TWILIGHT ZONE
***Is the Twilight Series Innocuous?
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Mothers imitate teen daughters and don t-shirts. Is the vampire craze a good thing? |
What better place to discuss the Twilight series than the Twilight Zone. For those unfamiliar with the vampire craze, Twilight is the story of “good” vampire Edward Cullen who is a vegetarian. Instead of sucking the blood of people, he and his “clan” trained their tastebuds to enjoy the blood of animals. These “good vampires” are also able to go out into the sun where their skin sparkles like diamonds. They are inhuman, but better than humans. The story focuses on Edward’s relationship with his human girlfriend, Bella, who finds him fascinatingly irresistible and is generally semi-swooning in his presence. She is even willing to become a vampire (giving up her soul) to live with him forever. The novels are filled with heavy breathing, but Edward is always under control and won’t do anything for fear of hurting Bella, although he sneaks into her bedroom at night, and continuously places the two of them in what Catholics would call “occasions of sin.”
What’s really bizarre about the Twilight craze is the number of mothers who are acting crazier than their teenagers over a series aimed at high school girls. There are fan clubs for adults (Twilight Moms) and movie nights where adult women wear matching Twilight t-shirts and share drinks and enthusiasm for the vampire heartthrobs. Doesn’t anybody feel a little queezy over seeing adult women drool over a teenage vampire who resembles The Fonz? Thank God there’s one voice of sense shining the spotlight on this.
**HLI’s Fr. Euteneuer on Vampire Logic:
Here’s what Fr. Thomas Euteneuer, Director of Human Life International and an exorcist who deals with real evil has to say about the Twilight insanity:
With the issuing of the third movie in the Twilight series I have to speak out about our culture's twisted fascination with vampires. I don't hesitate to tell people that I am totally disgusted with the new fad sweeping over our youth culture these days. It is not just kids that are taken up with the wiles of the dark world either: many moms of teens are swooning for them too…..
Gone are the days of Bella Lugosi's Dracula (1931) where good was good and evil was evil. A crucifix would drive Dracula away and then he had to go into his infernal coffin when the first streaks of dawn appeared. He was in every way presented as a creature of evil, dark of heart and dread to encounter….
Nowadays vampires are divided into good and bad - no longer intrinsically evil. The good ones rescue vulnerable women instead of biting them and, allegedly, drink only animal blood (well, we haven't seen the last Twilight movie yet...). And crucifixes? Don't think you'll see any of those driving away bad guys in these movies. The heroes are the "good" vampires, not the Church or religious faith in Christ.
These super-star vampires also walk around in sunlight and, as a matter of fact, their skin just happens to glisten like diamonds when exposed to direct sunlight. Isn't that wonderful? The glam vamps are gentlemen, chaste and well-intentioned, yet they are always hovering around the edge of "falling" and in seductive situations which cause young people to think that they are capable, like their hero vampire, Edward Cullen, of going just so far and pulling back, out of self-control. That's teaching them to play with fire, not a real chastity message for kids.
The worst part of this fascination with vampires from a faith point of view, however, is its blasphemy of the Eucharist. "Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no life in you," said our Blessed Lord in Chapter 6 of John's Gospel. He is the One who offers His flesh and blood for the life of the world. The vampires eat (bite) the flesh and drink the blood of victims rather than give their own to redeem others. Their bites corrupt and transform their victims into vampires like themselves. They have no life in them. They are the "living dead" by their own estimate….. Vampire logic is anti-Eucharistic logic, and it's very dangerous for our kids. (Read Father’s complete article at www.hli.org.)
***Bishop “Canonizes” Pro-Abort Byrd Bishop Michael Bransfield of Wheeling, WV recently proclaimed an unofficial “canonization” of pro-abort politician Senator Robert Byrd who died June 28th. In his public statement on the senator’s death, the bishop said, “The Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston offers its most sincere condolences to the Byrd family, and we pray during this difficult time that family and loved ones will remember that Senator Byrd is now at peace with the Risen Lord and, with his late wife Erma Ora Byrd, is experiencing Perfect Joy.” [Les Femmes thought the Church, not diocesan bishops canonized saints, but we must be wrong.] Bishop Bransfield extolled the senator for his transforming life. “Senator Byrd led the transformation of West Virginia’s highways, and technology, health care, education and criminal justice systems, which will advance the quality of life in our beloved state for generations to come.” The bishops didn’t mention the generations who won’t come as a result of Byrd’s actions which included supporting abortion, human cloning, embryonic stem cell research, population control, lifting the ban on abortions at military bases. Need we go on? If this is the stuff of which saints are made, Jesus’ death on the cross is baffling. Senator Byrd was 92 when he died, but age apparently didn’t bring much wisdom. Bishop Bransfield would have served the senator better to ask for prayers for his soul.
