. What happens is you take a bunch of people that have the same interest or beliefs. In this group, a leader will be chosen. All groups need a leader because that is the way human society works. So the group either votes on a leader from the group, someone names themselves as the leader, or the group silently decides to listen and obey the orders of one person in the group. It is understood that the group has to listen to the leader in order to keep the peace and accomplish things.
The leader of this group usually will like and trust one or two people more than the rest. The leader will often go to these people first for ideas, advice, or for second opinions. If the leader is missing for any reason, he or she will publicly announce these favorites are to take the place of the leadership. The group is to understand they will have to respect and obey the orders of the favorites, if the leader is gone. So now the group has a leader and a second in command.
The group, in order to grow, survived, and succeed have to invite or accept new people into the group. The new people are interviewed about their reasons for joining the group, their views on the subject the group is based on, and their personality. The new person may be very knowledgeable about the subject, but because they do not know the group or the way the group is run, the new person must start from the bottom and move up in rank, should they want to.
Rank comes from the level of respect one person gives to another. The group respects their leader so the leader has a higher level of rank. Rank is often based on experience because experience brings respect for a person. Rank is given to a person who shows organization skills and leadership qualities. Some people think rank is given because of age or outside titles. Rank is not given, but earned. Age and other titles will not always earn a person rank. A person can be in their fifties and not be very high in the ranking system if they lack respect for and by others, or are not organized.
The group will respect a person if that person can respect the group. A leader has to listen, respect, and obey the wishes of the group. Otherwise, the leader will find the group will rebel and throw the leader out. If the rank is not respected, the meaning of the rank will be meaningless, and the organization of the group will fall apart. Although some ranks have more power, it is essential that everyone is given respect.
The Jedi Order is no different from any other group. There are five ranks that a person can earn. These ranks are earned through training, teaching, and action. In order to earn a title, a Jedi must show they have the knowledge and maturity to handle the responsible and rights that come with that title. Age does not matter as one would think when it comes to being a Jedi. Plenty of the Jedi who are apprentices or initials are thirty or forty are not as mature as a twenty year old knight. Because we are all the forerunners, the forces to get the order set in motion, none of us have much experience. There are Jedi who have been a Jedi for fifteen years, but have not joined an order. They have studied the ways of the Jedi alone, practiced alone, and formed their own believes about the Jedi. While this is good and is to be respected, these people need to expand their knowledge of the Jedi by joined a site and read the ideas of others. These loners must start from the lowest rank and learn the meanings of the ranks and why to achieve a certain rank.
The first rank is called many names such as Jedi student, newbie, initial, and pre apprentices. These people are put in this rank because they are either new to the ways of the Jedi path, or they have to prove what they know the Jedi. Because they do not know how to act with a group of Jedi they are considered to be initials. Their job is to read all the material provided on that site and possibly going on to other sites to get a boarder view. They are to introduce themselves to the Jedi, talking about their past, their history with the Jedi, why they wish to become a Jedi, their goals once they are a Jedi and to show they are capable of learning and being taught. If an initial is young, generally sixteen years old or younger, they will have to wait until they are older to move up to the next rank. This is to ensure they are mature enough to handle the pressure and have the maturity needed to be an apprentice. If a student is young, but can show they are older than their ages tells, then they may be able to move up.
It is also the responsibility of the initial to find a knight or a master to train them. Of course, the student must understand they have to show they are ready to be train and this can only be show through posting and chatting with various knights and masters in chatrooms or instant messengers. The initial should never be put down, even if they have not gotten a master yet. The initial should be given respect, because they have the courage and will power to humble themselves enough to start a long and difficult path.
Once an initial been asked, or has received an approval from a knight or master to be trained by them, the rank title is changed to apprentice. The experience of being an apprentice is unique to everyone. Every knight or master has a slightly different lesson plan. The student may learn to focus on certain points or skills different from another apprentice. This is why it is important for the apprentices to talk to each other every so often, to see what is being taught. There is a quote in one of the Star Wars books that goes “Is it what the teachers teaches or what the student learns?” A teacher may want to emphasis a certain point or lesson, but the student may miss it or learn a different lesson.
