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Sam)(ael
Topic Started: Mar 4 2009, 03:37 AM (640 Views)
Sam)(ael
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Jedi Knight Scholar
Padawan Assignment 9

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Answer the questions at the end of this assignment in your introduction topic.

In this situation a young Qui-Gon Jinn is training as a Padawan to Master Dooku. They are investigating the goings on at a production facility.



“They are using children,” Qui-Gon said, shocked. “Under these conditions! This violates galactic laws.”
“There are many such places, unfortunately,” Dooku said.
“We must do something!” Qui-Gon said, is gaze anguished as it roamed the factory. “They look as though they are ill and starving.”
“Keep your focus on the mission, my young apprentice,” Dooku said sharply. “We cannot save everyone in the galaxy.”

Later Qui-Gon and Dooku confront Lorian, the man who runs the factory.

“A factory that employees children.” Qui-Gon’s voice was flat. His gaze told Lorian that he held him in contempt.
Lorian strolled toward Qui-Gon, his face aloght with curiosity. “So this is your apprentice, Dooku? Qui-Gon Jinn? Yes, I can see you in him. He is as sure of his own rightness as you are. What would you have me do, young Padawan? Fire the child workers? Many of them support families. Parents who are injured or too sick to work, or parents who have abandoned them so they are supporting their brothers and sisters. Would you have them starve?”
“I would find a better way,” Qui-Gon said.

- from "Legacy of the Jedi" by Jude Watson




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1. What do you think of this situation?

Well I agree that Qui-Gon is being a little bit too idealistic. Rushing to solve every problem causes more problems. Still, the children should have a better way to live.


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2. Do you believe it is true that we cannot save everyone in the galaxy? Why or why not?

I do believe we cannot save everyone, but we can save someone. I don't know what the mission was but I would still be tempted to fix the problems I see. It is a delicate balance between being obedient to the order you swore to uphold and being a compassionate human being.


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3. What would you do if you were in Qui-Gon’s position?

I would need more information. I don't know what my mission with dooku is and that might make a difference, but I would probably obey my Master. I have to trust the Jedi.
Perhaps if I felt in the force that I was supposed to do something I would disregard my mission at least for a while, but once again what would I do? I have to have a solution that can take care of those children. I can't just 'free' them to starve to death with their families.
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Kai Stormwalker
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The sad thing about this assignment is that this very thing is currently going on all over the world. Today there are 27 million people who are trapped in slavery. About three years ago a 15-year-old named Zach Hunter started a movement called "Loose Change to Loosen Chains: Students Freeing Modern Day Slaves." Zach was normally a very shy kid, but when he found out about the horrors of modern slavery he became passionate about doing something to stop it. He began travelling around to junior high and high schools talking about the problem and encouraging other teens to take a stand against slavery. He became the student spokesman for The Amazing Change Campaign, which was inspired by the movie Amazing Geace.

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Sam)(ael
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Yes I actually read most of one of his books, it was good.

Slavery and abuse isn't even as far removed as most think. There is still a slave trade in America. An active one. A thriving one. Not only that but a few years ago a 15 year old girl was discovered in my own neighborhood who had been locked in her room for years. They just fed her and ignored her otherwise. We live in a part of town where you have to practically morgage your soul to live and we still don't escape some of the attrocities.

Personally this is one point on which I have no mercy in me. I would employ every means of terror at my disposal on people like this. Something Akin to the fear of the lord.

Even God is feared. I would gladly make myself a nightmare for people like that. If I could shield a few children. I know what it can be like. As for the perpetrators. Their suffering is deserved.

I do have a forgiving side, but these people were not ignorant of what they did. Willing another person to suffer without even the pretense of a reason! Righteous Anger!
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Silmerion Skywalker
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Your answers are good Samael. You are doing awesome!

Master Silmerion
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Sam)(ael
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Assignment 10

Visit another Jedi site and write an article discussing the strengths and weaknesses that you see there. You may join the site and train there if you like. It would probably make it easier for you to write the article.


I choose to do my article on RJK. I think an analysis on such a mainstream site would be beneficial to me.

Leadership
The leadership at RJK consists of a council of twelve members mostly at KNight rank or higher (with a few exceptions at times) who direct the Order by common agreement on what to do. This process can be looked at as voting, but in an enlightened council usually the subject will be discussed to the satisfaction of all members and then action will be taken.
A noteable appendage to the Council would By Master Mi-Zhe Fu who Recently has not had internet access. Because of his long absense his position especially has been questioned and this provides some good insight into it's workings.
Mi-Zhe Fu was the founder of RJK and a long-time proponent of its progress. His own contributions have been significant and the Success of the Order ccan atest that he was mostly correct in aproach at the very least.
His recent absence has called into question his role. Previously he was the leading member of the council and tended to direct it. Now with a council that has spent two or more months running the order with success his necessity has diminished. Whether or not this is a victory for him personally or for the council is subject to opinion.

Secondary Leadership
The further tiers of leadership are rank oriented. Masters, Knights, and High Knights are allowed to teach and provide minor discipline such as pushups and essays. Each Padawan's Master specifically looks out for their Padawan, and students of the remaining descendant ranks are to look after each other and learn.

Strengths:
-The Leadership Responsabilities in RJK are somewhat large and the size of the council allows it to expand it's size with a fully active body.
-This organization of the council is an excellent teaching tool on managing power peacefully.
-The ranks and rank disciplining allow leadership to be exercised from older to younger students without removing the Student's ability to teach their elders in some ways.
-RJK is an enviroment where many people with wide ranges of belief can meet. It is not limited to Christians or even good people though success might be harder if the qualities of a Jedi are lacking. This is directly linked to the leadership's ability to accept new perspective and manage possibly explosive subjects. So far it is imperfect but not a failure.

Weaknesses:
-This System is not and 'Engaged' System of training and community. When the standard is widely open in membership and requirements are knowledge/courtesy based only people can drift.
-A lot of immaturity can be prevelent in an order with a leadership structure like this, especially where trust or power is abused.
-An order with a leadership body such as a council always bears the risk of a split that could destroy the order.
-This order has launched many offshoots and rival orders showing that it has not been able to instill in it's students the need for exceptional skill in creating an order. The students that try this often come back empty handed, but this whole situation should be prevented during the teaching phase.

Membership
The Wide range of beliefs allowed at RJK is a plus for membership. Even a fow 'Sith' have showed up to gain perspective and some even changed their perspective on life. The ability to accept most people has granted size to RJK and it's stability has also made this growth possible.

Strengths:
-Strength in numbers. RJK has a large populus which draws even more members making it a mainstream Jedi Body.

Weaknesses:
-RJK requires fairly little of it's membership and it's principles are not very strict and sometimes not clear as any religion would be. This causes some to leave and others to drift. It also has the potential to lower the quality of the general student body.

Curriculum
The Curriculum at RJK is almost precisely middle-of-the-road common and basic skills and wisdom. This is an incredible plus and has allowed many Great Modern Jedi to get their start and build on the basic principles.
A down side to the Curriculum is that very little emphasis is put on application. It is encouraged, but to gain rank very little is required. With a little memory and a few lies about the Missions a Student willing to invest time can reach Master.
This training has once again given many great Jedi a start and a basic level of credentials, but it is not an engaged science and it pushes little if at all for excellence.


Activity
The Activity at RJK runs in a Cycle. It is usually fairly low however. Discussion is the most active engagement and training would take a second to that. Activities are very far between and not particularly geared toward training. This being said surprising amounts can get done in discussion.

Relations
RJK has very limited relations with other orders. It is Semi-Merged with COJK by members who are strongly active in both and also due to ancestry shared between the Two. It is somewhat linked to TS in the way a Parent looks at a Bastard Child because of the somewhat dramatic events that led to TS.
Overall RJK keeps to itself and does not bother with other orders hardly ever. This inner stability and self reliance helps make RJK a cement object in the grand Scheme of Jedi Orders, but it misses out on advantages it could be having. Even a good order has things to learn from other orders.

Overall
Overall the strengths of RJK make it solid and usually full of members whic can be measured as a form of success. It's somewhat Static Teachings though lacking dynamics also provide some stability and the teachings ARE not of low quality.

Though I consider RJK to be stuck where it is and void of evolution it is not bad at what it does and makes a 'decent living' as far as orders go. If it is willing to remain content there it will do fine in the forseeable future.
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Silmerion Skywalker
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You did very well Samael, your analysis of RJK is detailed and thoughtful.

Master Silmerion
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Sam)(ael
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Padawan Assignment 16

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The Jedi Code and Master Jesus commandment of love

Think about the Jedi Code and Master Jesus commandment of love, are there any similarities? If so, what are they? What can each teach us about being a Jedi? Can we honestly call ourselves Christian Jedi if we ignore either one? What are your thoughts?

Post them in your intro topic.


Jesus taught us in St. John 13: 34-35 to love one another as he has loved us. He further explained that this is how the world will know we are His disciples, if we have love one to another.

I think the Jedi code is a much less pronounced support of this. I think that it lacks the commitment to love like Jesus taught. For that Reason being a Jedi is the lesser way, however it does not hinder you from taking that higher road as a Jedi. It simply does not challenge you to take that road.

In a lot of ways being a Jedi teaches you what not to do, and how to do certain things. Being a Disciple of Jesus Christ teaches us what is most important and why it is so important in adition to detailing things we SHOULD do.

Neither should be ignored and together they overlap like the pieces in Full Plate Mail, forming a very powerful defense and level of ability.
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Sam)(ael
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Padawan Assignment 11

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Respond to this in your introduction topic.

All of the teachings of the Bible point toward the importance of loving relationships. First and most important is our relationship with God. The quality of all of our other relationships will be determined by the quality of our relationship with God.


Sins of the Garden and the Road to Redemption


To begin, we need to accept some basic statements.

1. Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which led to the breakdown of all their relationships. Their relationship with God, with each other, with themselves, and with their environment.

2. God sent the Law as a starting point in resolving these issues. The Law was perfect, but it wasn’t complete.

3. Jesus came saying that he was the fulfillment of the Law. He said that he came not to judge, but to save. He called his followers to do the same things he did.

4. Paul said that followers of Jesus were no longer bound by the Law.

So, what does all this mean?

1. Sin enters the Garden

The first sin Adam and Eve committed was disobeying God. But what was it about the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that really caused their downfall? Satan told them that eating it would make them like God. In a way this was true, but like everything that Satan has a hand in, it was twisted. Eating the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil gave them the ability to judge. But it did not give them the ability to judge righteously as God does, but self-righteously. This becomes apparent immediately as it says, “and their eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked” (Genesis 3:7). God created them naked, so it wasn’t an issue for him. So, they immediately began to distort things according to their own human nature, and turned their judgment against themselves.

Then when God came looking for them in the garden what did Adam say? “I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself” (Genesis 3:10). Here we see how their relationship with God became distorted because they were able to understand that they deserved to be judged by God for disobeying him, and they alienated themselves from him by hiding.

When God asked Adam if he had eaten from the tree he had been commanded not to eat from, Adam replied, “The woman, whom you gave to me, she gave me the fruit from the tree…” (Genesis 3:12). Here Adam tries to shift blame for what he did so that judgment might be placed on another.

To which the woman responded, “The serpent tricked me…” (Genesis 3:13). So she also tried to shift blame, creating a cycle that we are still caught up in, and which effects all of our relationships.

And finally, God said to Adam, “…cursed is the ground because of you…” (Genesis 3:17), which created a rift between man and his environment.

2. The Law

The Law was based on the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments were all about re-establishing relationships.

1. You shall worship no other God but me.
2. You shall not make for yourself an idol.
3. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord.
4. You shall remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.

The first four are about re-establishing a relationship with God. The fifth is about right family relationships. The rest are about our relationships with everyone else.

However, since man was still intrinsically judgmental, it was very difficult for him to live according to the Law.

3. Jesus

Jesus said that he came to fulfill the Law. What did he have to say about judging others?

“You judge by human standards; I judge no one. Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is valid; for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me” (John 8:15).

“I do not judge anyone who hears my words and does not keep them, for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world” (John 12:47).

“There you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.” Romans 2:1

What did Jesus say about how we, as his followers are to treat others?

“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you” (Luke 6:36-38).

“Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).

“Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).

4. No Longer Bound by the Law

Paul said that followers of Jesus were no longer bound by the Law. What does this mean?

“Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith” (Galatians 3:23-26).

“For you are called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another” (Galatians 5:13).

“But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning, you as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:18-21).

Therefore, those who are led by the Spirit are given the freedom to make compassionate choices.


To start off, this is excellently done. I may sin a little on the side of envy, but all in good nature Master Kai. I have one issue I may disagree on or at least misunderstood what was said. I do not believe that there should be no judgement of others. Remember that we are not supposed to be fools. Our judgements should be righteous though and our forgivness perpetual. A good example would be not to fall for the same trick several times, but, if moved by the spirit to always be willing to try again and take that chance.
There are people in my church that abuse God's forgiveness a lot because it is always there. They will do something so bad that the Church must expel them and they will return, do the things necessary to be re-accepted and re-baptized and then quickly start the process over with another of these very evil crimes (to be excommunicated you usually have to do something like beat your wife, or something worse like adultery or a crime against the nation's laws such as murder or grand theft.)
Now I look at what happens and I realize that God is offering many chances to even these people to turn away from their evil and partake of his salvation, and we as his people are simply extending our arms to these people like he is. That being said we don't walk into scams like children, we walk into situation where people might need to be forgiven like Disciples of the God, who's forgiveness we have already recieved. After all, are we not all beggars? Do we not all rely on God for all we have? Even the air we breath and each ounce of the forgiveness we cannot do without?

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1. What are some ways that the 'sins of the garden' effect our lives today?


We see them repeated daily. After all, it seems ever since we got our ability to judge that the carnal nature of man has shown that it is not at all inclined to judge righteously.

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2. The Law was meant to show us how we are falling short as we live our lives. If you had to use one word to describe how we should be living, what would it be?


Lovingly.

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3. How do you think Jesus was the fulfillment of the Law?


Remember that the Law of Moses was a children's set of rules given to the wiley children of israel because of their childishness. In this law were many symbols or types that fortold of Jesus. The sacrifice of the firstling of your flocks, a lamb with no deformities was a symbol of the Sacrifice Jesus would make which would free us from our sins if we would repent and have faith.
Jesus was the one man who never committed a sin while here on earth. Only he could pay the price of our sins which he willingly did in the Garden of gethsemany. Once he had atoned for our sins, our debts of sin became his. Now in this way Justice (which cannot be robbed) was payed in full and Jesus could show us mercy if only we would accept his forgiveness by repenting and having faith in him.

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4. Choose one of the following situations and write briefly about how you might make a 'compassionate choice' regarding it.


These are all so Good I will do them all.

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A. You know an unmarried young woman finds herself pregnant and unable to afford to take care of a child. She decides to get an abortion.


There are plenty of adoption agencies which allow for a parent to directly take the child from birth. There are plenty of couples who can't have kids who would love to raise these babies. Besides in all adoption cases babies are much more highly sought after. This wouldn't be like abandoning the child. It would be the responsible and compassionate thing to do and Abortion is murder.
Usually when you get pregnant it is the consequence of your irresponsible actions. Even if you are not going to be a good mother you should not be justified in avoiding the consequences because you did bring them on yourself.
That being said, in matters of Rape I do not have a diffinitive answer.

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B. You know two men who have been living in a committed relationship for many years. One of the men is critically injured in an accident, but the other isn't allowed to visit him in the hospital because only family are allowed.


I believe Homosexuality is an abomination. I love the people, but the sin in not acceptable regardless of how ice or dedicated a person is. Of course I would try to make it possible for them to see each other but that decision would not be influenced by their homosexuality.

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C. A woman who lives next door to your church but has never attended a service, shows up asking for grocery money. You can see a television satellite dish on the side of her house.


Bad things happen to all kinds of people. I would give money at least the first time and if it became repeated I would start to ask about things like that. I know giving money to the poor is essential, but there are people who just leech everything out of the people around them. I think my responsability is more toward the poor who can't fix their current problems, or are having an especially hard time coping with them. Not people willingly violating the sacred nature of compassion by living off of other's good will when they could help themselves.
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Sam)(ael
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I have also finnished the Scripture memorization block for Padawan Level. I believe that was assignment 8.
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Sam)(ael
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Padawan Assignment 12

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Truth vs. Reality

It is necessary to abandon one's "preconceived impressions of the way things are." There is often a great gulf between what we want to believe and what is "real."

The "desires" to be given up, then, are not so much the desires for material belongings and power, although these are also important things to look at in yourself, but the desires to see reality as we want to see it, rather than as it is. These are the desires that "cloud the mind" and make us lose touch with the world. These are our self-deceptions. And these are "luxuries" a Jedi cannot afford.

When I say we desire that something be a certain way, I do not necessarily mean that we want it to be that way. We want to think it is that way. If you think of a certain man as your enemy, then anything he says or does will be examined and found to be an insult or a threat. The identical words or actions on the part of a beloved friend would carry far different meanings. There is a saying: "Suspicious eyes see only evil.' Those not guided by the Force will see only what they desire to see." We human beings choose to see things as we wish. Few people seem to believe this, though. We decide to be jealous, or angry, or depressed, or happy, or bored, and these choices are often based on our biased interpretations of the thoughts of others. It is amazing how much psychological control many people relinquish to others. If we think someone else disapproves of us, we are worried. If we think that someone is pleased with us, we are happy. If we think that someone holds views contrary to our own, we are insulted. If we think that someone is contemptuous of us, we are angry. With all these others determining how we feel, it is sometimes difficult to find the actual self.

These are the desires of which I speak, these mental barriers that prevent us from accepting fully all that life has to offer. If a man wastes his time in emotional indulgence, he will be forever preoccupied and will miss much the Force would give him. "There is no Emotion; there is peace." We aren't talking about getting rid of emotions themselves. We are talking about getting rid of inappropriate and useless emotional responses.



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1. What do you think it means to abandon one's "preconceived impressions of the way things are"?


Its pretty simple. Think about how people behave in the dark. Most people are at least edgy if not afraid. Why? Not because the danger suddenly became imminent or because the darkness itself is evil. The real fear is inside. Darkness suddenly and glaringly makes us face ourselves and most people still fear themselves.

With preconceptions we are talking about the same thing but reversed towards the positive aspects. We are creatures who need control to feel safe, but are doomed never to truely be in control, and blessed by the fact that lucky for us, diversity and change actually help us grow.

Our natural impulse is to try to control, and in order for control we must have some norm, a social norm or a personal routine. When we set ideas like this and call them normal we are also saying that everything else is NOT normal but is an aberation. This is untrue. In fact, the way things are is how they are. This is why yoda say "there is no why, clear your mind".

Questioning reality is a sterile activity. Any norms we develop for ourselves are simply limitations. A Jedi must accept a situation for what it is, his or her desire in looking should only be to see clearly, not see what they want.

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2. Do you think it is possible to do this? If so, how?


Realizing that honesty with yourself is much more beneficial than selective blindness will go far in helping you to develop this health desire.
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Sam)(ael
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I am not sure if I already posted this but I am implementing The 17th Assignment in my life and I believe I have filled that requirement.
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Silmerion Skywalker
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You are doing a very good work, Samael.

Master Silmerion
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Sam)(ael
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Thank you Master Silmerion. I am doing as much as possible. I love being able to use the scriptures to compliment the point I am making. It feels like I have been living with an arm tied behind my back.
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Sam)(ael
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What do you suggest I do while I wait for Padawan Assignments 13-15 to be repaired?
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Kai Stormwalker
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It will be a while before those assignments are finished. I think you can be allowed to take the Knight Trials. However, since they are personalized for each individual it will take us a few days to get them ready. They will be PMed to you when they are ready sometime next week.
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