 By Diane Singer|Published Date: November 02, 2009
“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”
2 Corinthians 10:4-5
A fair question
“What’s up with all the vampire books?”
A Facebook friend recently posed this question, and I must admit that I’ve been wondering the same thing. Unless you’ve been living at the North Pole, you can’t help but notice the rash of vampire novels, television shows, and movies currently consuming popular culture – an obsession likely to become more frenzied when New Moon hits theaters on November 20th.
Walk into any bookstore and you will have to navigate around shelves and tables filled with books, bookmarks, book bags, calendars, diaries, key chains, and DVDs about vampires and other supernatural humans – aimed at every reader over the age of eight, and reflecting a wide variety of genres: romance, science fiction, fantasy, westerns, detective, historical, even – shudder – classical texts which have been given a supernatural twist, such as Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. One website which catalogues vampire novels lists over 1000 titles currently on the market, with more being published every month. Even Lifeway is getting in on the act by selling Christian vampire novels (the mind boggles).
Since first reading Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire more than 30 years ago, I’ve read around three dozen other vampire books by such authors as Stephenie Meyers, Nora Roberts, and Charlaine Harris (her Sookie Stackhouse novels are the basis for the HBO series True Blood). I’m certainly no expert – nor do I aspire to be. To become an expert, I would have to wade through hundreds of such books – a thought which gives me chills (and not the good kind). On the positive side, many of these books are well-written, suspenseful, entertaining, and filled with snappy dialogue and appealing characters whom readers come to care about. The negative? They’re still about creepy, undead creatures of the night – some of whom are up to some pretty nasty business.
Nevertheless, when a Christian wonders “What’s up with all the vampire books?,” I view it as a fair question – not only because the answer may influence our own reading choices, but because we’re not going to be able to escape conversations about the latest vampire movie or bestselling novel, whether it’s around the water cooler or sitting in a PTA meeting. If we’re going to take “every thought captive for Christ,” then we’re going to have to do so in the midst of conversations about cultural artifacts that seem far removed from our faith.
Certainly, if you are a Christian parent who keeps watch on your children’s reading habits (and you should), you’ll be confronted with the issue when your teens and pre-teens want to read the latest tome by Ellen Schreiber or L. J. Smith. [1]
Nevertheless, I’m in a quandary: after wading through this muck, I can’t in good conscience recommend reading vampire books; yet I believe Christians can’t afford to ignore them given their ubiquitous nature. Like it or not, the stories are out there, and millions of people – Christians and non-Christians – are reading them. While it would be easy to dismiss them as “evil” and leave it at that, the real challenge is to understand the current fascination with vampires and see if we can use anything in them to point people to God.
Guidelines for reading
So, with this in mind, here’s a quick guide to some common themes in vampire literature – from the best to the worst – which may explain their appeal and give us a spiritual starting point in our conversations: [2]
- The desire for immortality: Vampires are virtually immortal. They can be killed, of course, but they may live for centuries, even millennia. As such, they appeal to our desire for everlasting life, a desire that in itself is not wrong. In Ecclesiastes 3:11, Solomon affirms that God puts eternity in our hearts. The problem is that vampires obtain their immortal status by becoming monsters who murder people in order to survive. To get around this moral dilemma, contemporary writers create protagonists who choose to forgo feeding on humans and sustain themselves with animal or synthetic blood. While in the average vamp book, the quest for immortality has nothing to do with God or Christ, the longing for it is something we can use when we’re discussing the books with others.
- The desire to see good triumph over evil: Vampire books draw upon a literary standby, the conflict between good and evil. The villains are vampires and other supernatural creatures who view humans as a food source and who delight in terrorizing their victims before brutally ending their lives. Protagonists, on the other hand, are those who choose not to be monsters: most were created against their will and are tormented by their damned status. Ironically, while they are considered inherently evil, they do have free will: they can reject their evil impulses and do what is right. For instance, a typical plot involves good vamps successfully protecting mortals from bad vamps: a familiar plot twist where the bad boy turns into a hero by using his strength to care for the weak. This moral necessity to choose the good is laid upon us as well: even though we’re Christians, we’re still inclined to sin (Romans 7:16-25). Thankfully, God not only gives us standards to live by, He also empowers us to make the right choices.
Interestingly, in doing the right thing, vampire heroes often hope to find some measure of redemption. In one sense, they too are seeking to know what they must do to be saved (Acts 16:30). However, in most versions, if it’s mentioned at all, Christian redemption is denied these creatures: they are either eternally damned or they must somehow become human before they can be saved. (I’m not sure how the vampire books aimed at Christian readers handle this element, but I plan to read at least one to find out.)
- The need for love and community: Vampires by virtue of lifestyle and longevity live lonely, isolated existences. They outlive the humans they love, so it’s hard to form meaningful attachments; and they must live in the shadows to keep their true nature a secret. Plot lines commonly revolve around the lone vampire finding a lover, a friend, a family, or a community in which to live. It reinforces the biblical idea that it’s “not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18), and speaks to our own longing for lasting, meaningful, and satisfying relationships where we are fully known and fully loved by others.
