Fan Theories About The Jedi Order We Can't Get Over

From Redditor u/MetalsDeadAndSoAmI:

The Jedi philosophy is flawed after thousands of years being perverted by their fear of the dark side, likely stemming from the schism that separated Jedi from Sith. The Zeffo had a similar issue [seen in Jedi: Fallen Order]

Which brings me to Luke's fear and realization that it is time for the Jedi to end. The Jedi Order suffered the same fate as the Zeffo, who tell you in the temple that their intense dedication to their dogma lead to their extinction. The Jedi also were nearly wiped out due to their own dedication to their philosophies.

The Jedi feared the dark side so much that they [stiffled] their humanity by repressing their feelings. Take Anakin for example, he was never taught to repress his humanity because he was too old when he started his training. But it wasn't his feelings that were wrong; instead, repressing those feelings caused them to become a cancer within his heart. His love for Padme and his mother were polluted because of it, he was obsessed with them. His obsession became possession.

Because Jedi are not allowed to express their most "human" feelings in a healthy way, those who succumb to those feelings express them in an unhealthy way.

The Jedi's blindness to the rise of the Sith was due to their fear of their feelings. Qui-Gon Jinn saw through this fear. He dealt with his emotions in a healthy way, maybe this was due to being trained by a Jedi who was struggling with the dark side, and probably played loose with the rules because of it (Dooku).

Qui-Gon Jinn was able to act on his emotions, his heart told him he needed to train Anakin. His compassion lead to him trying to win both Anakin and his mother from Watto. He didn't see these feelings as a pull of the dark side. He knew the risks, and realized they were outweighed by the benefits. Qui-Gon Jinn discovered the ability to keep consciousness after becoming one with the Force, he taught Yoda and Obi-Wan to do the same.

When Luke he attempted to rebuild the order as it was, he used the ancient texts and viewed them through the lens of the Jedi teachings that were flawed. Those philosophies lead him to fear Ben Solo when he saw visions of the future. Luke almost fell to the dark side because of this, which I believe was Snokes plan, explaining his disdain for Ben in the comics. He constantly compares Ben to Luke, saying he'd rather Luke be his apprentice.

Since his death, Yoda seems to understand the flaw in the Jedi teachings. Hence his chat with Luke on the log. Where Luke was playing the part of Yoda in Empire, Yoda was calm about Rey going off. He's no longer clouded, and can see the bigger picture. He knows that the Jedi will live on in a new way, a better way that they lived long before their fear of the dark side perverted their teachings.

From Redditor u/mac6uffin

Force Healing is a pathway to the Dark Side.

Quoting Yoda: "Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not. Attachment leads to jealously. The shadow of greed, that is."

Unless you can prevent death. The very thing Anakin was searching for that led him straight into the clutches of Palpatine.

Healing someone via the Force isn't cost-free. Rey states that she had to transfer some of her life energy when she healed the snake. Ben Solo dies bringing Rey back to life. So one clearly can't heal anyone and everyone. You have to choose. And when you start deciding who lives and who dies, you are right back to what Yoda said above. Deciding who lives is attachment. It is the dark side, bending the Living Force to your will. The power over life and death will corrupt the one who wields it.

So that is why the Jedi Order forgot the power. They realized a Jedi that could Force Heal would likely be corrupted and fall to the Dark Side. They deliberately refused to pass on the knowledge. And so Force Healing was an ability lost to history.

From Redditor u/BookOfBookTitles:

I feel there are competing perspectives about Yoda as the head of the Jedi Order - the traditional narrative speaks of his wisdom and steady hand as the head of it, another speaks to his failure to see the rise of the Sith, his too many years in charge making him listless and a tool of the greater systems of political power on Coruscant. I’m thinking both are true, as these things usually go.

I’m guessing that at some point there was a compromise in Yoda’s tenure, that for the Jedi to be permitted a formal role as protectors of the Republic, certain ways of operating had to change, which may also have changed the Order’s relationship with and teachings about the Force. Kind of like the Sokovia Accords in the MCU’s Civil War, but probably not so strict.

And perhaps after so many years (centuries even...?) of this relationship, the interweaving of the Order and the political system of the Republic became so intertwined (some for better, some for worse), that even Yoda could not practically affect it. 

Also, The Phantom Menace ends with Yoda disagreeing with Obi-Wan training Anakin, but he alone could not override the Council who said Obi-Wan should. So Yoda wields great power, but not ultimate authority. And thus, it’s more complicated than Yoda-good / Yoda-bad.

From Redditor u/alterpsyche:

The biggest cause of dispute between Qui-Gon and The Council of the Jedi Order was that The Council made their decisions through looking into the future. That is why they initialy did not want Anakin to become Jedi, because they could not foresee all consequences.

Qui-Gon on the other hand made his decisions through Living Force, in other words he was living in the moment and not minding what might happen in the future. That is, btw, why he was not as good in lightsaber combat as his padawan for example, because you need to foresee opponents move to be able to deal with it.

From Redditor u/astromech_dj:

The artwork for The High Republic that’s come out of Lucasfilm so far has made a big deal of showing off all the shades of yellow, blue, green, purple, pink, orange etc. This is a far cry from what we saw in the prequels, and the only Jedi to show affinity to alternative colors have fairly radical leanings or philosophies [when it comes to the Force.]

There’s also been talk of highlighting how different High Republic characters understand the Force in different ways, which is not easily done in the prequel era (see: Qui-Gon).

I theorize that the events of High Republic cause the shift to rigid fundamental Jedi teachings, and this diminishes the variation in how facets of the Force are reflected in a kyber crystal.

From Redditor u/dontwasteink:

The Jedi have rules against marriage and having children, the excuse is to limit personal attachments.

But the real reason is to keep Force Sensitive users from multiplying. Vader's Force sensitivity passing to his children shows it's hereditary.

Force Users can be incredibly powerful, and increasing in number, they could become a threat to the stability of the Republic, as many can rise to become warlords or corrupt politicians due to their pre-cognition and mind control abilities alone.

So the Jedi Order was created to search the Galaxy for Force sensitive children, round them up and indoctrinate them into a monastic life. Their purpose becomes to serve the will of the Republic as living weapons, diplomats and generals.