The Lord be with you

I do not intend to see the new Star Wars movie.
But I saw the first one many years ago. In those days (and often since then), people would use a movie line as a good wish: "May the Force be with you." I have heard it several times in the last week.

I have grown increasingly uncomfortable with the worldview behind that: an impersonal Force, complete with a Dark Side. The Force enables one to perform superhuman exploits, for good or ill - in essence, Magical Thinking, the notion that we can somehow influence Hidden Powers to bend the universe for our personal benefit. But that is ill-tempered on my part. It is just a movie, though its influence on popular culture has been considerable. I have many young friends who love the Star Wars movies and characters, so I will say no more.

Except for this: We have something greater than any Force -- a Person. So when we say something as common as "The Lord be with you" and respond "And with thy spirit," this is not a trivial wish.

The Lord is not going to bend the universe for our personal benefit, and he is not to be manipulated into anything. But he is our Friend, and he will be with you (and me) in life and death. That is good enough for me, and I wish it for you:

The Lord be with you.