Twilight' Vampires, Real Jesus

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK

Jesus, help me to take a break from “Twilight” and read about you sometimes! Amen.


'TWILIGHT' VAMPIRES, REAL JESUS

Seven Apostles went fishing but caught nothing. Then a man on shore said, "Caught anything to eat? Throw your nets there, and you will." The Apostles caught 153 fish! Then they knew the man was Jesus, alive again. Peter got so excited he jumped off the boat and swam to Jesus. Jesus cooked breakfast, and they all ate together.

If you're into the "Twilight" series of books and movies, you may know an awful lot about vampires. Author Stephanie Meyer uses some legends and makes up her own "facts" about vampires, too: that they have superhuman strength, are hard to kill, don't need to breathe or eat.

Of course, vampires aren't real - but, if they were, all that knowledge might help you tell a vampire from a regular person!

In this week's Gospel (John 21:1-14), the Apostles learn a similar lesson: how to recognize that their friend and teacher, Jesus, is real and alive again.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus has already been crucified and died, but He has come back to life. When the Apostles first see Him on the beach as they're fishing, they don't recognize Him, so He must look different than they expect.

Just as you could figure out that someone was a vampire, though, the Apostles figure out that the man on the beach is Jesus: First, He performs a miracle, helping them catch a huge net full of fish; then He sits down to have breakfast with them, just like old times.

Vampires were once human and became superhuman - but that's only how the story goes in a "Twilight" book or a movie. Jesus was both human and God - and when He came back to life, it was for real!