Vampires

Many people today, even Christians, balk at the idea of vampires walking the earth. They relegate them to the category of horror films, or else they ask, how does the discussion of such a subjectedify the Body of Christ?

As one who is a former "vampire," now set free by the power of the Cross of Christ, I have a certain vested interest in this issue which goes beyond the academic. Before weanswer these questions, let us briefly define what we mean by a vampire.

As with most things spiritual, you can immediately ignore almost everything you have seen from Hollywood. Vampires are NOTundead corpses who turn into mist or become bats. If there are such beings, we have never seen them. That is not to discount their possibility, but only say that they are beyond our experience. No,vampires are people who are often severely disturbed (Biblical translation: demonized). These people get relief from stress through either drinking their own blood or the blood of animals or otherpeople. It is more common for women thus afflicted to drink their own blood and for men to take blood from others. Many survivors of abuse report incredible pressure to cut themselves and then drink theirblood. Once they do this, they feel great release of tension. This can be a demonic compulsion.

It is also important to note that while the vampire legend is nearly universal, it reached its mostepidemic proportions in heavily Catholic (or Orthodox) eastern Europe. Most cultures have taboos against drinking blood. This can doubtless be traced back to the command the Lord gave Noah after theflood forbidding the drinking of blood (Gen. 9:4). It is ironic that both the Catholic and Orthodox religions feature as their central superstition the idea of drinking blood and eating flesh (underthe sacramental appearance of wine and bread) against the specific commands of God. That these religions are dominant in cultures where vampirism (both in legend and in practice) runs deep is...