Vampires are all over the place lately. Twilight, True Blood, Vampire Diaries, and so many more series like these are followed obsessively. I saw the following image on yahoo, and it made me think of the questions asked by the band, Godsmack, in their song, "Vampires."
Here are the lyrics to the Godsmack song, "Vampires":
"Few creatures of the night have captured our imagination like vampires...
What explains our enduring fascination with vampires?
What is it about the vampire myth that explains our interest?
Is it the overtones of sexual lust, power, control...
Or is it a fascination with the immortality of the undead?
And what dark and hidden parts of our psyche are aroused and captivated by the legends of the undead."
The Christian Broadcasting Network has an article entitled "A Christian Response to Vampire Obsession" by Hannah Goodwyn. If you are interested in this topic, you might enjoy reading it.
And by the way, did you know that the vampire writer, Anne Rice, is now a Christian author. Check her out in the Christian Inspiration section of Barnes and Noble.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the current vampire obsession.
One of my mentors, a JHigh Pastor, did a series on Jesus and vampires.
ReplyDeleteHe decided not to oppose the fad but work with it. After all, with all the demonic references, and the fear of crosses, It's clear that most vampire stories take place in christian universes.
He drew connections between Their lifes and ours. It's a really interesting concept
Vampires are walking dead with an evil nature and a dependency for blood, and yet they are immortal, and many learn that what they really want is to deny their urges and become super heroes.
We too are dead in sin and dependent on the blood of Christ to free us from our evil nature and grant us eternal life. We fight our sin nature as Christians in the hope of making a powerful difference in the world.
Tell Anne Rice. This could be huge
It's interesting too that in the second book of the Twilight series it is revealed that the Father Vampire's father was a Lutheran pastor. And that the reason the Father Vampire (seriously, I don't know his character's name) has led his family to not kill humans and drink blood, and the reason he uses his supernatural gifts from being a vampire to save lives as a doctor, is because he is hoping that there is still hope that he as a vampire will not end up in hell. Of course, he has a works righteousness view of God's way into heaven, but it still shows that it operates in a "christian universe" as Ryan said.
ReplyDeleteI like the bridge building concept that your pastor used, Ryan, using the vampire stories to connect with the Gospel message of Christ. You did a good job with it, too! Thanks.