Posted on 03/17/2008 7:44:22 AM PDT by Terriergal
By John-Henry Westen
EDINBURGH, March 12, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The newly released edition of the Edinburgh University Student newspaper, the oldest student newspaper in the UK, includes an interview with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling. In the interview Rowling claims to have received death threats from Christians opposed to her novels, calling Christian 'fundamentalists' "dangerous" and comparing them by inference to Islamic fundamentalists.
Asked if there were not some Christians who dislike the book 'intensely', Rowling replied, "Oh, vehemently and they send death threats." Questioned about the 'death threats', she added, "Once, yeah. Well, more than once. It is comical in retrospect. I was in America, and there was a threat made against a bookstore that I was appearing at, so we had the police there."
While she said she could stomach critics, she had little time for Christian criticism. "But to be honest the Christian Fundamentalist thing was bad," she said. "I would have been quite happy to sit there and debate with one of the critics who were taking on Harry Potter from a moral perspective."
Many Christians who have opposed the Potter series have done so after reading comments by Christian reviewers pointing out their moral and spiritual dangers. The opponents, who have been relying on the reviewers criticisms, have often avoided reading Rowling's lengthy Potter narratives, and Rowling uses such cases to paint Christians as if they were insane.
"I've tried to be rational about it," she told the paper. "There's a woman in North Carolina or Alabama who's been trying to get the books banned-she's a mother of four and never read them. And then- I'm not lying, I'm not even making fun, this is the truth of what she said-quite recently she was asked [why] and she said 'Well I prayed whether or not I should read them, and God told me no.'"
The interviewer notes that at that point "Rowling pauses to reflect on the weight of that statement, and her expression one of utter disbelief." Rowling then continued, "You see, that is where I absolutely part company with people on that side of the fence, because that is fundamentalism. Fundamentalism is, 'I will not open my mind to look on your side of the argument at all. I won't read it, I won't look at it, I'm too frightened.'"
"That's what's dangerous about it, whether it be politically extreme, religiously extreme...In fact, fundamentalists across all the major religions, if you put them in a room, they'd have bags in common! They hate all the same things, it's such an ironic thing."
Michael O'Brien, one of the most prominent Potter critics, has carefully read and analyzed the Potter books critiquing the spiritual and moral problems with Rowling's works. O'Brien commented to LifeSiteNews.com about Rowling's mockery of Christians who avoid her works.
"Regrettably, there is a strange new form of self-righteousness at work in the world-a psychological state of mind that is common to post-modernists such as J. K. Rowling," said O'Brien. "One of its symptoms is their inability to discuss on a serious level the truth or untruth of their cultural products. They avoid the real issues and instead take the 'ad hominem' approach-personal attacks against those who raise critical objections to the disorders in their books. From the vaccuum of real thought arises the dreary habit of classifying as a 'fundamentalist' any critic who bases his arguments on religious or spiritual grounds."
Added O'Brien: "This term is used against bomb-throwing terrorists, sweet grandmothers praying silently before abortuaries, and anyone who preaches the fullness of the Christian faith in church and media. It has become the utmost smear word, a weapon that is proving quite effective in silencing opposition. If you don't have an argument yourself, you just switch tactics and cry 'fundamentalist!' Supposedly all opposition will then collapse."
In previous interviews Rowling has said Christian criticism of her works come from the "lunatic fringe" of the church.
Prior to being elected Pope, then-Cardinal Ratzinger expressed an opinion opposing the Potter books. He sent a letter of gratitude to Gabriele Kuby who authored a work explaining the dangers of the Potter story, especially to young children. Made available by LifeSiteNews.com, Ratzinger's letter to Ms. Kuby stated, "It is good, that you enlighten people about Harry Potter, because those are subtle seductions, which act unnoticed and by this deeply distort Christianity in the soul, before it can grow properly."
Father Gabriele Amorth, chief exorcist of the Vatican also condemned the books warning parents, "Behind Harry Potter hides the signature of the king of the darkness, the devil." Father Amorth criticized the novels for glorifying magic, which he explicitly refers to as "the satanic art", and for presenting disordered perceptions of morality in the supposedly heroic main characters.
