Comments on Want What You Have: Christians and "Twilight"

For the record, there are many other religious gro...

2009-12-07T15:44:31.192-06:00

For the record, there are many other religious groups that call themselves Christians, but are in fact not. I assess them according to God's standards as set forth in the Bible, not my own, and I don't assess them at all until I've learned all I can about their doctrine.

The missionaries we met with said they only believe the Bible to be true, "insofar as it is translated correctly," and they don't believe that acceptance of Christ alone is sufficient for their salvation. They must also believe in Joseph Smith as prophet, and earn their way to heaven through good works. This clearly goes against Biblical teaching.

I absolutely cannot agree with these false teachings, but that doesn't mean I judge or condemn them. I pray for them.

It has absolutely nothing to do with what I say, b...

2009-12-07T15:04:37.140-06:00

It has absolutely nothing to do with what I say, but what God says in the Bible. Many of the teachings of the Mormon church are biblically false, and my Bible actually refers to them as a cult.

I don't expect you to agree with me, but I'm not alone in my assessment of the Mormon church. This article does a good job of explaining my argument.

http://www.tbm.org/are_mormons_christians.htm

That said, most Mormons I know are loving, kind, hard-working, family-oriented people, and I like them. I just don't believe them to be Christians, and I think their church misleads them. I pray for them to see the truth.

Mormons consider themselves to be Christians. Jus...

2009-12-07T12:48:54.263-06:00

Mormons consider themselves to be Christians. Just because YOU don't consider them to be Christians does not make it so.

Annalisa, I don't think anyone is arguing - many p...

2009-12-07T12:12:23.514-06:00

Annalisa, I don't think anyone is arguing - many people just have genuine concern about what they read and watch, because they don't want to do anything that would be displeasing to God. I admire them for that.

Also, while the Bible has stories about many disturbing topics, that doesn't make them appropriate reading for a 12-year-old. I know that at our church, many Bible stories are not taught in Sunday school until the children reach high school age, for this very reason. I think it's good for parents to be discerning about what their children are exposed to, especially when they're at an age where they can't fully understand it.

I would also like to make a distinction - Stefanie Meyer is a Mormon. This summer, my husband and I met many times with Mormon missionaries. I liked them very much, and I admire many of the priniciples by which they live, but I absolutely DO NOT agree with their definition of Christianity. We eventually parted ways with the acceptance that we must agree to disagree, because while they consider themselves Christian - I do not.

I just thought I'd point out that the Twilight ser...

2009-12-07T11:25:17.609-06:00

I just thought I'd point out that the Twilight series was written by a Christian, and even the bible has stories about "seducing" men.

There are so many things that are much worse that our children could be reading...I don't even know why we're arguing this one.

Heather - great post!! I haven't read any of those...

2009-11-24T22:25:59.999-06:00

Heather - great post!!
I haven't read any of those books. I've always been a bit hesitant about the Narnia series because of the witch involvement - I mean I know it is meant to have a christian theme, but should we desensitise ourselves to the occult - & what about our children - the last thing we would want is them getting involved, so why do we allow them to be desensitised to anything of Satan.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)

I guess too often we forget we are at war against anything to do with Satan. Great post - sorry about the long comment!

Great post heather, I agree with everything you sa...

2009-11-24T04:39:15.432-06:00

Great post heather, I agree with everything you said. :) And it's SO nice to be back online! I've missed everyone!! :) Hope all is going well with you and your sweet baby. xo

I totally agree about the books. I was a middle s...

2009-11-23T19:45:24.593-06:00

I totally agree about the books. I was a middle school teacher and very open-minded to the wonderful world of adolescent literature... and I'm not very "snooty" about quality literature. I just didn't think they were very good books. They barely held my interest. I was underwhelmed and shocked that they were so popular.

And, more than anything I didn't like how controlling Edward Cullen was throughout the series, even more so in the books... I felt like it was maybe, MAYBE understandable in the context of the plot, but would not generalize well to the kids who read it.

I'll have to say that, like the other commenter, I was pretty shocked by the sexual inuendo in the last book. I think it was great she had them wait, but I felt like it was very inappropriate for many kids. I would never have encouraged my sixth graders to read that last one!

Very well written Heather. I couldn't have said i...

2009-11-23T19:36:17.482-06:00

Very well written Heather. I couldn't have said it better myself. I didn't read the books but I did see "Twilight" and thought it was just not a good movie. So, of course I don't understand why people want to see the second movie. Great points!

I agree....poorly written books (although I have o...

2009-11-23T17:39:23.927-06:00

I agree....poorly written books (although I have only read the first 2) and un-necessary hype by grown women. Having said that, I don't actually have an issue reading/watching the series, will probably stop here though as it just annoys me more than entertains me!!

As for Harry Potter, I confess that I'm a fan :)

As you say, each to their own. If it doesn't sit right don't read/watch it. And I too get mad when Christians speak out about these kinds of movies when they are fans of Narnia AND they haven't bothered to read the books they speak out against.

A very good perspective, Heather. I still monitor ...

2009-11-23T17:02:05.244-06:00

A very good perspective, Heather. I still monitor Kate's reading and I read all four to that purpose.

I liked them enough to keep reading, but the writing was so subpar, I was embarrassed for Meyers. We saw the first movie, but won't see the sequels, since Kate is already over it. Thank goodness. Hearing that dialogue spoken made me squirm! So, so cheesy.

