Posted on 11/15/2002 2:23:23 PM PST by RJCogburn
The movie adventures of child-wizard Harry Potter will continue on November 15. Far from being an agent of the occult, as his critics contend, Harry Potter is the kind of hero children should be encouraged to read about and emulate, said the executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute.
"It is true that Harry lives in a magical, fantastical world, but what's important is that he is a hero who wins through intelligence, effort and courage," said Dr. Yaron Brook. "Throughout the series, Harry has developed his talents through hard work and has learned to think for himself, to be honest and to be self-confident. He has friends who share his values and he earns the respect of his teachers. Aren't these the character traits all parents want their children to possess? I know they're qualities I actively try to instill in my two boys."
Dr. Brook said that the critics' focus on the supernatural aspects of the Harry Potter stories is completely non-essential. What is fundamental is the abstract meaning being conveyed during the course of Harry's magical adventures. "The books are, in short, fuel for a child's maturing mind. As vitamins and minerals are essential to a child's healthy physical development, so literature with this view of the world is essential to a child's healthy mental development."
May time and experience grow you in wisdom...
Please tell me what kind of evidence you require to distinguish religion from superstition.
I saw it in an "all digital" theater and was very disappointed in the display quality -- like a cheap LCD monitor seen from a bad angle. Low brightness, not enough contrast, and no shadow detail. It reminded me of the low-end projection TVs that try to get a really big picture at the expense of quality.
The few who oppose HP for the reasons of it being 'demonic', 'witchcraft', and detrimental to children, by their inability to tell right from wrong against those who are what I will call 'free-thinkers'. The Bible is a good book, but it is not the ONLY book.
Those who say it is bad for children who cannot tell right from wrong, have not been parenting their children if THEY are not willing to teach their children what is real and what is fiction. Keeping your children closed off from society will not help them later in life when reality hits them.
This is similar to the crime of 'witchery' in the Midde Ages. Any attempt to advance the sciences was met with this charge, so half of Europe dies from the Plauge because the ones with knowledge were either burned at the stake for heresy or hid themselves.
Those that support the view of HP being entertainment and not harmful have taken it upon themselves to mentor their children in what is real and what is fantasy. It is by the grace of God that man is able to THINK for himself and make decisions based on that process.
Our final judgement is not determined by man, but by God alone.
The truth shall set you free. Isn't that better than dwelling in the dark of pathological paranoia ?
The truth will set you free. (John 8:32)
"God's dismissal in the 19th century, and the humiliation of truth in the 2oth, was supposed to set the world free."
"The experiment has been under way for some time now, and it is fair to ask, what are the... results---so far?"
"The Nazi experience in Germany provides a case study. There, a government and a society were organized on the principle of God's non-existence. Did liberation come to pass? On the wall of one of the death camps there is a plaque. It preserves the language of one of Hitler's speeches. The plaque overlooks large mounds of human hair, piles of personal effects; shoes, spectacles. The plaque reads: "I freed Germany from the degrading fallacy of conscience and morality. We will train people capable of violence-imperious, relentless, cruel. . ."
"Those sentiments were nurtured on the same continent that gave the world the reformation. Which was more liberating? If someone came today and said: "I am the truth," we would not take him seriously. But when Jesus says it, we are tempted to let him get away with it. If he is mad, it is a beautiful madness; such an attractive insanity. Let us not be ashamed to offer Christ to the world."
The truth will set you free. (John 8:32)
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