Why a Christian “Twilight” Doesn’t Work
Author: DavidJones // Category: Books, Ethics, Pop Culture, Youth Culture
If you listened to our most recent Brink Podcast , you heard us discuss a new genre that is developing in Christian publishing. It’s actually being called “Christian Vampire Fiction.” If you listened you also heard some strong opinions come out and heard things get a little bit fiery. If you haven’t listened, I encourage you to do so. You can visit www.thebrinkonline.com/podcast or find us on iTunes.
I’d like to add a few more comments and maybe clarify a few things with this post.
First of all, I understand that the vampires in Twilight are not the typical vampires we’ve seen in literature. They have morals, practice abstinence (even if it’s not for the right reasons), and are like “normal” people. But here’s my problem: Vampires have long been considered mythological creatures that represent some type of cultist activity. And as we know, they survive by feeding off the blood of living creatures. So how does that line up with Christian value and virtue? It doesn’t.
Regardless if the vampires are moral human beings or not, when we start mixing elements of mysticism in with Christianity, we’ve created a syncretic approach. Essentially, we are blending 2 systems of belief that do not need to be blended.
So let’s look at this even deeper. What happens when a Christian parent tells his or her teen she can’t read Twilight but she can read the Christian alternative? Essentially that parent is saying “Since this is Christian, it’s okay.” In reality, the parent is telling that teen “If it’s labeled Christian, it’s acceptable.” And the truth of the matter is, something labeled “Christian” could be far misleading than the original brand.
The danger of labeling something as “Christian” is that many people in our world aren’t able to discern things from a biblical worldview. They see the Christian label and accept everything at face value, never once thinking to question what the author might be saying. This has led to a lot of “Christian stuff” that is garbage. From Christian music to Christian publishing, there is a lot of stuff out there that has the “Christian” label but is far from biblical.
Christian Vampire Fiction exemplifies that. Mixing Christianity and mysticism is not acceptable. Parents may think this is harmless, but it’s a gateway to other things.
Look at books like The Secret or The Shack. These books have ideas that actually go against the words of Scripture. However, people in our society read the words of these books as Scripture, accepting everything as truth, simply because it’s labeled “Christian.”
To be honest, if I had a teen who was wanting to read Twilight, I would probably prefer my teen to read Twilight instead of the Christian alternative. Here’s why: I could use Twilight as a teaching tool. We could read the book together and discuss the truth in the book, and also where the book falls short. However, things become much more complicated with a “Christian” version. Not only is the quality of the writing typical poorer, but you also have a “Christian” version that is not quite Christian at all.
We have to be very careful and discerning. “Christian” does not mean God-honoring or even biblical. In fact, it even seems like some “Christian” things are more a mix of religions than anything. And the truth is, we cannot mix religions and worship God.
It starts small, even with a simple book. We HAVE to compare what we do and what we read to the Word of God. We must give it a test and see if it holds up when we look at things through a biblical lens. Even if it’s labeled “Christian,” if it does not fall in line with a biblical worldview, it’s not very “Christian” at all.
If you have a comment or a disagreement or agreement, I ask that you tune into our podcast at www.thebrinkonline.com/podcast first and hear our full argument.
Tags: Christian Vampire fiction, The Secret, The Shack, Twilight
February 10th, 2010 at 10:36 am
I understand your concern with mixing Christianity with Mysticism and I do agree that there is a danger there. Believe me when I say I am not an advocate for the Twilight books. I do however wonder how you deal with the Chronicles of Narnia, in which C.S. Lewis melds Christian principles with Mysticism, such as Elves, Witches, Centaurs, etc. Let me reiterate, I don’t advocate for the Twilight books, I just believe there may be a flaw in your argument.
February 10th, 2010 at 11:07 am
Hey Chris,
I hope you don’t mind me responding to your question, although directed at David. And if you do mind, stop reading now! Just kidding.
Your comment is exactly why discernment is so important Chris! I have two thoughts.
(1) I haven’t read any of the books you referred to, nor have I read Twilight. However, I would think the difference comes when you consider the intent of the author and the role each character plays. Does Lewis ever portray it being OK for the mystical characters to “win”? Does he say the mystical characters represent something else? Do the “Christian” Twilight books ever say you can be a Christian and still be a vampire? There’s a big difference between how readers should view those characters.
(2) It’s people who pervert things. There is nothing inherently sinful with hundreds of pieces of paper with ink on them bound together. It’s not a sin to read Twilight. It’s not a sin to read a Christian Twilight. It’s sinful to pervert the truth God shows in His Word.
That’s why biblical discernment is the key.
God bless!
February 10th, 2010 at 11:25 am
Chris, that’s a great thought and great piece of discussion. Here are my thoughts on the matter:
There is a major difference between fantasy and mysticism. I’d even say there’s a major difference between science fiction and mysticism. C.S. Lewis wrote fantasy. And while you mentioned that Lewis used mysticism in his writings, I would partially disagree. Lewis used elements of mythology in his writings, such as centaurs, dwarfs, elves, etc, but I don’t believe a mystic mindset was promoted in his books.
