Finding the Middle Ground in Harry Potter's World
By now, most people know what the book series is all about. Frankly, it's been hard to avoid for the last 12 years. The seven Harry Potter books have (so far) sold more than 400 million copies and been translated into more than 65 languages since the publication of the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, in 1997.
But there still seems to be a lot of confusion and controversy in the Christian community about what to do with this hugely popular series.
Many among us continue to denounce the books as if they were written to corrupt all the children of the world. This reaction is understandable, since Harry and his friends make witchcraft look like a lot of fun to kids. And because there are real witches in the world, and they are not at all friendly to Christianity, the concerns and objections are obvious.
In recent years, many Christians have actually started to embrace the Harry Potter books and find ways to draw out all the Christian parallels they can. They say the magic and witchcraft is the same as novels that are considered "safe"—such as The Lord of the Rings or even The Chronicles of Narnia. They say the books' morals and imagery easily match up with Christianity.
Where does the truth lie in this cultural mess? As usual, it's somewhere in the middle.
For those of you who have never read them, the Potter books certainly do support Judeo-Christian morals. They promote loyalty, humility, equality, compassion, sacrifice and, above all else, love. They shun pride, self-seeking, jealousy, greed and hate. If they're outfitted with such a good moral compass, then shouldn't we embrace them, as many these days are saying we should?
I say no, but neither should we be afraid of them.
The trouble with comparing the fictional Potter world to Middle Earth in The Lord of the Rings or Narnia in The Chronicles of Narnia is that the latter two worlds were created by devout Christians, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis respectively. The friendship between Tolkien and Lewis is legendary, and both men were known for their outstanding faith in Christ.
J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, does not have the same outspoken belief about Christianity. As is typical nowadays, she tends to weave in a few things from a variety of faiths in her books, as she discusses in this article.
Without a Christian author to create it, the world in Harry Potter books doesn’t really hold up to theological scrutiny like something out of the world of Narnia. The lessons learned will be vague ones.
However, the series is also not something to be feared. There are some scary kids books out there. If you need something to steer away from, check out The Golden Compass series, which has many of the same trappings as The Lord of the Rings but is blatantly atheistic. Harry Potter has no such insidious designs.
As with all topics like this, it's best to decide for yourself. If your kids are into the Potter books, educate yourself. Read them yourself (they're actually superbly written) or at least learn what they're about. Then talk with your kids about them.
No piece of fiction—nothing written by mankind—is going to be flawless. No other writing but the Bible is or ever will be perfect, so we must put everything up against the test of Scripture. Teach your kids to do that, and they'll have a truth-based perspective no matter what they read.
posted by Editor at 9:08 AM
9 Comments:
This was a very well written post. I just wanted to commend you on that.
Yes, a well-written post on Harry Potter. Only, you missed the most obvious reason why Christians should warn their kids about Potter--ALL THE VIRTUES YOU MENTION WHICH JOANN ROWLING ESPOUSES ARE NOT CONNECTED TO GOD, BUT HELD FORTH FOR THEIR OWN SAKE. Kids need to be told where these virtues come from (see Galatians 5:22-23 for example). I saw J.K. (Joann) Rowling for a full hour last night on ABC, in "A Year in the Life of J.K. Rowling." The reporter asked her bluntly--Do you believe in God? She hesitated, thought a bit, and said, "Yes, I think I do." He asked her if she believes in a life after this one, and she said--"I think so..." But said that she has questions and doubts about all of that. Kids need to know this. I am praying for the Spirit to bring her to a saving belief in Jesus Christ; and to confirm to her what her heart seems to want to believe. She attended a British church as a girl, but admits that she's been living in a fantasy world of her own creation; and that Harry Potter acts out her own beliefs. She uses the witchcraft as a power against Darkness because she has to have a power to combat them, meaning she does not see the Spirit of God as the answer. Kids need to know this. She is shaping the lives of untold millions of kids with her books. And virtues for the sake of virtues--without a connection to God--is little more than secular humanism. Grownups need to know this. And kids being kids, they will be drawn more to the Dark Side, as with Darth Vader, than to being good for good's own sake.
Harry Potter - Fence Sitting Article
Yes folks, I just read another one of those fence sitting articles. It seems that the church must always explain away sin and the occult and embrace whatever our dark and sinful culture considers popular. We are outraged and rightfully should be as the church crescendos in unison to object to the sinful issue at hand…Then we soften as time goes by and explain the issue away and embrace its unbiblical teachings and influence, while casting a blind eye to its effects on our families and society…
Yes, we should have a healthy fear Harry Potter moviesand books and their teachings and influence…Yes, we should fear such articles that try to persuade us to call sin something other than what it is…For our very souls and the generations to come….Just because something has a few good points does not make it spiritually healthy to view.
I happened to be at a movie theater a few years back and a Harry Potter preview came on....Flying witches, spells and creatures filled the screen. The special effects and powerful scenes vexed my spirit beyond understanding…The deep darkness I saw and felt was very real. I wanted to stand up in the theater and cry out....cry out, and cry out again and again….This is sooooo wrong...It is sinful and should not be allowed here or in our homes!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I settled in and soon my film came on. I never have forgotten the impact that one short segment made on my very spirit.....
Just imagine the millions of children young people that are viewing the movies day after day, hour after hour all over the world.
Where we are today in our nation and what we are allowing is beyond belief and good conscience. And we wonder why our nation and the world is being shaken???….
To me this topic or even the homosexual agenda would cease to be an issue if some major attack took place on our country. People would simply be too busy crying out to God and forgetting the rebellious, abusive and sinful foolishness such articles and issues try to impose…
To me this is the type of article that eventually led Martin Luther to the point of having to make a stand by nailing the 95 theses to the Wittenburg church door, and having done so lost his life.