See related LifeSiteNews coverage:
Pope Opposes Harry Potter Novels - Signed Letters from Cardinal Ratzinger Now Online
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2005/jul/05071301.html
Harry Potter Feature Page:
http://www.lifesite.net/features/harrypotter/
And to comment on the original article, it's pretty obvious that most people commenting here simple read the headline and jumped to conclusions. Rowling's actual remarks were fairly reasonable and this is yet another example of the headline writer distorting the actual story to grab attention.
I’ll try to remember that next time I get to the used book store. (Cindy and Sally, right?) Anoreth has been nagging - she wants more war books.
These days, that’s impossible.
“Gay marriage” is on the news all the time. It forced an explanation for the teen and pre-teen, but my nine year old is still oblivious.
My son is nauseated by Rowling’s revisionist pronouncement, and my daughter is indignant.
I MISS my used book stores in CA. I went into the local one here, and they didn’t know what “Regency romance” was. That was a freaky experience. :)
I’ve been using www.paperbackswap.com recently.
You’re right, of course.
But I don’t think Rowland made an “announcement” as such about Dumbledore.
What happened was that the director of one of the movies had Dumbledore saying something indicative of a love or an attraction for a woman (don’t remember what) and she said, ‘oh, no, Dumbledore is gay.’
Like the previous poster said, she had a lot of back story on her characters and she probably thought everyone would realize that if they really thought about it.
She was wrong ... I didn’t even think about it.
But I don’t think she made an announcement per se.
Look at the section under "Book challenges."
How would you like it if some stranger came up to you and told you what books your child could or couldn't read? What right do you have to tell parents what books their children can or can't read?
More Accurate Title:
“Potter Author Rowling Equates people who don’t buy her books and give her money with Islamic Fundamentalists.”
Many non-christians or marginal christians avoid her books too. Not everyone wants to read a 40-something woman’s 700+ page long book about English teenagers who are learning witchcraft. Not everyone is going to find that naturally appealing.
She might as well have said “BUY MY BOOK DAMMIT!”
Mickey D just wants to sell more of his books.
LifeSiteNews shouldn’t have put up a misleading headline like that. In fact, why are they talking about this issue at all? I guess they think banning Harry Potter is more important than stopping abortion.
Who REALLY wrote those books?
LLS
I agree with your assessment.
Regarding the passion he felt for Gellert Grindelwald, I never regarded it as sexual in the least. I think they were talented wizards who felt a kindred bond because of their unusual ability. I read the books at face value and like you, did not get any homosexual message regarding Dumbledore. I thought early on, that he and McGonagall might have had some sort of understanding, but aside from that, I thought he was an ethereal, symbolic, asexual figure, almost Christ-like in his willingness to sacrifice himself for the common good.
I’m not big on undercurrents in fiction, or art for that matter; say what you mean if you have a “message”.
Actually, given the number of Christians - including me - who do NOT believe Harry Potter is the Devil, your suggested headline would be misleading and inaccurate.
The one on the article - telling you what Rowling says - is perfect.
Well, to be honest, I don’t doubt she received death threats. Who knows if it was a real Christian or someone claiming to be Christian but trying to smear Christians by sending a hateful email.
That, and consider that there are many people that read ‘death threat’ in where no explicit threat is made. People could send her a note with “Repent or Perish” “One day God is going to judge you too” in it and she could claim it’s a death threat.
What kind of “fantasies” does one find at church and synagogue these days?
From the article:
“In the interview Rowling claims to have received death threats from Christians opposed to her novels, calling Christian ‘fundamentalists’ “dangerous” and comparing them by inference to Islamic fundamentalists.”
If she did say this, she is a pinhead. If she didn’t, she should sue the author for libel.
It's a bit late for that. It's already happened.
Good point.
I don’t see ANY gay overtones in the books.
Dumbledore is a typical ascetic scholar, IMO.
He wanted knowledge, not Grindelwald.
Thank for for a good laugh before I got to work!
Professor Kirke in the Narnia books is the same sort of figure, I think.
Next thing you know, someone will be saying HE’S gay....
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