Closed-Minded Retailer Tesco Bans Jedi Religious Garb
The persecution never ends for the Jedi, does it? First, they were nearly all murdered by one of their own. Then, just when they've built a presence on modern Earth, a grocery store in Wales tells a practicing Jedi that he can't wear the hood of his robe up in their stores. Bigotry!
The founder of the UK Jedi Church refused to take down his hood, insisting that he must keep it covering his head at all times when out in public.
Mr Jones, also known by his Jedi name Morda Hehol, told The Sun: "I told them it was a requirement of my religion but they just sniggered and ordered me to leave.
"I walked past a Muslim lady in a veil. Surely the same rules should apply to everyone."
The handbook of the UK Jedi Church, founded by the Star Wars fan last year, states: "Jedis must wear a hood up in any public place of a large audience."
Daniel added: "It was discrimination. I was really upset. Nobody should be treated like that."
"I'll advise worshippers to boycott Tesco if it happens again. They will feel the Force."
Ah, but if you boycott them now, they will come back even more powerful than you can possibly imagine.
Jedi ejected from Tesco for wearing hood [The Telegraph]
(Photo: alotor)
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Comments:
Those who feel that the Muslim lady is right to force Abercrombie and Fitch to let her wear her headgear while working there, I assume you 100% agree with the Jedi on this as well, yes?
Anything less would be rather hypocritical. The Jedi are a recognized religion in some places.
So I'm wondering, is this an actual certified religion? And if so, just what are the requirements to become a recognized religious organization?
what a bullshit crapshoot religious rule... I can find many scenes where jedi are in public with their hoods down. Also may I mention here that its all FAKE.
Jesus, even George Lucas thinks these people are crazy.
@shepd: no, it would not be hypocritical if you recognized Islam as a religion and Jedis as weirdos - they based their religion off a movie, now come on...
@Herbz: century old religions shouldn't be compared to cults like scientology and the jedi church...
@Kogenta: IIRC, they did a survey a few years ago, perhaps for the UK Census, and a actual amount of people claimed Jedi as a religion.
@SpruceStreetPhil: You are correct. The scenes you have seen where Jedi's have their hoods down ARE fakes. It is not a fair representation of the actual religion.
@Herbz:
Like SpruceStreetPhil says, Islam is based off a REALLY OLD book.
In 500 years, Jedism will be based off a REALLY OLD movie.
I suppose, like a fine wine, we just need to wait for it to mature, is that the difference between a cult and a religion?
Or is the difference that a cult does horrible things to those who try to leave or those who try to disparage it? Because that's what I was always taught. I'm pretty sure if you laugh at the Jedi they aren't going to produce false evidence that you're a child molester, you know, unlike the "Church" of Scientology.
"Century old religions" were once cults as well. Just because they are older does not make them any better.
I don't want this to devolve into a "religion flamewar", and I personally don't approve of any organized religion, especially ones like Scientology, but just because its based off a movie doesn't make it any less of a religion.
@melloncollie128: just because you are an atheist doesn't mean others cannot follow some religion or that we should call all religions fake, but that doesn't mean we should recognize every fool's idea of a religion as a bonafide religion either.
@shepd: If this happened in the US, and Jedi were a recognized religion in the US, then yes, I would say this man has just as much right to wear his hood as a Muslim woman has to wear a head scarf or a Jewish man to wear his yarmulke. However, to the best of my knowledge, Jedi is not a recognized religion in either the US or the UK, so it is not the same situation.
@SpruceStreetPhil: Well, you have to admit, all those religions had to start somewhere...
But is the Jedi Church a church for Jedi, or is it a church for people who like to imitate the Jedi but have no actual force powers themselves? Because you'd think in a universe where Jedi and their allies are being ruthlessly hunted down in a shoot first ask questions later fashion, they might want to be a little more inconspicuous.
@SpruceStreetPhil:
What leads you to assume I'm atheist? What I said is true. We can call all religions fake seeing as how there's no solid proof that their claims are true. I believe in a god, but I at least acknowledge that I cannot argue my god's existence.
Also, just because you're Christian doesn't mean others cannot follow some belief system or that we should call all belief systems fake, but that doesn't mean we should recognize every fool's idea of an old and established religion as a religion either. See what I did there? You should be more tolerant to others who don't believe in the same things as you do.
@SpruceStreetPhil: To play devil's advocate...there is just as much proof to back up Christianity as there is to back up Jedi.
@Kogenta: that's my main concern with it. Its a "club" or group of people that want to think they're cool by dressing like characters of a series of movies that had special powers. If they did actually have these special powers then cool, let them make a church. But they're NOT Jedi. You can't claim to be a Jedi and not be able to at least pick up an effing tissue box without using anything but your mind. And they can't. And if they want to prove me wrong, then they can come over here and force choke the crap out of me. I dare them.
@SpruceStreetPhil: You do realize that, by definition, your Sith Church will have only a couple members? By the Dark Lord, that's not even enough to be able to drive in the Diamond Lane in some states.
"There are always two: the apprentice and the master."
@SpruceStreetPhil: Thanks for following the one true tradition of the ages. Religious bigotry. If it's not your religion, it's bullshit.
Voids your entire argument.
@Trai_Dep: There are definitely more than 2 in the KOTOR games... but, being a Haredi Sith, I will have to recognize this fact and only have two. Would you like to join? Or are you one of those dirty Hasidic Siths?
@SpruceStreetPhil: If there is just 2 of us, which one of us is the Master and the Apprentice? Flip for it?
Oh it's Ireland, I guess we fist fight for it.
