Recently I had the opportunity to see the last installment of the “Breaking Dawn” franchise, based upon a 4-part series of novels, The Twilight Saga, written by American author Stephanie Meyer. I attended out of curiosity as well as to mollify close family members who invited me to accompany then.
I try to appreciate this kind of movie on two levels: what the movie claims for itself in the context of its genre, and for its impact on general culture, consciously or unconsciously intended by the author. Therefore, I look at aesthetics, plot, plot devices, character development, etc., as well as its message and potential impact upon several audiences. On the first level, being myself an incurable romantic, sure, I appreciate it. On the second level I found cause for concern.
Ms. Meyer owes a lot to the foundress of the postmodern vampire novel, Anne Rice, with some modifications Meyer made to make the vampires more intelligible to a younger audience. Within her worldview, vampires are sympathetic, likable beings, who are societal outliers and critics of the prevailing human culture. They are endowed with amazing powers: for all purposes they don’t suffer and are practically immortal. Meyer’s vampires “shine” under sunlight, and are extremely agile, spirit-like even.
These attributes rang a bell within until I realize these are the properties of those bodies which will be resurrected for heaven. Consider the properties of glorious bodies as described in the Catholic Encyclopedia:
- The first is "impassibility", which shall place them beyond the reach of pain and inconvenience. "It is sown", says the Apostle, "in corruption, it shall rise in incorruption" (1 Corinthians 15:42). The Schoolmen call this quality impassibility', not incorruption, so as to mark it as a peculiarity of the glorified body; the bodies of the damned will be incorruptible indeed, but not impassible; they shall be subject to heat and cold, and all manner of pain.
- The next quality is "brightness", or "glory", by which the bodies of the saints shall shine like the sun. "It is sown in dishonour," says the Apostle, "it shall rise in glory" (1 Corinthians 15:43; cf. Matthew 13:43; 17:2; Philippians 3:21). All the bodies of the saints shall be equally impassible, but they shall be endowed with different degrees of glory. According to St. Paul: "One is the glory of the sun, another the glory of the moon, another the glory of the stars. For star differeth from star in glory"'(1 Corinthians 15:41-42).
- The third quality is that of "agility", by which the body shall be freed from its slowness of motion, and endowed with the capability of moving with the utmost facility and quickness wherever the soul pleases. The Apostle says: "It is sown in weakness, it shall rise in power" (1 Corinthians 15:43).
- The fourth quality is "subtility", by which the body becomes subject to the absolute dominion of the soul. This is inferred from the words of the Apostle: "It is sown a natural body, it shall rise a spiritual body" (1 Corinthians 15:44). The body participates in the soul's more perfect and spiritual life to such an extent that it becomes itself like a spirit. We see this quality exemplified in the fact that Christ passed through material objects.
The big difference is that vampires in this genre attain these bodily properties by dying and then remaining dead. Also, they maintain their status by drinking human and/or animal blood. Finally, their immortality is conditioned to remaining whole and escaping fire.
There seems to be an inversionhere, as to means and ends of glorified vis-à-vis vampire bodies, and a distortion: for glorious bodies, one has to die to self but to become a vampire one has to die and remain dead; to attain glory, a Christian has to drink the Blood of Christ but to become a vampire, one has to suck the blood of a human or animal; to attain a glorious body a Christian is judge but a vampire not only escapes judgment, he or she is better if they don’t discriminate against the morality of others.
This upside-down message is being transmitted unfiltered to millions of unguarded minds. As a consequence, these millions walk toward spiritual darkness.
Please, I urge you to raise your own guard and that of children and other loved ones to this danger. Thread carefully, my brothers and sisters and be very, but very discriminating toward what you read or watch on TV or in the movies.