The (hopefully) Exhaustive Reference for Robes, Lightsabers, and Other Such "Symbols."

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11 years 2 days ago - 11 years 2 days ago #99953 by steamboat28
I'm relatively new here. Not super-duper, new-car-smell new, but y'know, pretty close. And in the short time that I've been active here, I've noticed a few things that come up routinely, especially where newcomers are concerned. With the recent influx of new folks (hi, everyone! glad you made it!), I thought that a thread like this could save folks from having a lot of different threads on the topic while still providing all the information those threads hold.

Is there a physical Temple?
No, there is not. While there may be groups of TotJO members that meet in person, to my knowledge there is not currently any officially designated, brick-and-mortar Temple for the Order. Honestly, even if there were, I'm not sure how much it would change. The community at TotJO is global, and a single, official Temple (which would have to be the very first step in something like that) would take an awful lot of money, not to mention be geographically distant from many Jedi, no matter where it's built. It would be a great location for an annual convention, or random pilgrimages, but even if a brick-and-mortar Temple were financially in the cards, there are a great many other things on the to-do list that rank a bit higher.

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Are we required/can we wear/should we have robes/lightsabers/braids?

There is no official TotJO dress code. That's partly because we're here on a website, and people hate having to change out of their pj's to chat. It's also partly because these kinds of material symbols are far less important to the Jedi path as studied at TotJO than in many other places. What's important about a Jedi is that they act like a Jedi: that they are compassionate, thoughtful, and ever-seeking their own path and balance. A Jedi's path is about seeking unity with the Force, not showing off their status.

Another commonly cited reason that there isn't an official TotJO sanction on these items is that they may be mistaken for an act of make-believe or roleplay, or used in ways that may bring shame on the image of this Order, whether or not it is deserved. Many people outside of TotJO believe that role-players, Jedi cosplayers, and the like are an accurate representation of the Jedi path (though more than a few of them truly are), and tend not to take them seriously. In other cases, other Jedi-related groups have had problems caused by folks who thought that the wearing of a robe, a hood, or a lightsaber as part of their "faith" allowed them to bypass laws put in place for public safety, as well as common courtesy.

That's not to say you can't wear or have these things. It just means that they are not required, and should you choose to wear them in public as a visible member of TotJO, the members of the order would request that you do you utmost to bring respect to the Order through your actions.

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Last edit: 11 years 2 days ago by steamboat28.
The following user(s) said Thank You: Jestor, rugadd

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11 years 1 day ago #100277 by steamboat28
In retrospect, given this post's intended purpose, perhaps I should've put it in the "New Member Help" category. lol

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