Defending Harry Potter

WorldNetDaily ^ | 6/21/03 | Joel Miller

[Pahuanui]

The use of potions is a form of sorcery. For example.

Aha! So that's why my Chapstick always smells like sulphur.

Thanks for clearing that up.

[Cicero]

I agree it's annoying, but it's relatively harmless. They don't control the culture, the secular progressives do. In fact the only serious repercussion from these silly charges against Harry Potter are precisely what we see here; that they give ammunition to the New York Times crowd to bash "Christians" with.

But more than that, it's better to respect their motivations and try to argue with them rationally then just to bash them over the head. A lot of these same people are willing to give the benefit of the doubt to the magic and imagination in C. S. Lewis's Narnia stories.

And I'll go this far. I THINK Rowling is sound, but I won't be absolutely sure until I see the rest of the Harry Potter series. I don't quite trust her judgment in the same way that I learned to trust Tolkien and Lewis, because I'm not quite sure how theologically sophisticated she is. Her instincts appear to be good, but that isn't always enough.

[Overtaxed]

You can see the sports car on the pace lap in the shot taken behind the chariots. At the top of the screen there's a dark red convertible making turn 1.

Guess I'll have to get the DVD and see if I can get a screenshot of it.

[Aquinasfan]

The "magic" in the HP books isn't Wiccan or any other kind of magic practiced by real people.

That's debatable. The point is that these books are correlated with a rise in interest in the occult, as the largest pagan organization in England attests.

In England, the Pagan Federation has been barraged with so many inquiries about Wicca, mostly from teenage girls, that the group has appointed a youth officer whose primary responsibility will be to respond to Harry Potter fans who want to know how to become witches.

“It is quite probably linked to things like Harry Potter, 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch' and 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer,'” Pagan Federation Media Officer Andy Norfolk told "This Is London," a British news Web site.

Wiccans and other pagans consider Harry Potter a good example for would-be witches ...

If you can't trust the Pagan Federation, who can you trust? 8-o

[Servant of the Nine]

If magic is potrayed as fun in any way. It is Satanic. All magic whether used for Good or evil purposes is from the same source.

And do you avoid all the other litle Pagan rights, or do you join in celebrating them?

The Easter Bunny and Easter Eggs are part of the Pagan rights of Eastrus, Goddess of Fertility. Do you let the little kiddies worship her by hunting Easter Eggs?

Santa Claus is the old Northern European Winter Solistice Demi-urge. Do you let the kiddies worship the passing of Winter by giving and receiving presents?

Do you go along with the custom of eating Beans or Peas on New Years for "Good Luck"? It's good luck, cause the guy who got the black bean or the stone was the human sacrifice of the Winter Solistice and you weren't.

Do you have Holly and Mistletoe in your house at Christmas? A Druid way of Worship.

So9

[discostu]

It'll be a long search

http://www.geocities.com/sunstormdvdreview/oscarblitz/obreviews.html

Interesting factoid: There have been three great rumors circulating for years about the chariot race: One, that a red Ferarri is visible parked outside the stadium. Two, that in certain scenes, Heston is sporting a wrist watch. Three, that a man was killed during the filmming. All three are totally false, urban legends handed down for years from the movie industry.

[Aquinasfan]

The Pagan Federation, which represents druids and witches, says it has been "swamped" with calls following teenage programmes featuring good witches.

Speaking to BBC News Online the Pagan Federation's Steve Paine, the high priest of a coven, said the hit US drama Buffy and the highly successful Harry Potter books were popular amongst practising witches.

"They are taken as fantasy entertainment. But they do encourage people to think about different forms of spirituality", he said.

The Pagan Federation, which deals with about 100 enquiries a month from youngsters who want to become witches, does not allow anyone under the age of 18 to become a member.

Most of the enquiries are from 14 to 18 year-olds, and are dealt with "reactively" by a specially-appointed youth officer, an Essex based schoolteacher [the icing on the cake].

BBC Entertainment

[Overtaxed]

I don't remember seeing it parked outside the stadium, just on the pace lap.

[discostu]

The TV correlates with an increase in life expectancy, does that mean watching TV makes you live longer?

[Xenalyte]

Wiccans and other pagans consider Harry Potter a good example for would-be witches ...

With one teensy little caveat: THE SPELLS DON'T WORK.

[discostu]

100 enquiries a month is "swamped"? That's 5 per working day. More evidence that this thing is grossly overblown by those that like to overblow things.

[AnAmericanMother]

I think the Pagan Federation (which is of recent date, and is no more "authentic pagan" than you or I) is simply taking advantage of what they used to call "brand confusion". Once the kids find out that "magic" as practiced by Wiccans doesn't involve flying or zotting things, most of them will lose interest.

There have been many rumored "rise in interest in the occult" from time to time, supposedly triggered by everything from the old "Bewitched" and "I Dream of Jeannie" and "Dark Shadows" TV shows to heavy metal rock bands. It's mostly bunk, fueled by a certain amount of panic whipped up by those with an axe to grind. There are a few kids who are drawn to the Wiccan culture and stick with it, but they are few and their numbers don't seem to change very much over time (and frankly, better that than the Goths, who are often Satanists -- and the Wiccans are more afraid of Satanists than your average Christian, simply because they know more about them and what they do.)

As for how I know, I've known a Third Degree priestess in a Wiccan "grove" (not coven) for something like 25 years. (I think she is in grievous error, but she was an atheist before she was a Wiccan, so at least she's moving in the right direction.) Over the time she has been associated with her group (which is the largest in our area), the number of people interested in the Wiccan religion has remained fairly flat (and small). The group doesn't proselytize, and they don't allow minors to join unless their parents are already members. So I just don't see this as that imminent a threat.

[ntnychik]

ping

[Lady Jag]

It has been said in the chariot scene, one of the trumpeters is wearing a watch. However, others claim this is simply an unfortunately positioned shadow. There's no proof either way.

[Lady Jag]

Tire tracks from the camera truck are visible in the sand of the circus during the chariot race.

[Only1choice____Freedom]

The Pagan Federation, which deals with about 100 enquiries a month from youngsters who want to become witches, does not allow anyone under the age of 18 to become a member.

Is it that the Wiccan's (Spelled teachers) are so good promoting the witch as a reality or is it that the Christain leaders are bad at addressing contempary issues?

[discostu]

Now that one I'll believe. Poking around the movie sites I saw one that said the chariot race had a 265 to 1 film ratio (265 feet of film made for every foot that was actually in the movie) believed to be the highest ratio ever. With that kind of coverage you're bound to get some bad tracks in the dirt once in a while. They also said that for some of the close-ups from next to the chariot they actually reduced the rigs to 3 horse to get the camera truck closer. Coolest thing to come from Mr. Heston's commentary: the scene at the end of the chariot race of an audience member stealing a helmet off the sand really was somebody stealing the helmet, the extras were signaled to go crazy, they had a camera placed to see the audience past a helmet for a poignant counter point and some extra ran right up and took it.

[ecurbh]

You can see the sports car on the pace lap in the shot taken behind the chariots. At the top of the screen there's a dark red convertible making turn 1.

Just watched it again, but still couldn't see it. Are you talking about the wide overhead shot? All I saw in the background there was matte painting.

[Overtaxed]

Yes...it was kind of overhead right as the chariots roll onto the track. I have the tape. Guess it would be a good time to connect the VCR to the 'puter and try out my fancy shmancy video card.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Harry Potter stole my weekend, he did.
Evil little rotter... ;-)

Kreacher! Its you, inhabiting an FR thread.

;)