***Colleges Go After Counseling Students
Several U.S. schools could give Mao a lesson in how to run his re-education camps. Augusta State University in Georgia recently told Jennifer Keeton, a Christian student in the masters level counseling program, to stop sharing her beliefs and required her to go to “diversity sensitivity training.” Keeton, 24, threatened with expulsion, refuses to abandon her faith despite the potential consequences. The school’s “remediation plan” requires her to attend homosexual events like gay pride parades. Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) is representing Keeton in a lawsuit against the university and another grad student from Eastern Michigan University, Julia Ward, who is facing similar persecution. ADF recently prevailed over Missouri State University in a third case. Discrimination against counseling students shows the influence of homosexual propagandists who aggressively threaten professionals who refuse to bend the knee to the prevailing homosexual agenda.
***College Campuses: No Christian Zones
The environment on college campuses these days is not just unfriendly but downright hostile toward Christians. A few examples: student activity funds are frequently denied to Christian groups while given to others including LGBT pride. Liberal professors often persecute Christian students. E.g., Jonathan Lopez’s class at Los Angeles City College was assigned to speak on a topic of their choice. He chose faith and marriage. In front of the entire class, the professor interrupted him, called him a “fascist bastard,” and refused to grade his talk. Beth Sheeran, head of the pro-life club at Spokane Falls Community College in Washington State was ordered to include the pro-abortion viewpoint at an event or face expulsion for violating the school’s “Stop the hate” policy.
In fact, Constitutional rights are non-existent on many campuses. A student at Missouri State U. was told to write a letter to the legislature supporting homosexual adoption. When she refused, the school threatened to withhold her degree. Speech codes target Christian students for “intolerance.” The University of Florida refused to recognize a Christian fraternity for limiting its members to Christian men. Discrimination against Christian professors is a big problem as well, which is hardly surprising in a system where 90% of the professors are liberal Democrats. Christian professors are denied tenure and even targeted and fired like Professor Kenneth Howell, a Catholic teaching a course on Catholic religion at the University of Illinois. When he dared to teach what the Church teaches about homosexuality and natural law he was fired for “hate.” This is the reality on campuses in post Christian America.
***Students’ Rights May Not Be Infringed Many college and university administrators talk about academic freedom, but regularly abuse the Constitutional rights of Christian and conservative students. Let the young people in your life know that they retain the right to freedom of religion and the right to free speech on campus. No professor or administrator may deny them. They also have the right to free association. If LGBT students start a club funded by student activity fees, a Christian group has the same right. Discrimination based on religious beliefs is unconstitutional. The Alliance Defense Fund is committed to First Amendment rights and will defend students who face persecution for their religious beliefs.
***Catholics United has $$$ for pro-aborts The faux Catholic group Catholics United (CU), funded by billionaire anti-Catholic George Soros, said recently they have $500,000 to support a handful of politicians who face payback for supporting Obamacare. The politicians angered voters by betraying a pledge to vote against the health care bill if it failed to exclude abortion. According to CU’s website, the money will go to “educate” constituents of John Boccieri (OH-16), Kathy Dahlkemper (PA-03), Steve Driehaus (OH-01), and Tom Perriello (VA-05). [Now who actually put up the dough?]
***Is that New College or Nude College?
We thought we’d heard it all with regard to scandals on college campuses, but that was before a friend of Les Femmes sent this little tidbit about New College, a small liberal arts school in Sarasota, FL. Here’s what our friend wrote: “Two years ago when my daughter was looking at colleges, New College was recommended by a misinformed person. When looking at the material, I came across a quote that said, ’If you're not naked on the weekend, you're not at New College.’ Obviously my daughter didn't go there. However, today while at Blockbuster I was in the checkout line when I overheard the girl at the counter tell the man in front of me that she went to New College, so when she checked out my movie I told her about the quote I had read and asked if they really went naked at New College. Breathlessly she replied, ‘Oh yes!’ I asked where they did that and she said, ‘In the courtyard.’ I said, ‘What...they just sit around with no clothes?’ She said, ‘Yep!..Well they do things. Like they do body painting. My mother was livid when she visited for parents weekend and saw them body painting each other.’ Then she added, ‘And they have naked potluck suppers also, but the academics are pristine!’ I asked how the academics could possibly be ‘pristine’ when the students are naked. She shrugged her shoulders and said she didn't know. I told her I hoped she comes out of her New College experience unscathed. She cheerfully and cluelessly replied, ‘We'll see!’" [Look at the bright side. Just think of all the money parents can save on clothes for college!]