I grew up in a depressed little seaside town in NJ. What else was there to do on a Saturday afternoon, when all the cartoons were over and the matinees have begun. Watch a vampire moviefest, full of every element from a child's storybook, only on steroids. The damsel, beautiful and well endowed, the hero, handsome and...well endowed? The villain,well that's the only difference...he just couldn't help how much he wanted the damsel in distress. Today we call that stalking...in books, it's romantic. Weird but true.
Fast forward 20+ years (that's all I'm giving), I'm a respectable member of society, a wife, a mother and Christ follower...and a closet lover of the Twilight series. So, sad...but is it?
Last weekend, while I was getting my hair done (wonderful treat from my too kind hubby) I was re-reading Twilight when I was jostled by a fellow fan, complete with foils and a familiar red hue to her two eyebrows (she'd just gotten them waxed)!
"I KNOW what you're reading!!!" Her excitement contagious, I began foaming my praise out with her, sounding rather like a couple of rapid animals (I refuse to say 'dogs' here).
She went to get a cigarette out of her purse - proof that waxing is not fun- and turned to leave, but I had to say just one more thing about the books...
"It's not a vampire book...it's a love story."
She agreed, and with hand to her chest, eyes moist, she said, "Can you imagine being loved like that!"
That's when it hit me and my words flowed, "Oh, but we are! Christ's love is just like that love...It's complete, eternal and..." I searched for the word and found it, "sacrificial!"
We both got quiet and she left to smoke her cig. I think I may have gotten a little too fanatical for her taste! lol!
Beloved, anything that reminds us of the love and grace of our Lord and Saviour is good for us. That's WHY we can look in the face of sadness and say, "My God who loves me and ever lives to plead for me allowed this thing to happen, nay even fashioned (Ps.139) this day and time for my good and his glory!
"We are pressed, but not crushed, perplexed but don't dispair, we are persectued but not abandoned, we are no longer slaves, we are daughters and sons and when we are weak we are very strong and neither death, nor life, nor present, nor future can seperate us from the Love of Christ and the Word I need is the Word that was, that put on flesh to dwell with us..."
~ lyrics from Sarah Groves' song "The Word" taken right from scripture.
There is not a dividing line between the sacred and the secular-(not an original quote) Even a vamp book.
~Here's something you probably never heard before - when the heroine turns into a vampire...Meyer describes her change in such a way that it resonates with the change I fully expect in my new, glorified body! -minus the thirst for blood- that has been satisfied by Jesus Christ, the lover of my soul.)
(Disclaimer - this series is the only one I've read or intend to read of this genre...Twilight Series was written for teens and though has objectionable elements...is clean.)~ True to word, present day 2011, I've still had no desire to read anything else from this genre...wanted to try Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series at one point because it seemed to have a similar theme...just couldn't do it :\
The post below offers some clarity to one of the comments left on the original blog entry. It's a bit involved, so read it as you have time.
http://mirrorsandwindowsnow.blogspot.com/2009/11/clarification-on-older-post-can.html
5 comments:
I enjoyed your comments on Rachael Gardner's blog concerning American Idol
Hey... I'm not sure that Stephenie Myer would see Twilight in the same "light" that you see it. :)
I have seen Twilight, and first of all, Edward, the vampire in the movie is actually going to hell.
I'm just saying what he repeats in the movie - he doesn't want Bella to be damned.
His glitter, etc. is not actually a reflection of purity or anything else as it is shared by both "good" and "evil" vampires. So then we have to ask ourselves -what is it? What is the symbolism of it?
Twilight is an interesting movie as far as our culture goes - but it is also a very dangerous one.
I speak as a person who has seen it.
The end message of Twilight I feel is that yes, people hate being pulled down toward their base instincts yet at the same time they are.
The end goal for us is not living forever (everyone will) but living in Spirit and in Truth.
I hope that these comments are taken for what they are - a concern for truth, and not a judgment on you. May we all grow closer to the Lord together.
Hi Indie Preacher...I wrote a comment...but it got longer and longer so I made a post out of it in case I need to be clearer to more individuals. Thank you for the prompt!
I read the books from two standpoints: as a professional writer and as a reader seeking "different" entertainment. The key is to read everything with discernment. I was highly interested in seeing how Meyer wove Mormonic beliefs into the storyline--taught me something...
I'm with Alicha--Twilight series is the only vampire story I have ever read. I have never been attracted to that particular genre line.
My nieces and one of my son's have read and liked Twilight. Having read them too, I schooled them on the objectionable things in the series--lying, sneaking in girl's windows, stalking, coveting, etc.
Again, I'm not speaking lightly when I say Meyer taught me something. I just hope I can implement those things in my own writing to kick Christian fiction up a notch.
Thanks for the discussion, Alicha. When we get together I'd like to examine this further!
I read the books from two standpoints: as a professional writer and as a reader seeking "different" entertainment. The key is to read everything with discernment. I was highly interested in seeing how Meyer wove Mormonic beliefs into the storyline--taught me something...
I'm with Alicha--Twilight series is the only vampire story I have ever read. I have never been attracted to that particular genre line.
My nieces and one of my son's have read and liked Twilight. Having read them too, I schooled them on the objectionable things in the series--lying, sneaking in girl's windows, stalking, coveting, etc.
Again, I'm not speaking lightly when I say Meyer taught me something. I just hope I can implement those things in my own writing to kick Christian fiction up a notch.
Thanks for the discussion, Alicha. When we get together I'd like to examine this further!
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