The problem, however, is that the path to love and marriage is usually paved with pre-marital bedroom antics which violate biblical standards. While this is hardly unique to the vampire genre, Meyers should specifically be applauded for avoiding sexual immorality in her Twilight Saga. Bella and Edward remain chaste until they are married, which some parents claim has provided an opportunity to raise the issue of abstaining from premarital sex with their teens. (I believe the books’ highly sensual mood and the obsessive quality of Bella and Edward’s relationship are still problematic, but that’s a subject for another time.)
- The desire to rise above life’s mundane problems and limitations: Because vampires live for hundreds of years, they are able to accumulate tremendous wealth, so they never have to worry about paying the rent or the electric bill. They own luxurious homes all over the world, and they indulge themselves with the finest cars, art work, jewelry, clothing, foods and wines. Many vampires are thus sophisticates living the good life, at least as it is defined by Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Despite their wealth, they are often described as being bored with their existence: they are burdened with a problem Solomon knew too well, the emptiness which comes from excess (Ecclesiastes 2). While their opulent lifestyle captures the shallow, materialistic spirit of our age (and may explain some of its appeal), it is not a good model for anyone who wishes to follow in Christ’s footsteps. We know that it profits us nothing to gain the whole world and lose our immortal soul (Mark 8:36) – which is, ironically, a truth these sated-but-dissatisfied vampires exemplify quite well.
Physically, vampires and other creatures are far more powerful than humans, and are sometimes gifted with supernatural talents – such as the ability to read minds, put others under a spell (thrall), shape-shift, teleport, or see the future – all of which, I must admit, have a high cool factor. Vampires can be killed, but it’s not easily accomplished; and they are usually immune from disease. If injured, they heal quickly and, in some cases, they can even regenerate limbs. Their self-reliant strength appeals to our desire to be less vulnerable, frail, and breakable – which is quite understandable. However, such inordinate self-reliance is spiritually dangerous because it stems from a Satan-like arrogance which refuses to submit to God’s sovereign rule or to admit our need to draw upon Him for strength and salvation (Isaiah 12:2; 14:13-14).
- The sinful desire for unrestricted sexual experiences: The dark side of the vampire genre – and, I fear, a huge part of its popularity – is the depiction of vampire sexuality. Vampires are usually portrayed as sexual gourmets who have little regard for moral boundaries. How this plays out in individual works varies – from the relatively chaste to the disturbingly explicit, including heterosexual promiscuity, homosexuality, bisexuality, sadism, and masochism. For Christians, the need to avoid sexually explicit books and movies is a given. In Matthew 6:13, Jesus taught us to pray for deliverance from temptation: we shouldn’t subvert that prayer by wallowing in fictional filth.
Warning: Danger Ahead!
If you have never read a vampire book, you are probably better off in terms of your own spiritual well-being. However, if you see a need for entering into this dark world for the sake of others, then my advice is simple: proceed with caution and be willing to chuck in the trash any book that is leading you into temptation.
There are disturbing elements in all of the vampire books I’ve read over the years (and, yes, quite of few of them have ended up in the trash). But, then, even classic literature can pose similar challenges to our desire to resist the world’s polluting influence: such is the potential danger in reading books, watching television programs, looking at art, listening to music, or going to movies created by flawed human beings. [3]
We may know that “All truth is God’s truth” regardless of where that truth is found. However, we should be cautious in applying this principle: just because there are a few small nuggets of truth buried in an otherwise awful book or film, we don’t have a license to read or view anything and everything. As Brian Godawa has written, Christians should be “cultural exegetes” not “cultural gluttons.” [4]
The Challenge
If you have friends or family members who are caught up in vampire mania, what will you do to help them understand why they find these stories appealing? How can you use their legitimate longings to point them to Christ, the only One who can satisfy the deepest desires of their hearts?
[1] My suggestion: read the books first, then again with your children. If you are reading the Twilight Saga, check out Beth Felker Jones’ Touched by a Vampire: A free study guide that helps readers understand Meyers’ story from a biblical worldview is available at http://reader.waterbrookmultnomah.com/2009/10/06/resources-touched-by-a-vampire/.
[2] These are broad generalizations based on my relatively limited exposure to the genre. I’m sure there are variations on and exceptions to all these elements as I am describing them.
[3] If your reading or viewing habits lead you to cross the line from temptation into sin, then confess it (1 John 1:9), get rid of the offensive material so you won’t be tempted again, learn from the experience, and try to make wiser selections in the future. There are some authors whom I no longer read simply because I realized they were stirring up in me sins which “easily ensnare” (Hebrews 12:1).
[4] Godawa offers an insightful guide for Christians to view films from a biblical worldview in his book Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and Discernment.
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