Faith & Fangs, Part II

It has been a long time since I have written a "book report," and I feel my "reporting" approach for the blog is less academic and more practical.... Touched by a Vampire: Discovering the Hidden Messages in the Twilight Saga feels a bit like the "Cliffs Notes" version of the Twilight Saga (I am showing my age, because these days the resource to use is "Spark Notes."). If I were more serious about this venture, I would have read the series and compared my thoughts with those of Beth Felker Jones, but that goes beyond my purpose. My motivation for participating in this "Blog Tour" was to think a bit more about how this immensely popular series impacts adolescent girls, and to possibly promote a resource for mothers of teen girls, youth workers, teachers, etc. For the later purpose, I highly recommend Touched by a Vampire.

I am a fan of modeling life lessons through the realities of life, when possible. If I had a daughter, then I would probably read the series alongside her and discuss the themes that Felker Jones presents. I think this resource would be useful for a youth group or book club to consider, as well. Felker Jones writes, "I hope you'll use this book for personal reflection. Maybe you have a group of Christian friends who can help you reflect on the powerful themes we're going to discuss" (p. 11). To highlight the themes, note the following chapter titles:

• Forbidden Fruit: The Allure of Dangerous Romance
• Dazzled: How Love Works in the Twilight Saga
• Body and Blood: Twilight's Take on Abstinence and Sex
• The Superhero and the Girl Next Door: Gender Roles in Twilight
• Baseball and Loyalty: Twilight and the Ideal Family
• For Eternity: The Good, the Bad, the Reality of Marriage in Twilight
• Monster Spawn or Precious Child? Children in the Twilight Saga
• Inhuman Strength: Twilight and the Good Life
• My True Place in this World: Bella's Search for Purpose
• Passion for God: The Power of Desire in Twilight and in Real Life

When I was young, I read many teen romance novels - Christian and otherwise. I was also extremely interested in dating. Looking back, I know the books awakened within me expectations and desires in dating and marriage that were impossible to fulfill. As a result, my heart was broken several times throughout junior high, high school, college, and into young adulthood. To me, such heartbreak is unnecessary, and I regret focusing on the need to be in a relationship during those years. From Felker Jones' perspective, the Twilight saga is like the novels I read, and then some.

I believe the foundational issue is discernment in guiding young girls to build dreams upon God's best plan, rather than on man's interpretation of His plan. In Twilight, Bella's desire for Edward overtakes her identity, her dreams, and her entire life. She goes against her parents' guidance, and Edward's hesitations, to focus only on her own desires. This is a horrible example for girls to be obsessed with in our culture. The relationship is dangerous, intense, and all-consuming. These factors alone provide me with some serious red lights.

I had heard, and Felker Jones notes, the "save yourself for marriage" theme that the book touts. As I read the synopsis of the saga, it appears that the boundaries represented in Twilight are similar to the boundaries represented in "everything but intercourse is acceptable before marriage." Legalism in daily living equals drawing imaginary lines that can not be crossed. Righteousness is seeking God's best in the dailiness of life to please Him believing that He knows us better than we know ourselves, and that we can trust Him to establish our boundaries. For example, I had a boundary that knew not to cross during my dating years. I did not cross that boundary, but I sure hit it at times. My primary motivation was to stay on the right side of the line, rather than to glorify God via my relationships. Looking back, the source of my pain during break-ups was the bonds I had created in giving away my heart too quickly. Had I focused on glorifying God, I believe those relationships would have started and ended differently.

Another theme represented in Twilight, that I believe is dangerous for girls in real life, is the idea that another person can complete us (Felker Jones, p. 31). When we enter into any relationship or position with the hope that it will make us full or complete, then we will be disappointed at best, and devastated at worst, every time. Aspects of life bring aspects of fulfillment, but apart from God, no person, position or activity will ever completely fill us. As adults, we need to highlight God as the source of fulfillment as often as possible among children and teens. We must give them life examples to show this Truth.

Young girls and adolescent girls need role models of healthy, loving relationships. Twilight does not offer such a model. In fact, according the Felker Jones, Bella and Edward's relationship models numerous signs of an abusive relationship - controlling behaviors, manipulative behaviors, isolation, possessiveness, and threats of suicide (p. 38). I have a problem with popular books that idolize such a poor representation of true love, but we can utilize the books to highlight the definition of poor relationships. As such, I would not want my daughter to wallpaper her room with pictures of Edward and Jacob, and I would be very cautious in viewing the movies, but I would not ban her from reading and critically thinking about the plot.

As you can see, I have only addressed a small portion of the themes that Felker Jones provides in Touched by a Vampire. The book offers discussion questions at the end of each chapter providing tools to facilitate a discussion. As I previously stated, I am not in favor of avoiding the Twilight saga. In fact, I believe the series provides a unique opportunity for parents, youth leaders, and teachers to address important cultural issues in opposition to God's plan. If you are in the position to interact with young girls and adolescents, I recommend that you read Felker Jones' Touched by a Vampire: Discovering the Hidden Messages in the Twilight Saga, and utilize its popularity to draw these minds into critical thinking and meaningful discussions.

If you are interested in the reading Touched by a Vampire, then I would love to send you a complimentary copy of the book. I have one copy to give away! Please either leave a comment or privately contact me and I will choose someone to receive it.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.