As something fun, I decided to see how closely Twilight characters with Bible names relate to their Scriptural counterparts. Given that Stephenie Meyer is Mormon and Twilight is filled with Mormon themes, I assume that a lot of these parallels were intentional or that she at least was aware of them.
Jacob Black. In Genesis, Jacob was the son of Isaac (and therefore grandson of Abraham). He usurped his older brother, Esau, for his birthright and the blessing, and he became the ancestor of all the Israelites. Jacob usurped Sam as leader of the pack and became the alpha. Pretty good parallel.
Sam Uley. I’m connecting Sam here to Samuel, even though we’re never told that Sam is named Samuel (at least I don’t think so). In the Bible, Samuel was the last judge of Israel. The Israelites chose to have a king rule over them instead. Sam Uley was originally the alpha of the pack, but Jacob ultimately took his rightful place and usurped him. Decent parallel.
Ephraim Black. Ephraim was one of Joseph’s sons in Genesis. We’re not given enough information about him or Ephraim Black to judge if it’s a good parallel.
Levi Uley. Levi was one of Jacob’s sons in Genesis, and his descendants, the Levites, eventually make up the priesthood of Israel. However, if you move forward to the New Testament, Paul says that the Levitical priesthood is beneath the priesthood of Melchizedek, of which Jesus is in the order of. Levi Uley’s descendant, Sam, was alpha of the pack, but he was ultimately beneath Jacob. Good parallel, but you have to know more about Scripture to see it, which deducts some points.
Seth Clearwater. In Genesis, Seth is the third son of Adam and Eve. He was born after the death of Abel and the marking of Cain. I don’t think this is connected to Seth Clearwater at all.
Leah Clearwater. In Genesis, Leah is one of Jacob’s wives, but Jacob prefers Leah’s sister, Rachel, his other wife. Leah Clearwater was with Sam and planning a future with him, but Sam ended up imprinting on her cousin, meaning Sam ended up preferring Emily over her. I think this is probably the best parallel between one of the characters and their Biblical namesake (and thinking about this parallel is what inspired this post).
Rachel Black. In Genesis, Rachel was the wife Jacob was actually in love with. This parallel makes more sense when taken with Leah’s parallel. Leah wasn’t imprinted on, but Rachel was. Even though it’s not the same wolf involved, the parallel is still there. I also think it’s interesting that Rachel in the Bible is described as having bright eyes (if I remember correctly), but Leah doesn’t, and imprinting happens by looking in the imprintee’s eyes. Decent parallel. Points deducted because you have to kind of squint to see it.
Rebecca Black. In Genesis, Rebecca was the wife of Isaac and mother of Jacob and Esau. I don’t think this connects to Rebecca Black at all.
Paul Lahote. In the New Testament, Paul was originally named Saul and was a persecutor of Christians (the first Christian martyr, Stephen, was martyred under his observation). While traveling to Damascus, he was knocked off his horse and became blind. He had an encounter of Jesus, was healed, and converted to Christianity. He then spent a lot of time preaching to the Gentiles and changed his name to Paul (to reflect the Gentiles more). This parallel makes more sense if we compare Paul Lahote to Saul. Saul was a persecutor of Christians, and Paul Lahote is very hot headed. It’s an okay parallel. I’m deducting a lot of points because the parallel only works when they don’t share the same name.
James. There were two apostles named James. Neither of them share similarities with James though.
Sarah Black. In Genesis, Sarah was the wife of Abraham who miraculously gave birth to Isaac in her old age. I don’t think this relates to Sarah Black at all.
Let me know if I missed anyone! These were just the ones I could think of off the top of my head.
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