We're going tomorrow afternoon........
Posted on 06/03/2004 9:38:49 AM PDT by BobbyBeeper
FIRST-PERSON: Is Harry Potter merely entertainment? Jun 2, 2004 By Phil Boatwright
"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" Photo courtesy of harrypotter.com
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (BP)--"I love Harry Potter. I think it would be so cool to be a witch," Sharon, age 11, says.
That's my answer to anyone who says J.K. Rowling's adventure series is harmless fantasy.
While the Harry Potter book and film series has held a hypnotic fascination for youngsters, its thematic foundation is troubling. Arguably, perceptive children can view such material without succumbing to the snare of the occult, but it would be naive to think that movies and TV programs containing witchcraft are not aiding the rise of Wicca in our culture.
In a television special titled "Hollywood Spirituality" which aired several years back on E! Entertainment, Raven Mounauni, a professing witch and owner of an occult paraphernalia store, credited the 1996 movie "The Craft" with inspiring young women to explore the world of witches. "I get a lot of teenage girls in here. You can always tell when 'The Craft' has been on TV, 'cause we get a big influx of girls looking for supplies."
Occult practices shouldn't be considered just diverting amusement. Ouija boards, psychic readers and other forms of misleading supernatural entertainment should not be taken lightly. In Leviticus 19:26 we are instructed, "Do not practice divination or sorcery." There are several warnings in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testament, making it clear that we are to avoid witchcraft or anything associated with the occult. So if God is instructing us to avoid occult practices, how can we justify using it to entertain ourselves?
This may not be a popular view right now. The first Harry Potter film installment earned $969 million worldwide. J.K. Rowlings' five books on the young wizard have become a phenomenon, allowing the author to become the richest woman in England, with assets beyond $1 billion. That would indicate that many parents find nothing wrong with these children's adventures.
There are even a couple of books out right now exclaiming parallels between the Potter books and the Gospel. One author suggests the books help relate Christian themes and truths, opening the door for talking about things such as right and wrong, the nature of faith, loyalty, bravery and trust. Honestly, I think that's a bit thin. Yes, Rowlings’ themes deal with honor, friendship and self-sacrifice, but the kids in Harry Potter gravitate to sorcery in order to accomplish these attributes. And even if there are positive elements associated with the series, you simply can't ignore the witchcraft equation.
Members of Wicca teach a philosophy that embraces no absolute truth or sin and replaces the patriarchal male creator God of the Bible with a belief in both male and female gods. Its credo instructs members to embrace spirits and conjure spells in order to control their lives and the lives of others. There are millions of practicing witches worldwide. Indeed, Wicca has become one of the fastest-growing religions in the world today.
OK, it's good that children are reading. But what is it they're reading? Shouldn't that be considered? When an author makes $1 billion on five books that have sorcery as a main theme, and renowned secular critics hail the films as incredible filmmaking without examining their occult roots, I question what's really behind this phenom.
Is it merely entertainment? Or is there a dark spiritual source feeding and supporting it? I realize that may sound like a stretch, but often Satan is most deceiving with a glossed-over package. Wouldn't it be a shame if kids got pulled into witchcraft, while their folks thought of the books and films as merely children's fantasy? --30-- Phil Boatwright is a film reviewer and editor of The Movie Reporter, on the Web at www.moviereporter.com. (BP) photo posted in the BP Photo Library at http://www.bpnews.net. Photo title: HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKAB
A dear friend who is a Protestant Minister has read the entire series, has seen both Harry Potter movies and highly recommends all the Harry Potter books as good reading.
I read on the Net that JK Rowling kills off either Ron or Hermione in the 6th book, have you heard anything about it?
You just Google it and see. I'm tellin' y'all, she scorches! ;)
I've got to agree. I am a huge sci-fi fan, but LOTR is one of the most overrated series out there.
Now, now. Where's your tolerance for stupidity?
Little do you know. You are already in my power, foolish mortal. I made you type that.
I got better."
Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.
Now go away or I shall taunt you a second time.
We're going tomorrow afternoon........
And so some little children think it would be cool to be witches or wizards. So what? Little kids want to be LOTS of things.
Hell, I'd like to be a wizard.
Uh, completely incorrect. Those who try to use the power of the One Ring are corrupted. The three elven rings were hidden from Sauron and were not corrupted by his power. Gandalf is WEARING one of the elven rings (Narya) throughout the WHOLE series (hence his statement to the Balrog in the movie 'I am a servant of the secret fire" ... Narya being the ring of fire). And Galadriel wears one, and Elrond the other. So all three of the good powers in the story are using their own rings the whole time.
I hate it when folks get just a little bit of surface knowledge and start slinging it around to suit their needs. If anyone here knows nothing about the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it is you. And your post proves it. So any analogy you make between the "rings" and Harry Potter's "magic" is faulty on its face...
Well said. There are more good lessons and values to take away than anything else. I've read all the books to date and seen both films, and eagerly await tomorrow's release.
Without differing opinions, this thread would be pretty boring. So thanks for contributing.
That said, I'm firmly on the other side. Getting me to a movie is like me agreeing to dentistry with lineman's pliers. But I will go see HP, with my fingers crossed that the new director didn't screw up the tradition. The first two were flat excellent.
BTW, the fact that there are nuts who believe Satan tells them to do evil things does not make Satan real. It DOES mean our justice system should permanently rehabilitate such people. Then they'll find out the reality of their beliefs.
...imply that Tolken is asexual or homosexual?
From what I remember of biology (and I may be wrong), asexual animals were those that had neither the sex organs of a male or female or produced offspring through sexual intercourse. How can a man be asexual with four children? Did he lay eggs or something?
And what about Julie Andrews in "Mary Poppins?" Hmmmm? She could clean a kid's room up in a snap while singing "Supercalifragilisticexpelalidocious" in key and never lose the beat.
Don't believe everything you read on the net. Take my posts, for example.
Newsweek (which is never wrong) says the three main actors were offered contracts for all seven movies. They did not accept, but the characters will definitely be around for all seven stories.
I still give that one a shot from time to time. But no matter how long or hard I try, I end up having to GET UP, cross the room, and pick up the remote control myself.
That's good- I didn't want see one of them killed off.
I'm going tonight. I really dread going to afternoon showings where everyone is wearing pointy hats. And the children are pretty weird too.
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