Tomorrow is Star Wars Day. In case you haven’t heard this before, it takes place each year on May 4. Put another way, it is “May the fourth…be with you!” Get it now?

            When the first Star Wars movie came out, many picked up on the phrase ‘May the Force be with you’ as almost a liturgical formulation. I think many Catholics made an easy connection with our “May the Lord be with you.” Admittedly, the phrases do not mean the same thing, but it’s hard not to associate the two.

            The ‘force’ is some collective strength that seems to be out there to be harnessed. (I’m sure that Star Wars aficionados will correct me if I am wrong.) The church phrase, “May the Lord be with you,” is much more personalized. And much more powerful in the sense of asking God to be with and guide someone else. It is a beautiful way to ask blessings upon someone.

            At the same time, I will honor May the Fourth as a fun day and a time to look at the power of goodness in our world. May we emphasize how the force for good can transform our nation and all people.

“And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple—amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.”

Matthew 10:42