2. Characteristics of Immortal Bodies

The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time… and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body… I say unto you that this mortal body is raised to an immortal body, that is from death, even from the first death unto life, that they can die no more; their spirits uniting with their bodies, never to be divided; thus the whole becoming spiritual and immortal, that they can no more see corruption.
Alma 11: 43-45 (abbreviated)

I found Meyer’s description of the physical bodies of the vampires intriguing. In many ways she made them sound very much like what Mormons believe resurrected beings are like. Namely, resurrected beings are “frozen in time,” are made of fundamentally different “stuff” (flesh and bones, no blood), and are not constrained by human abilities or frailties.

I recognize one point where this comparison doesn’t hold up is the fact that vampires are “frozen in time” at the age they were made vampires. In LDS theology, as far I understand, all resurrected beings are “frozen in time” at their prime (I am hoping for about 27).

I think Meyer used this "vampire rule" to help build her plot. In this way she was able to create the dilemma of the darling, out-of-control vampire babies and toddlers, and the fact that Bella would continue to age as a mortal while Edward did not. She was also able to manipulate the physical appearance of her characters. Arro was creepy old and ugly. Edward was a teen heartthrob.

Meyer, herself, seemed to often have a difficult time finding words to describe how beautiful the vampires were, especially Edward. Bella seemed to nearly worship him and his marbled yumminess. With minor tweaking, this description of the Angel Moroni (a resurrected being that told Joseph Smith where to find an ancient record that became the Book of Mormon) could very well be from Bella’s journal after seeing Edward in the sunlight for the first time:

Joseph Smith History 1:32
Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like lightning. The room was exceedingly light, but not so very bright as immediately around his person. When I first looked upon him, I was afraid; but the fear soon left me.

I especially love reading that last line from Bella's point of view "When I first looked upon him, I was afraid; but the fear soon left me." No wonder so many readers have fallen for Edward. He is the embodiment of what we all hope and pray our now mortal counterparts will become in the next life (if they are true and faithful).

I found myself very interested in Bella’s transformation also. It was interesting that she seemed to become markedly sexier as a vampire, something I definitely wouldn’t mind. Who knows, we all may be hotter in the resurrection, but it probably won’t be so obvious since we will all be wearing modest robe-type outfits (that I am sure Alice would disapprove of.).

In addition to looking much more beautiful than the humans, Meyer’s vampires have some pretty cool abilities. They can move faster than the human eye can register; they are impossibly strong; they have heightened senses; they can come back to life, etc., etc.

I especially thought her description of vampires being able to come back together after being ripped to shreds (hence the need to burn every bit) was very similar to the description of the process of resurrection in Ezekiel 37. Ezekiel was shown a vision by the Lord of a valley where there were piles and piles of dry bones of an army that had been defeated. The Lord commands Ezekiel to prophesy concerning the bones, and the following happened:

Ezekiel 37:7-8
So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above…

So, am I reading too much into this? Can you think of other ways the vampires are similar or dissimilar to resurrected beings?