“I was eager to get to Hogwarts first because I like what they learned there and I want to be a witch.” Gioia Bishop, age 10.[1]
Might Harry Potter seem as real as life to his young fans around the world? Do children accept Harry’s lessons in practical witchcraft as an open door to an occult reality? Many Christian leaders have denied any such danger, but author J.K. Rowling admits that this happens. In an interview with Newsweek’s Malcolm Jones, she said,
“I get letters from children addressed to Professor Dumbledore [headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the books’ setting], and it’s not a joke, begging to be let into Hogwarts, and some of them are really sad. Because they want it to be true so badly they’ve convinced themselves it’s true.” (The Return of Harry Potter)
“The Pagan Federation has appointed a youth officer to deal with a flood of inquiries following the success of the Harry Potter books which describe magic and wizardry.”
“It is quite probably linked to things like Harry Potter, Sabrina The Teenage Witch and Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” explains the Pagan Federation’s media officer, Andy Norfolk. “Every time an article on witchcraft or paganism appears, we had a huge surge in calls, mostly from young girls.”
Source: http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/Harry&Witchcraft.htm
What if I were to tell you that the folks at Focus on the family were receiving mail addressed to the Adventures in Odyssey characters? Would you then want them to stop producing those radio shows, or would you put the blame on the parents who had let their kids get to a place where they didn't understand fantasy and reality?
What if you found out that C.S. Lewis had received letters addressed to Aslan, asking for magical items like the ones he gave to the Pevensy children? What if J.R.R. Tolkien had received letters addressed to Gandalf asking him to take the writer in as his student? Would you then say no Christian should read The Narnia books or the Hobbit?