Very interesting post! I'm not again reading or wa...

2009-11-23T16:54:12.518-06:00

Very interesting post! I'm not again reading or watching non Christian novel or movies. (I know some christian would look down on my at this but...)

I think that it would be wrong for me to read or watch:

- Books or movies that is taken the Lords name in vain or is against God and what He is.

- that involve some sort of pornographic images or implications. Meaning Sex or implication of sex or nudity.

I see nothing wrong with fiction as long as it is something that would be acceptable for God to read or watch it himself

Jesus did not turn His back to the prostitutes or tax collector but He never partake to their SIN. I think this should be our guideline while reading or seeing fiction.

Always honoring God with what our mind and eyes sees.

Thanks for this post :-)

I've never read any of the books...not much of a f...

2009-11-23T16:05:12.099-06:00

I've never read any of the books...not much of a fiction reader. But I think the "hysteria" is quite silly. I truly don't get it.

But I was interested to see the author of those books on Oprah (surprise) and she explained that she was just a sleep deprived SAHM of 3 young children and the story of the two characters came to her in a very vivid dream one night. When she woke up, she just wrote it all down. She was never into vampires or horror, but was just interested in these characters. She said she had never written anything before (and from reading everyone's comments about the lack-luster writing, I'm not surprised), but became sort of obsessed with taking Bella and Edward on a journey and seeing how it all played out. I was very proud of her for stepping out and following her passion. It really inspired me.

But I won't be seeing the movies mainly because I take pride in saying I haven't followed the crowds...I'm just defiant that way.

ricoabby - A very good question. I think I'll ask ...

2009-11-23T15:39:56.481-06:00

ricoabby - A very good question. I think I'll ask my husband what he thinks about it, because I'm not sure I went about it the right way (I might have been a bit too pushy).

Heather, Very well written. I often become confus...

2009-11-23T15:34:58.301-06:00

Heather,
Very well written. I often become confused and conflicted about certain things such as movies or books I want to watch. This may seem strange, but being that I am a baby in Christ, because of you, I feel like I grow in my faith every time I read your blog. This post is very to the point, clear, and very common sense. I would like to know how you began talking to your husband about the LORD as I am struggling with that part of my life right now?

Great post! The one lesson I think I learned the ...

2009-11-23T15:25:49.294-06:00

Great post!

The one lesson I think I learned the most while being in fundamental churches is that you can find evil and the devil in absolutely everything.

I've learned that we need to sit up and pay attention when God is trying to tell us something. What we don't need is another witch hunt.

I agree that it's a personal decision. I don't ju...

2009-11-23T15:20:47.110-06:00

I agree that it's a personal decision. I don't judge others, especially on whether or not they read certain books. I haven't read any of the Twilight books, but I have seen the first movie. I thought it was okay, but still don't get all the hype?

I loe your blog and I don't comment like I should,...

2009-11-23T15:17:11.211-06:00

I loe your blog and I don't comment like I should, but I do read it often. I am a Twilight mom and Christian. I don't have too much time to post right now, but my 11 year old daughter and I share a passion for all things Twilight and she is a VERY mature 11 year old and I love ANYTHING she can watch or read that shows a girl and a boy loving only one another and waiting for marriage for even foreplay. The righting is nothing spectacular but the characters Stephanie has created are like a modern day Juliet and I love sharing something with my daughter, under my eye that we can enjoy together. ;o)

Your blog was well-said and the fourth book did not upset me at all and was well written just enough for all audiences to enjoy. My daughter can't even watch a show on the Disney channel or Nick without some girl doing something to get some random boys attention. I would prefer she got lost in the world of reading. ;o)

Julie

As usual, sage, well-thought-out advice. I really...

2009-11-23T14:55:39.535-06:00

As usual, sage, well-thought-out advice. I really do think that when all is said and done, you should write a book. Hope all is well with the pregnancy!

Kim - you make a good point. I think that by the t...

2009-11-23T13:58:18.165-06:00

Kim - you make a good point. I think that by the time the fourth book was written, the target audience was forgotten in the wake of all the Twilight hysteria, much of which is propogated by grown women!

The original, intended audience for the books was the young adult market - perhaps not middle-school-aged - but definitely high school, and I don't know that I even want my high schooler to read about seducing a man.

Hello Heather - Thanks for the long post on Twili...

2009-11-23T13:48:40.369-06:00

Hello Heather - Thanks for the long post on Twilight. I read the Twilight series, b/c my 11 year old was asking and I was saying "No" based on what I'd heard and not what I knew.
I agree with you that the books are not well written. I think in a rush to publish, each book is edited less than the previous and it shows in content, clarity and length.
Although my overall review is mixed (with a general thumbs down), my favorite book was the second. There is a far too brief conversation about God that I would have loved to gone on far longer - an entire chapter even and for that reason, I enjoyed that book. I was fascinated that author made Edward, a vampire, the moral through-line of the story.
I can see the appeal of the first story: 75% romance and 25% vampire lore. The second and third are a reversal with 75% vampire and werewolf mythology and 25% romance. I felt a little gypped by the switch.
The fourth book made me angry. I don't care if they waited until after marriage to have sex. By that fourth book the author knew who her audience was and its NOT okay to for my 11 or 12 year old
daughter to read about seducing a man - even if that man is her husband. (I am curious if your post might have a different tone if you had read that fourth book.)

Thank you for reminding us that we should judge for ourselves rather that judge others.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and the family, Kim