La Belle Chronicle on PNN

Harry Potter is NOT evil!

Fundamentalist Christians ( or Muslims for that matter) need a wake-up call. Before I begin discussing why Harry Potter is not evil, I want to start with a note about forcing your religion down someone's throat. For one thing, God does not need people to be forced to abide "His" will. Don't get me wrong, this message is not for all Christians, just those that think theirs is the only opinion that matters. The Lord made us for crying out loud, if he wanted us to all believe the same things, we'd have been born to do that. We weren't. Don't you think a God that is able and intelligent enough to design humanity would know that when good people worship whatever in their language and religion they call "God," that He is the one they are referring to? Just because beliefs about God and behavioral rules differ from religion to religion does not mean God does not hear all of us. Just because a group thinks they are superior does not mean God does. I hope that the God that waits for me in the afterlife is intelligent, reasonable, and fair, not domineering, whiny, and a hypocrite, like some fundamentalists unfairly portray Him through their words and actions towards other human beings. That said, on to HP!

So, some people think the greatest selling book series EVER is evil. I cannot tell you how wrong that is. Anyone familiar at all with literature can tell you the themes addressed in Harry Potter have nothing to do with becoming a witch or sacrificing anyone! The book is the tale of a boy who discovers the value of friendship and familiy, trust over suspicion and manipulation, the choice between what is right and what is easy, and the age old plot of good vs. evil.

People claim that it is evil becaue the main characters are witches and wizards. Some simply claim it is evil because it portrays magic. I have some arguments against this opinion I have compiled in a list below.

1) The magic done is not invocational, no spirits are called or summoned, neither is the devil. In fact, I can't think of one instance where he is even mentioned, and I know these books in and out!!

2) The magic done is made to be like abbra-cadabra type magic. People change hair color, or disarm other wizards, turn themselves invisible, or make the dishes do themselves. No one summons a demon to attack anyone and there are no sacrifices. Animals have magic qualities themselves in Harry Potter and for the most part are well cared for and respected.

3) The book actually promotes temperance in severeal areas. "Muggles," or non-magic folk and their magical children, called "mudbloods," are disliked by some "pureblood" families. This is like JK's stance on racism, those who look at the situation this way are the "bad guys" in the book. Hermione creates S.P.E.W. or Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, to help house elves gain rights (they are like magical slave creatures.) In this way, J.K. creates an atmosphere for children or adults reading to think about these real world issues in a fantasy-like setting.

4) Harry Potter is not the only children's tale that uses magic and witchcraft. C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia is beloved by Christians, but has witches and magic! Even Frank L. Baum's The Wizard of Oz uses some of the same things, yet no one bans it!

5) The books feature Christmas and Easter as holidays each year the books cover. The magic is in no way a religion. If the books were anti-christian why would they feature Christian holidays that are in no way treated disrespectfully.

6) So many children today do not like reading; it is simply foolish to try to take the one book so many of them love away. Let your child read this book series. It will inspire them to look for new books to read to be entertained in other worlds of wonder when they run out of Harry Potter pages to read.

Trust me, the books are great. I have a complete set of Harry Potter books that is unopened. I plan on them remaining that way until I have a child who is old enough to read along with me so that we can share the magic together. Don't let that oppurtunity slip away because of what you have heard; read them for yourselves and then decide!

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