The non-religious in the UK hope to pull a Darth Vader and get rid of anyone claiming to be a Jedi.
2011 is a census year for the UK, with the last held way back in 2001. A campaign run by citizens that don’t follow a particular religion is actively going after those that claim to be Jedi for the census, which was actually very common 10 years ago, to hopefully ensure that the results are as accurate as possible.
The government uses census data to determine government policy and funding in various areas, including that of faith-based schools and organizations. The group running the “You’re Not a Jedi” campaign claims that “Jedi” is not an acceptable religion and hopes that people will check “No Religion” in the census instead of saying that they follow the ways of the Force.
“If your religion is of low enough importance to you to that you are willing to put in a religion from 3 good sci-fi films from years ago, and 3 more recent rubbish ones,please consider ticking ‘No Religion’ instead,” the campaign writes. “By ticking ‘No Religion’, you will ensure that the Government receives an unambiguous message about the number of non-religious people in the UK.”
In 2001, nearly 400,000 people wrote “Jedi” as their religion in what was seen as a widespread joke. This led to the founding of the UK’s Church of Jediism which is still an active organization.
The issue is that the UK government could be getting the wrong idea about the amount of people within its borders that are religiously devout, versus those that just like to hold a lightsaber on the weekends. If Jediism has actually become a religion for you, sure, go ahead and write “Jedi” in the census. If not, it might be best to check “No Religion.” The latter is probably the smartest move anyway, just in case a Sith Lord rises to power and decides to eliminate the competition.
Source: You’re Not a Jedi, via Boing Boing