Tom Winfield Harry Potter Fence Sitting Article Continued...
Two Sunday evenings in a row Harry Potter movies have been on. This is a slap in the face of a Christian society and the God that we serve….No other week day was good enough…It had to be shown on a Sunday???
Personally I cannot watch the flying witches and all the darkness and magic that harry Potter movies offer. Something in my mind says…How can I watch this and do this evil thing against my God???
"There shall not be found among you any one ... that useth divination,
or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer,
or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord..."
(Deuteronomy 18:10-12) Witchcraft was rampant in the early church. Simon the magician. Acts 8:9, 11 - Elymas the sorcerer. Acts 13:8 - The girl at Philippi. Acts 16:16 - The city of Ephesus. Acts 19:19
Harry Potter encourages our youth to find the answers in the occult and witchcraft and clearly not Christ.
I understand white magic has good principles but all of this is destructive other than what the Bible clearly teaches. Those that practiced the occult were removed from civilizations. Pretty serious since God is the only miracle worker and he has given all authority through Christ to the church not to Holly Wood and some demonically inspired author J.K. Rowland. This poor mislead soul has written material that has been a voice to mislead millions if not billions for generations to come.
Yes, we should be very afraid of Harry Potter’s influence on our families…
I cannot begin to imagine the deep spiritual darkness and influence that has been ushered because of these movies and books… for the upcoming generations to emulate. Imagine everyday workers using the cultic arts to get what they want done.
The fascinating thing is that generation is missing it since God is more powerful than darkness and will not tolerate the fallen forces to dominate his people or our world….So look out America for more wake up calls to get us inline with God’s will and purposes since he posesses all might and power. Lots of prayer intercessors are needed today for the cultic clouds that are looming even darker on the horizon. Lots of Harry Potter wanna bees are in the rafters….Lots of divine God ordained shaking is too. We must draw the line and become educated in the things of God and find out what he expects of us and pray for our world and our nation. Here’s to directing the generations to the Lord for blessing and guarding them against all appearances and teachings of evil. Below you can see what Martin Luther had to stand for in his day…
My mother used to say…”How can we lay on a bed of ease when others have sailed the bloody seas?”
We must try to adhere to scripture and not to society and culture. We must stand for the Bible and its truth and teachings and also listen to our Spirit led good conscience. We must draw a line in the sand and say we will not go any further…To the generations…
Green Planet I have a suggestion for you; change the channel. Don't watch the movie. It's not an affront to Christianity.
That being said, I do believe Harry Potter is a gateway to evil, witchcraft, etc. There is nothing remotely biblical about the books/movies and I don't believe Christians should endorse Harry Potter.
Here we go again...calling evil good. There is nothing good about Harry Potter and I'm horrified to know that "Christians" are trying to find a middle ground to something that is quite obviously witchcraft, occult...garbage. When are we gonna stop with the mentality that says "a little bit of poop in the brownies won't be noticed." Why can't we just eliminate the poop altogether? We are in this world not of it and don't have to eat or experience any of its "brownies."
The Harry Potter movies are just pure evil and it is a suble way to introduce witchcraft to young children. Adults are responsible for the young people God has entrusted to us. What a shame the deception that has come on some Christians. Read your Bible and not Harry Potter for what God says is good and evil.
All BIG problems begin small and innocent looking, no matter what the temptation, but it is the small foxes that destroy the vineyard. It's a sly strategy (though not at all a new one) of the enemy, and too many children of God are falling for his tricks. I have never seen one full movie of the Harry Potters (or Lord of the rings, etc), but I've seen trailers here and there. Every single time it has made my stomach turn. I know that something about these movies clash very seriously with the Spirit that lives in me. What I found interesting though is that the previous movies seemed to be more 'tame'/subtle w.r.t. black magic, witchcraft, demonic activity, etc. The first thing that struck me about the latest release is that it has certainly become more blatant! Initially it might have seemed more innocent, but it has most certainly intensified. As times change it is becoming more crucial that we educate ourselves about God's Word and what is (and isn't) pleasing to Him. Half obedience and luke warm is never mentioned as a 'favor' to God, and neither has He ever rewarded it with great blessing. The Bible says that if you're a friend of this world, you're an enemy of God. I think we live in times where it has become more crucial - a sense of urgency (but also more challenging) to take a stand for what we believe in. Do we have the courage to do so, or has it become more important to blend in with the crowd? I think we have a responsibility to guard our spirit. I believe it is a reality: garbage in, garbage out! Our eyes and ears are doors and windows to our soul and spirit. Think about what you let in. Light and darkness cannot co-exist. God told the Israelites to destroy the nations that lived in the land that God had given to them, but the Israelites failed to obey. Instead they made treaties and inter-married. The end result was their drifting away from God, worshiping idols, and eventually being enslaved for 400 years. We are in this world; not OF it. God's Word does not become outdated. Do we dare to be different for His glory, or do you think that it is "taking this Christian thing a little too seriously"?
We're called to be different than the world, not to fall in accept what's popular or to look for good where we shouldn't be looking in the first place. The book series is about witchcraft, and makes the unspoken claim that there can be "good" witches and "bad" witches... that some witches are morally on the same side as our God and Savior. How many Christians here believe this can possibly be true? I'm very disappointed to see New Man suggest that Christian morals can be found in the Harry Potter series. Let's remember the Devil masquerades as an angel of light, and avoid going near that false light, which is really darkness and lies and leads straight to Hell.
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home