October 12 | The Return of George Lucas

Romans 12:19 tlb

Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it.

The third movie in the Star Wars series was originally titled Revenge of the Jedi. Several months prior to the release of the film, many promotional materials were sent to movie theaters and chains across the country.

Then someone suggested to director George Lucas that if the Jedi knights were indeed agents of goodness and peace, they would not be motivated by revenge. Lucas thought about it, then agreed. Even though a title change would mean a substantial cost in redesigning film titles and replacing promotional materials, Lucas retitled the film Return of the Jedi.

In our culture, vengeance is not an uncommon concept. When someone does us wrong, our immediate reaction is to want to get back at them. If we are to be Christlike, though, we must give up our vengefulness.¹

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¹  Jeremiah, D. (2002). Sanctuary: finding moments of refuge in the presence of God (p. 299). Integrity Publishers.