The role of the apprentice is to learn about the Force, the path of the Jedi, philosophy, religion, obedience, independent thinking, logic, and how the world works. Although it is argued what point is more important, if other points should be added or taken off, these are the main points. The apprentice is considered to be an important part of the order and should not be put down for speaking up or suggesting ideas. Sometimes, a tall person will not see the lower, smaller details in life and will have to ask the smaller person to look for them. An apprentice may not be aware of how to run a whole order, but they understand the small day to day details. The goal of being an apprentice is to learn all the lessons and to move up to the rank of a knight.
A knight can be seen as an advance apprentice who has shown maturity and wisdom through posts, essays, and some sort of diary that a knight should have. There are really two types of knights. There is the young knight, who has to settle down into the role of a knight and learn how to go about their duties on a day to day basis. They are testing their skills at being independence and continuing to perfect their skills learned while being an apprentice. They are expected to go beyond what was taught to them and dive deeper into the pool of knowledge in them and around them.
The second type of knight is the mature knight. This is the stage where a knight should consider taking on an apprentice if they wish to. They know their role well. They know what to do, how to do it, why to do it, and have felt the need to pass on what they know to a student. It is said that one really knows a skill or a job if they can teach it to someone who is brand new. The mature knight is teaching the student so to not just teach the Jedi way, but to learn more about themselves and the role of an apprentice. This rank is considered a reflection period and then a correction period for both the knight and apprentice. A Jedi may wish to stop at this stage and not go on to being a master. This is not to be looked down because the Jedi has shown plenty of maturity.
Taking on an apprentice and having the apprentice become a knight does not automatically make the knight become a master. This is just a qualification that is required to become a master. There is no way to work up to being a master. The title of master is given when the masters have recognized your skill and maturity as a Jedi. To earn the rank of being a master, a Jedi must show sincere care and dedication to the promotion of the order and the fulfillment of services provided by the order. A master must illustrate they are proficient at organizing the younger Jedi to protect the weak and uphold justice. A master is called a master because they have mastered all the skills taught to them as an apprentice and have gone far beyond the lessons and skills that are needed to know. The Jedi has to learn to fully control their emotions, learn to plan before they act, and concur with the wishes of the Jedi council.
The last rank that can be achieved is a very rare and hard one to obtain. It is called a Jedi council member. Unlike the movies, the Jedi councils of different sites have been known to hold eight to twelve members. These members are the best of the masters, specializing in different skills that are crucial to establishment of the order. They are the most experienced of the Jedi. These Jedi are responsible for understand the past, being in current, presence time, and keeping in mind of the near and far future of the order. They are the ultimate organizers because they order the rest of the Jedi for missions and projects. The council members are also to maintain their skills and to teach or train students. They are responsible for deciding who comes into the order, who becomes an apprentice, knight, and master. Any one of them could take on the position of Grand Master of the Order, but of these councils members, only one can be given that title by voting.
The last point to be talked about and understood is the misuse of these ranks. The problem starts with the apprentice. All apprentices are utterly impatient to become a knight. They are constantly reminded the need to improve themselves and to act like the knight that they are not. The time they are close to truly becoming a knight, they understand this impatience, but it is human nature to want something we feel that we must gain for personal advancement. To become a knight is to put aside this want for a time being in order to gain it. This act will show the maturity of a knight and is hard to do.
The young knight who is recently promoted may feel the need to celebrate. This is all good, but should be done in moderation and kept in restraint to prevent bragging to the apprentices. The knight should also not be tempted to challenge or question the masters. This shows the knight has not settled into their role and has not respected what was just given to them. It is natural that the knight may want to expression their ideas, concerns, and opinions about the order, now that they are closer to the leaders of the order. If they feel this way, it must be done in respect and honor of the higher rank.
The same thing applies to the mature knight and master. They must not question the skill or promotion of the knight, because this would be to question the master of the newly made knight and the Jedi council. The master must not scold the new knight for not advancing to a master, if the knight does not wish to go that far. Once doubt is put into the power of a title, the title is eroded of its importance and the order of the Jedi is gone. This is why the Jedi have a ranking system and why it is more then important to understand and respect each level of the path. No one is truly better than anyone if they are serious and committed to a job of good service for the world.
