Nathan Zamprogno <> wrote in message . <> > I’m not defending the Harry Potter books, and I freely admit I haven’t

> read them. But I can smell hysteria a mile off, and nothing makes me

> crankier than people who just won’t think.

> —

> Nathan Zamprogno,

> I.T Manager- John Wycliffe Christian School.

>

We ought to be grateful to Nathan for this helpful post (may his tribe increase on aus.religion.christian :-)!

For interest, here are some notes from a parenting seminar my wife Jan and I conducted at Waverly Christian Fellowship (Victoria) a fortnight ago…

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Who’s Harry Potter? He’s a loyal friend, expert athlete, and boy wizard. For today’s young readers, he’s something of a hero. Author Joanne K. Rowling has created quite a stir. She’s sold more than 18.5 million copies of the first three books. The fourth book in the series, The Goblet of Fire, reached the New York Times bestseller list weeks before its July release.

For some Christian parents, Harry’s no hero: some even claim he’s “pure evil”.

There is no easy answer. The Harry Potter books are creative, insightful and well-written – and funny. From portraits of people who talk and often leave their picture to wander around, to candy that tastes like earwax, to staircases that lead to different destinations on Fridays, Rowling’s imagery ignites the imagination. Although the books aren’t Christ-centered and don’t promote Christianity, they still offer powerful lessons in compassion, courage, self-sacrifice and doing the right thing despite the risks. The characters are very real, experiencing real emotions and forming meaningful relationships with one another.

What’s wrong with Harry Potter? The primary concern is that Harry Potter is marketed to children and presents witchcraft as something attractive. “By disassociating magic and supernatural evil, it becomes possible to portray occult practices as good and healthy,” says John Andrew Murray in a recent issue of Teachers in Focus magazine. “This, in turn, opens the door for less discerning individuals to become confused about supernatural matters.”

These are legitimate concerns. The Bible clearly condemns witchcraft and tells Christians to “avoid every kind of evil” (1 Thess. 5:22). But for the most part, Christian experts agree that the world of wizards and spells created by Rowling is not the same as the occult-type practices Scripture condemns. “The magic in these books is purely mechanical,” says Charles Colson, Christianity Today magazine columnist and head of Breakpoint ministries. “Harry and his friends don’t make contact with the supernatural world.” The magic serves as a framework for the story, a technique used by writers such as Shakespeare and Tolkien.

According to Italian theologian Massimo Intovigne, “Magic is the main metaphor for life in fairy tales. If one should ban Harry Potter, one should also ban Peter Pan, Cinderella and Pinocchio. Harry Potter, unlike a number of cartoon superheroes, doesn’t win because he’s more proficient at magic than the bad guys. He wins because he’s intelligent and brave, and more human than his opponents. What the bad guys utterly lack is human feelings and basic human values.”

As with much of classic children’s literature, the world of Harry Potter is a world where good and evil coexist in constant tension. There’s little doubt that Harry remains on the side of right, battling the dark forces of evil. Children know that Harry is the good guy in these stories and can be confident that right will prevail in the end. As Christian parents, it’s important to be aware of the things our kids are reading, watching and listening to. The best way to determine if Harry Potter is right for your family is to read the books for yourself. Then filter their content through your own family’s value system.

If you want better books in this genre check your local library for these classics: The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis; At the Back of the North Wind, The Princess and the Curdie, The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald; A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle; The Wainscott Weasle, A Rat’s Tale by Tor Seidler; The Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander; The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien.