On the shores of the lava river on Mustafar, the last, best hope of the Jedi lay burning. His hatred and anger had consumed him, transforming him into a broken man whose scarred visage would be forever hidden under a black mask. As Anakin Skywalker burned, the old Jedi Order became ashes on a black beach. Obi-Wan and Yoda, haunted by their failure, now turned their attention to survival, hoping against hope that someday the Order could be rebuilt around the offspring of the Chosen One. Where did they fail him? How could they be so blind to the rise of the Sith?

I think that many Jedi simply chose not to continue learning about the different currents of the Force. Now, this is not an argument that they should have studied the dark side, but instead that they should have studied every aspect of the light. Qui-Gon Jinn understood this. As a disciple of the Living Force, he attuned himself to what was going on around him. I believe that this gave him a unique compassion and empathy for the beings of the galaxy. Despite Jar Jar's shortcomings, Qui-Gon recognized that Jar Jar, in and of himself, held great worth, and may be of use later on. Qui-Gon's treatment of Shmi and Anakin indicates the great worth he saw in them, despite their life as slaves. It is Qui-Gon who began to come up with a plan to not only free Anakin, but also get the parts desperately needed to repair the ship. It is Qui-Gon who understood instantly that the Sith had returned, despite what some on the Council thought.

Yet, for all his compassion and wisdom, the Jedi did not see eye to eye with Qui-Gon. He defied the Jedi Council repeatedly, choosing to do what he felt was right, not caring that he was losing a seat on the Jedi Council. In his hard life, that didn't end the way he wanted it to, Qui-Gon Jinn laid the foundation for the redemption of the Jedi Order. While he respected the Council, Qui-Gon took his marching orders from the Force itself. While some say that Qui-Gon's stubborn championing of Anakin contributed to the fall of the order, the alternative is a nightmare. If Qui-Gon didn't find Anakin, the Sith would have. You can't return to the light if you never knew it in the first place. If the Force and the Council were in disagreement, Qui-Gon sided with the Force. Attuned to the will of the Force, his compassion and empathy for those around him lead Qui-Gon to the greatest discovery of all, the true nature of life and the Force.

For millennia, the Jedi believed that upon death, you ceased to be as your identity was subsumed in the Force. The Sith believed essentially the same thing, so they sought to stop death, thus enabling them to keep their power. This erroneous belief would lead to the destruction of the old Jedi Order. Lacking a proper understanding of life after death, the Jedi were unable to teach Anakin the truth that even though Shmi was gone, she was still with him. Because they did not know the truth, they could help him understand that Padme too was a luminous being. And so, Anakin turned to the dark side, finding only pain, misery, and loneliness. His mistake lay not in wanting to save his wife, but in betraying everything right in his efforts to do so.

Qui-Gon, on the other hand, learned the secret of eternal life. He learned that through compassion to others and a life built on service, that you could retain your idenity within the Force. I do not think this ability is exclusively reserved for Jedi, but for anyone who wishes to live a life of service to others. And in the true spirit of the Jedi, Qui-Gon reached out to Yoda and Obi-Wan to teach them the true nature of the Force. On this foundation of love, compassion, and a life to come, the new order was built.

Having unlearned what they had learned, Obi-Wan and Yoda set about to find redemption in their failure. While instructing him in the ways, Obi-Wan also made sure to teach Luke that he would never be alone. Yoda taught Luke that he could see old friends long gone. And this time, instead of telling Luke to deny his emotions, Obi-Wan counseled him that while they "do you credit, they could be made to serve the Emperor as well." Like his father before him, Luke rushed off to save his friends. But, unlike his father, he minded what he had learned. He understood that death was the beginning of a new adventure, and that there were things worse than death. So, Luke chose to face death instead of kill his father. In the tradition of Qui-Gon Jinn and Padme for that matter, Luke showed mercy and compassion to a monster who may not have deserved, but certainly needed love. In so doing, Luke gave his father one last chance to be a Jedi, to show love and compassion, and give service to someone else in need of help.

And so the son, reaches his hand out towards his father, helping him rise from the ashes of Mustafar, and in so doing brings about the peace his mother long desired, the redemption of a man, and the rebirth of the Jedi.