Harry Potter...Witchcraft?

Christians should highly regard the scriptures and what they say.  There are thing in there, like, "There shall not be found among you anyone that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination. … or an enchanter or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard. … For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord;" (Dueteronomy 18:10-12)
Surprisingly many turn a deaf ear to the parts like this, even when it says,  “they which do such things...(the above in mention) shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:21)   Apparently there is some confusion as to what exactly this means or doesn't mean and if it applies to people today.  Take for example, a recent work of literature marketed to kids, the recent publishing phenomena, Harry Potter.

Harry Potter is a story about a boy wizard.  It is written by a woman, an English writer named Joanne, (or rather, JK,) Rowlings. The hard cover book sold almost 7 million copies in the United States in its first 24 hours after publication. Saying that the book was popular would be an understatement. People of all ages stood in line to purchase the book hours before stores opened on it's publication date and the gleeful readers devoured it in hours.  But the story didn't stop with one episode, there have been many books to follow, all telling tales of Harry's wizardly adventures.   and the stories have even been made into movies.

The reason it was popular at the start was not because people read the book and liked it, nor was it word of mouth, (people telling other people about the fantastic book they had just read.)  The reason people loved Harry even before the book hit the shelves was the clever advertising.  It was as if, right before the public's eyes, the marketing experts from the four corners of the publishing world, cast their spell... and all the interested parties swam right into it barely thinking that perhaps a book about witchcraft  and a boy who is a wizard, learning all about how to cast spells and enchanter others into doing your will, would be something to avoid.    But with that said, not everyone was plugged-in to the media hype and clever advertising; and not everyone thought the book was the best choice for kids to be reading.  The dialogue between the two groups soon began and as such, these Harry Potter books became quite controversial.

In the story, the hero Harry is an orphan boy, and like Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars tale, Harry, (who doesn't know that he is destined to do great things,) finds himself in face to face battle with a villain character who has something do to with his personal history.  This is the evil Lord Voldermort.

Voldemort, murdered Harry’s parents who were "magical "and even though his parent passed on the ability to do magic to Harry Harry does not know this.  Harry finds himself living with people who hide this information from him becuse they hate magic.  Not only that, these are his relatives, his aunt and uncle, and they don;t love him at all, simply control him and treat him badly.  Harry does learn of his magic abilities when he makes contact with people from the magical wizardly part of his world, even though aunt and uncle try to keep them from contacting Harry. 

Harry's aunt and uncle, horrible, unmagical relatives, who not only want to keep Harry from his magical lineage, but also treat him badly and keep him in a closet are are described to the readers as "Muggles."  Eventually Harry makes contact with Hogwarts school and goes off to become a wizard where he has adventures that lead him to uncover a secret, destroy the philosophers/sorcerers stone cause Voldemort's defeat and graduates from the school and heads home for the summer... well, not really.


Some reviewers say that it’s the story of good verses evil, one we have all heard a million times before.  They liken the story to the story of any young boy that grows up and goes off to discover who he really is, a boy who loves his parents he never knew, a boy who makes friends and demonstrates courage, self-sacrifice and honesty... "Its  good story," they say.  REgarding the magic, they call it fantasy and say we should all rejoice because little wonderful Harry, overcomes the dark side of magic with the good, and remind the ret of us that it’s just an old, familiar tale, one with a magical twist no doubt, but on the whole it's a good story about bravery, honesty, and positive relationships, just like all the rest. 

This aside, some spiritually minded people remain concerned about the many aspects of the occult that children are being exposed to as they learn with Harry all the concepts of using magic spells and potions, as they are taught to think such things are perfectly normal, even desireable, if, like Harry, one i born to be a wizard, or a witch.  They believe that the idea around the rest which is all "innocent enough" would lure them into the idea that the world of dark arts is benign or friendly.  And it was not just the books and the movies that they were concerned over, it was the potion kits, magic wands, spell books, games, posters, and action figures from the books, things that would serve to intensify Harry play with things like "familiar spirits."  Concern was that children, exposed to Harry Potter would be interested in learning more and more about the dark arts and the occult.


People argued that this kind of fear was ridiculous.  They said that such things were harmless to kids, the stuff childlike fantasy is made of.  They said, everyone knows that this witchcraft stuff isn't really real, that 'magic' is illusion.  Even key information sources for the public, like child psychologist, Dr. James Dobson and his organization Focus on the Family, as well as Christian magazines like Christianity Today, hoping to shed some light on the matter at hand, began commenting on the phenomena of Harry Potter, giving parents and teachers of the Christian persuasion their point of view.   They wanted to both warn fellow Christians and dis-spell some of the concerns.

.Christianity Today, (CT) is a well know magazine marketed to Christians and as an authority on Christianity and media they published several articles over the years.  Titles included, Most Evangelicals Like Harry Potter Books, Really. (June 2003); Positive About Potter (December 1999); Virtue On A Broomstick (September 2000) Somewhat Wild About Harry (December 2001); and Let Harry Conjure Up Some Gospel Magic, Says Christian Magician. (Dec. 2001) Their January 2000 article titled, Why We Like Harry Potter, stated authoritatively, “We think you should read the Harry Potter books to your kids.”

Christianity Today Magazine even ran an article just before Thanksgiving Day 2001, (when the first Harry Potter movie was first released) titled, Wary About Harry.  In it they say the movie is a “big, clever, fast-paced adventure.” The article clearly recommended that parents not participate in what they labeled a “witchcraft hunt” or worry about the influence reading these stories will have on their kids.  For many reader of these magazines, this was a far cry from what the scriptures say in Deuteronomy.

Comparing JK Rowling's Harry Potter to CS Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, Engle's Winkle in Time, and Toklien's The Lord of the Rings, Overstreet, author for Christianity Today magazine, told his readers that Harry Potter, like such tales as these is merely whimsical, whimsical while they express spiritual truths.

What is the spiritual truth about witchcraft?  Is it a sinful reality or simply whimsical fantasy.  Should Christians seek spiritual insight into such matters from God's word or from man's litterary achievements?  The way I read scripture, the early converts to Christianity wanted nothing to do with anything occultic like witchcraft, once they had been converted in their minds and hearts, to the truth. Once they realized spiritual truth, once they believed in God, once the put their hope in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they lived to be pleasing to God and as a result they were even known to have burned all their occultic books. (Acts 19:19) They didn’t see the occult as harmless imaginative fun nor as something to be toyed with. 

Is it possible that someone has pulled the wool over the eyes of these Christians today?


Consider the whimsical fantasy of HArry Potter...

In the story, Hogwart’s Arcane School of Wizardry is compared to a magnificent imaginative castle built “away from prying Muggle eyes.” (A quote from pg. 114 of the Philosopher's Stone) “Muggles,” in case you do not know, are the stupid and easily fooled, often mean and controlling individuals in Harry's world, like Harry's Aunt and Uncle, who would dissent to or oppose actually teaching children (like the story's hero, Harry,) such magnificently wonderful things such as witchcraft.

The history of Hogwart’s, School  (as the reader learns) is that long ago, “witches and wizards suffered much persecution.” BUT…not to fear, for the wise founders of Hogwart’s, (the quote continues, )  "worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the magnificently imaginative castle to be educated."

You can avoid the books because God said to have nothing to do with such things, or you can read them to your kids and be happy to know that these books will inspire them with great spiritual insight.  It really is up to you, but remember, it could be that right under your nose, as if by some work of literary magic, someone has built an magnificently imaginative castle.