Ask and ye shall receive. I can't believe no one posted it yet!
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
My 14 yr old, who only started reading for pleasure when he picked up "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" 3 years ago, just LOVES those books! I'll have to read them myself. We went to the Scholastic Book Warehouse sale last weekend and picked up two more!
Ask and ye shall receive. I can't believe no one posted it yet!
You read that book? Oh, my God. I heard it had something about some dude being killed and then coming back to life. Sounds like necromancy to me!
Seems like the Potter Fan Club here at Free Republic would be more interested in that charlatan than the Christians would be.
After all, if they are not spiritually aware enough to see the evil in the Potter series, how can anyone expect them to tell the difference between a Spirit-filled preacher and a False Prophet?
Oh, don't bother posting to me, that Xenalyte just cursed me to hell.
I guess that is what I get for my "Potter" mouth!
Everyone so far has missed the real scourge of Harry Potter. The commercial broomstick has caused more teens to steal from their little brothers...it is a rash of thefts!
Just because they vibrate...it's a satanic plot, I say!
DK
It's just a movie...It's just a movie..
Look at you spreading that vile propaganda, like Harry Potter is safe or something! I thought I'd already banished you for less.
Ok, so educate me about this spiritual evil, as I guess 21 years of Sunday School, sermons, Bible studies, and my mother's lectures have left me unable to see spiritual evil.
Sheesh, it's no wonder the first thing I have to get across to the people I spend time with is that I don't think they're going to hell for D&D. (I may think they're going to hell for other reasons, but that's not the place to start either)
From personal experience, let me tell you, your moralizing will not be a good witness to lost souls.
I love all the HP books. They talk about the individual WRT courage, will and strength...and being tested. The Dark Arts dimminish in value if they are just as difficult to master as the regular arts.
That is the fun of Hogwarts, and I would go there in a minute. But I rather depend on EMT's and doctors, or others from my order to "walk the line" between good and evil. I do have a wand and potion on my belt but it doesn't seem so magical when they are used. Just another boring day at work...
DK
Oh Queen of the Damned,
To which circle of hell would I be sent for wearing a "WWSD" (What Would Sirius Do) bracelet?
Now that's an idea.. ;->
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