I’ll use “Avatar” as an example. Do I have a problem with a movie about fictional blue people on another planet? Not at all. That’s fantasy/fiction. My problem with the movie came when they started worshiping the earth and promoted pantheism. That crossed the line from fantasy story to a cult-like mysticism.
Springing off what Jacob mentioned, “Twilight” uses a vampire as the “hero.” When you’re dealing with dark material, should the protagonist really be a mystic creature that traditionally goes against the Word of God? While evil is present in the Narnia series, it is never presented as “desirable” or even “victorious.” Sure, there are elements that show the temptation of sin as desirable, but overall, the battle of good vs evil falls in line with Scripture in the writing of Lewis.
Finally, not to dumb down the conversation, but C.S. Lewis used talking animals and other elements of fantasy that are too far-fetched to be believed. It’s very clear the book is fantasy; no doubt about it. It’s an allegory of Christian truth. However, Meyer wrote “Twilight” with a realistic modern-day feel to it. It’s very difficult to differentiate between what is real and what is not, especially for love-driven/seeking adolescent teenage girls.
February 10th, 2010 at 12:04 pm
I appreciate both of your insights on this and I think it benefits the conversation extensively taking this all into account. It may have been more beneficial to include this in the original thought.
To Jacob – I agree. I think discernment is absolutely key. That is why so many young Christians are detoured so easily, because of their lack of discernment with sources outside of the Bible and Church. Not to incriminate myself and sound like a nerd for knowing a lot about the Chronicles of Narnia, but many of the mystical creatures do “win” in the end. Centaurs, who are directly linked in greek mythology to astrology and such. They are depicted on the “winning” side. I do wholeheartedly agree with you on that matter of intent though. Unlike Lewis, there are many Christian authors that have no intention on spreading solid Christian truth, but rather their own disheveled theology. I think that is where the true dichotomy appears.
To David – I understand where you’re coming from, but I’m not sure if your argument is clear enough. When mysticism is included in a “fantasy” piece of literature it is hard to interpret the author’s intent. Are they using it to promote an allegory or are they pushing a agenda with mysticism? As for your last part of your argument, I once understand what you are trying to say, yet I am forced to disagree. Scripture speaks of Balaam’s donkey talking, so if anything a person who drinks blood, turns into a bat, and gets destroyed in daylight would be the stretch of the imagination.
It obviously comes down to this in all things: As Christians we are called to proclaim the Word of the Lord in all things that we do. This includes all mediums. As you’ve stated it is the intent of the author that makes the difference. I can’t force myself to believe that using a “mystical” creature makes it inherently evil, but rather false doctrine and perverted theology.
February 10th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
Great stuff Chris.
Maybe I’m completely off here, but I believe C.S. Lewis used mythology in his writings, while Meyer (and others) promoted mysticism in her writings. I could be completely wrong, but I think in this matter there is a difference between the use of mythological creatures, and heroism wrapped in mysticism . But like you mentioned, intent makes a difference. And I think it is very obvious there is a difference in intent with Lewis and Meyer.
A person drinking blood, turning into a bat, and being destroyed in daylight is a stretch of the imagination, but that’s also not the main focus behind Twilight. For an adolescent teen, the focus is on romance, love, and all that other Lifetime movie stuff. This is once again where discernment is so important, because sadly so many teens today can fully accept and empathize with a girl falling in love with a vampire (or at least they think they can), and completely ignore the whole craziness of the fact that the guy IS a vampire. Without true biblical discernment, we pick and choose what we want to accept and throw out what we don’t. Consistency doesn’t have to exist.
February 10th, 2010 at 1:12 pm
I’m not sure if it would be easy to delineate between promotion of mysticism and the use of mythological creatures as key figures to a story.
I think we can all agree that the real solution in all of this comes from teaching true doctrine and theology no matter what medium we are using. Whether we use mythological creatures or not is absolutely secondary, the importance lies in a clear presentation of God’s Truth, not our own interpretation. It lies within the author, the painter, the speaker or the musician, to relay the message of God in a way that doesn’t pervert His Word.
February 10th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
Found this quote by C.S. Lewis on http://lylemook.wordpress.com/2008/06/11/cs-lewis-on-mystical-experience/. Thought it was very interesting:
The value of a mystical voyage depends “not at all on its being mystical—that is, on its being a departure, but on the motives, skill, and constancy of the voyager, and on the grace of God.” In the Christian tradition, says Lewis, we give ear to the mystical insights of others because they are saintly; we do not consider them saintly because they report mystical experiences. As Lewis concludes, “The true religion gives value to its own mysticism; mysticism does not validate the religion in which it happens to occur.”