The views which I express in this post, are not exactly the views that some of my sisters have on this particular subject, please keep this in mind while reading.
When I started reading the Twilight saga (author Stephanie Meyers concluded the series after the fourth book ) I found myself, as many other young girls my age, almost completely engrossed in the books thrilling story.
Stephanie Meyers based the books around a young teenage girl, Bella Swan, and her lover, Edward Cullen, a vampire. Bella Swan soon comes to realize that this vampire who loves her is not like many other vampires. He is sensitive towards the human race and wishes to control his blood thirst. Soon after meeting Edward Cullen she finds herself holding life-threatening secrets from her parents and others she loved, trusting someone who was dangerous and had a very high chance of killing her, deeply in love, and willing to give up her soul to live in "eternity" with him.
The books take you through the most exciting and romantic love affair between the two people who are determined to make things work no matter what their differences are.
After reading this thrilling tale, I started fantasizing and placing myself in Bella Swan's position. But, after taking a step back to consider the book's actual story and all the romantic craze it has thrown into the world of girls ( I am not mentioning women because of the older women who have let themselves become subjects to this obsession are not women in my mindset, merely girls ) I have realized how the ridiculously bad the examples are to the females of today.
Here are a few examples of the bad things the books are suggesting to me that are "OK":
1. It is "okay" to hide things from your parents, and occasionally lie to them.
2. It is fine to become full invested in a man that is not your husband.
3.If you love him enough, and feel as though life without him wouldn't be worth living, putting him before God in life, isn't a big deal.
4.If you are abstaining from fornication, you are still pure. Or, you only have to abstain from being so physical to the point that your vampire boyfriend might hurt you.
5. Boys who leave will most likely come back, so you should wait for them.
Beginning with the first example, I will go through each one and inform you as to why I consider them misleading and wrong. Although ( I am hoping ) most of you already see the wrong in such things, but for those who don't, here it is.
1.God gives us a command to honour and obey our parents. He has put over us authorities who are wiser and more mature, and he expects us to respect them. Lying or hiding things from them is not honouring or obeying them in any way. Of course, we know that by honouring and obeying our parents, we are honouring God. Now if your parents were to ask you or tell you to do something that goes against what God wants and will cause you to disobey him, then you are free from that commandment, only in those things. " Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right".(Ephesians 6:1)
2&3. We ought to know, that as young Christian girls, spending most of our time ( and thoughts ) on a young man, isn't wise. There are certain reasons for marriage, one of them is so you can do those things without causing yourself to sin by lusting after a young man and committing adultery in your heart. ( Matthew 5:28 ) We need to be careful how much time we are giving up for another person. Single years are to be a treasured part of our life, and remembered as the years you used for God's glory, seeking ways you could glorify Him and surrender you time fully to Him, for his service. When we marry, most of our time is spent honouring God by honouring and obeying our husband. We must be careful with our hearts and cautious of the men we give them to, who are not our husbands. Proverbs 4:23 says, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life".
4. Many people assume that just because sex outside of the marriage is sinful, doesn't mean other physical things are. But reconsider the twenty eighth verse of Matthew 5. "But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart". If only thinking about such things is a sin, how much more is it actually doing them?
Ask yourself this, "what is the point when I am not married?" It's for the sake of mere pleasure. ( "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures,..." Titus 3:3) We need to learn to keep our minds as well as our bodies pure.
5. The books made a small point to hint that Bella Swan couldn't be happy without some sort of male companionship. In the second book ( New Moon ), Edward left Bella. Bella then became a depressed, with-drawn, suicidal girl, and the only way she could find happiness, was to spend a great amount of her time with another male companion. So she used her friend to keep herself happy until Edward came back.
My idea of the books is that, they are well written books with a great amount of adventure and romance, but do not put forth good ideas into the minds o the female world today, and should be avoided, especially by younger girls.
I am not only saying this of Twilight, there are many other books and movies out there that give people the same impressions, ideas, and obsessions that need to be avoided.
-Bella
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