Jedi might not be officially recognized in the UK, but would you say a religion with more than half the number of followers of Hinduism shouldn't be official? Or how about 1/4 of the followers of Islam? Because that's how many people identify as Jedi in the UK.
If this were New Zealand, Jedi would beat out both Buddhism and Hinduism for its number of followers!
And no, I'm not playing Devil's Advocate. It pisses me off that just because a religion is new it's assumed fair game for discrimination, despite that in some places it has a bigger following than other major "recognized" worldwide religions.
Well, the Jedi Church makes about as much sense as some other religions.
@shepd: Do you then recognize my religion of Harodotry? I just made it yesterday. Don't ask for an official book yet, I'm still trying to get a publishing deal.
@Trai_Dep: That's easy to fix, the apprentices can also be masters and you just daisy chain them.
Plus the Sith encompasses more than just fallen Jedi, it includes their whole support structure such as Sith troopers, Sith assassins, Sith warriors, etc.
In any case, I wonder how far Tesco will take this, their spokesperson does say in the article:
"If Jedi walk around our stores with their hoods on, they'll miss lots of special offers."
And honestly, I can't really see any real reason to eject someone over that, religion or no religion unless Tesco stores are seeing a wave of crime from people wearing brown hoods in their stores.
@SpruceStreetPhil: Frankly, religions based on movies are no different than those based on books. Dressing in Jedi garb is no different than dressing in Muslim garb.
Plus, to my knowledge, nobody of other religions has any special powers either. What makes older religions more established? The fact that they've had more time to recruit members? How is the idea of "moving things with one's mind" any more or less valid than the idea of walking on water? It's no less ludicrous to be dedicated to a movie over a book.
Don't take this as an "anti-religion" post; it's surely not. I just find the concept of organized religion to be fundamentally flawed. People are arguing the minute details of the same exact point. It's possible to be plenty "spiritual," like myself, without getting caught up in all the hype over which book/movie/general idea is "less right" than the others.
@Trai_Dep: Just as there are a bunch of Protestant traditions, there are a bunch of Sith traditions. Look up "Brotherhood of the Sith" and "One Sith."
Besides, even if there are only two "officially-designated" Sith, that can be a bunch of dark Jedi. Kind of like how there's only one pope and a bunch of priests (Note - I am not comparing the pope to a Sith lord).
IT'S A TRAP! Our revenues cannot withstand a boycott of that magnitude!
@Kogenta: But we have to draw the line somewhere. If I'm part of the The Church of Medieval Armor, does that give me the right to walk around your store wearing a full suit of armor and draggin along a blunt axe? I could easily go on with many more absurd outfits.
@Kogenta: regardless, the guy's a sham. If he was a REAL Jedi, he would have just used his Jedi Mind Tricks to get the store to let him wear his hood.
I say put the burden of proof on him. Let him prove he's a REAL Jedi, and THEN he can complain about discrimination. Just draw some blood for a midichlorian count or something.
@supercereal: Because I don't claim to be Jesus, the one Im guessing you're referring to as "walking on water." They are claiming to be Jedi, one's connected to the force, with powers capable of manipulating things with their mind. I can claim to be a wookie all I want, I can go to a Wookie Church, but when it comes down to it, I am never a wookie. I can claim to follow Jesus or Muhammad all I want, but when I comes down to it, I'm a follower of Jesus or Muhammad and never actually claimed to be them.
@SpruceStreetPhil: The line is drawn at toting objects that are expressly dangerous to others. An axe? Yeah, those are meant for killing and maiming. A hood? Not so much. Believe whatever crazy things you want to believe, as long as there's no potential to hurt people or break any laws. People are certainly free to not take them seriously, though.
@shepd: I'm not making any judgment here about whether or not Jedi should be recognized, nor am I supporting the discrimination of anyone based on any religion. Those would be personal moral choices and not what I am talking about.
All I'm pointing out is that it's not quite the same situation as the Muslim woman in the A&F case because Islam is a recognized religion and thus you cannot legally discriminate against someone based on their being Muslim. Because Jedi has no legal standing as a religion, it is not legally afforded those same protections.
Meh. I need to declare my home a church so I can go tax-free.
Now for a name... Church of The Tiny Dog? Church of the Pergo Floors? Hmmmmm. Church of Tax Exempt Status. I like that one. Simple and to the point.
@SpruceStreetPhil: The teachings of the Jedi were developed a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away... making it older than Islam or any other religion on Earth.
@tonalanswer: and what i mean by that is that the very argument being made can only have a purpose of starting a flamewar. nobody would write that without knowing what would happen.
Scientology is a religion.
Is it a particularly good religion? NO, not in my opionion.
Per "Religion as a Cultural System", 1973 by Clifford Geertz:
"A religion is an organized approach to human spirituality which usually encompasses a set of narratives, symbols, beliefs and practices, often with a supernatural or transcendent quality, that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power, God or gods, or ultimate truth."
The argument whether or not a particular religion is good or bad has no hold here. Even if a religion is "bad", it does not make it any less of a religion.
@SpruceStreetPhil: Actually, if you look at the philosophical side of it, many (if not most) beliefs of the Jedi mirror those of Eastern religions. So, while this bunch may seem on the surface to think it's cool to want to be like those who move things with their minds, could they possibly be drawn because of the core beliefs?
Food for thought, here.
From the article:"Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda and Luke Skywalker all went hoodless without going to the Dark Side."
That spokesman is chocked full of win.
When you follow Jedi and die, where do you go, Skywalker Ranch?