harry_potter

A "Grimm" View of Harry Potter...

I wonder if you happened to read any of the tales of King Arthur in your youth, featuring the "evil" Merlin the sorcerer; or how about the Disney animated knock-off "The Sword and the Sorcerer"? I remember reading a slew of books written by the Brother's Grimm; perhaps you recall them too:

Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Hansel & Gretel, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood,
Rumpelstilzchen, and Snow White, just to name a few.

You might notice each one contains such reprehensible characters and questionable activities as:

--Witches, witches, witches!!!

--Locking up children & fattening them before baking them in an oven

--A wolf that eats a grandmother and is then cut open by a woodsman

--A little man with "magical powers" who spins straw into gold in exchange for a first born child

Please understand my upbringing: I only went to church a handful of times as a child, there was virtually no God-talk in our home. (I came into a relationship with Christ as a young adult.) Even at the peril of my pagan upbringing and the exposure to such graphic and
"obviously evil" writings, I managed to grow up without embracing witchcraft, or dabbling in any of the perverse actions of the aforementioned stories. In short, I never thought "it's cool to be evil." For the record, I didn't observe any like "questionable" behaviors in fellow classmates.

I could argue that in the Harry Potter books as well as the Grimm collection, it is crystal clear what is good and what is evil. I might also suggest that "joe average child" identifies the good, the evil and then roots for the good guys. (Please seek immediate guidance if this is not the case in your home---do not pass go, do not collect $200.)

I might add that in terms of what is "dangerous" or a "bad influence" in our kids' culture, I lean not so much to the obvious good and evil of these types of books, but rather to the subtle shades of dark influence found in certain popular music lyrics..."Oh dad! It's just a song, get real!"

I am also more concerned about the amount of violence and lood behavior in an average Saturday afternoon of PG and PG13 cinema. Again exposure to certain types of movies is not accepted as "bad" yet science (and consciouce) tells us this over-exposure is a direct link to violent and disrespectful behavior. As kids get older, the evil seems harder to see---that concerns me. (Sorry, that's another editorial)

I would also bring into account, "The Chronicles of Narnia" by the British Christian author C.S. Lewis. Narnia is a fantasy land where animals behave as equals of humans,
witches wage war, dragons fly overhead and silver apples mysteriously restore health. It should be duly noted that this story is widely accepted as a Christian allegory, or in other words, the imagery has been and is used to explain Christianity to children. In fact, I found it on a webpage entitled "Favorite Resources for Catholic Homeschoolers."

If I have a point in all this, it's that certain characters or kinds of stories are not in and of themselves, evil. I would hope that we would closely look at an entire story before making an evaluation to whether it is appropriate or not.

I would also challenge us to be slow and reasonable when drawing cause-and-affect relationships. Just because a child reads a Harry Potter book prior to making a less than God-honoring decision doesn't prove the influence of author J.K. Rowling. In that same vein, every day in this country children of Christians make poor decisions---that doesn't make Christianity the culprit either.

For a little more objectivity on Harry Potter, in a review of book 4 of the series in "The Banner," a biweekly publication (IMHO typically conservative in nature) of the Christian Reformed Church, the reviewer's most concerned comments were: "A few unnecessary
expletives" and "disturbing violence in chs. 1, 32 & 33." And added, "It is ultimately his good character, not his magical tricks, that carries him through."---- It sounds milder than prime time TV from where I sit.

For me and mine, as Sandra and I raise our children in a Christ-centered home, we
dialogue with our children about the things they come in contact with; be it a show on
Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, a video rental with a witch in it, or maybe a Harry Potter book in our future.

My prayer is that through discussing the less than God-honoring things that will aways be in our world, our children will learn how to discern----that's a gift that keeps on giving! Personally, I like that scenario more than putting a household ban on witches, trolls and fairies. (By the way, banning always creates a keener interest.)

I would ask all of us as responsible Christ followers to look closely and completely at anything before we decide to commit to condemnation. Think on that as you read this last bit of Christian history:

"When the King James Version of the Bible first appeared in 1611, a London cleric claimed that it "sounds like yesterday's newspaper and denies the divinity and messiah-ship of Christ." Another chaplain accused the translators of pandering to King James' interest in witchcraft, and when they sailed for the New World in 1620, the Pilgrims refused to carry the King James Version with them." -Leonard Sweet

Peace to all! -Morgan

home page

back to foyer cafe page



	<-back

		A "Grimm" View of Harry Potter... I wonder if you happened to read any of the tales of King Arthur in your youth, featuring the "evil" Merlin the sorcerer; or how about the Disney animated knock-off "The Sword and the Sorcerer"? I remember reading a slew of books written by the Brother's Grimm; perhaps you recall them too: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Hansel & Gretel, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Rumpelstilzchen, and Snow White, just to name a few. You might notice each one contains such reprehensible characters and questionable activities as: --Witches, witches, witches!!! --Locking up children & fattening them before baking them in an oven --A wolf that eats a grandmother and is then cut open by a woodsman --A little man with "magical powers" who spins straw into gold in exchange for a first born child Please understand my upbringing: I only went to church a handful of times as a child, there was virtually no God-talk in our home. (I came into a relationship with Christ as a young adult.) Even at the peril of my pagan upbringing and the exposure to such graphic and "obviously evil" writings, I managed to grow up without embracing witchcraft, or dabbling in any of the perverse actions of the aforementioned stories. In short, I never thought "it's cool to be evil." For the record, I didn't observe any like "questionable" behaviors in fellow classmates. I could argue that in the Harry Potter books as well as the Grimm collection, it is crystal clear what is good and what is evil. I might also suggest that "joe average child" identifies the good, the evil and then roots for the good guys. (Please seek immediate guidance if this is not the case in your home---do not pass go, do not collect $200.) I might add that in terms of what is "dangerous" or a "bad influence" in our kids' culture, I lean not so much to the obvious good and evil of these types of books, but rather to the subtle shades of dark influence found in certain popular music lyrics..."Oh dad! It's just a song, get real!" I am also more concerned about the amount of violence and lood behavior in an average Saturday afternoon of PG and PG13 cinema. Again exposure to certain types of movies is not accepted as "bad" yet science (and consciouce) tells us this over-exposure is a direct link to violent and disrespectful behavior. As kids get older, the evil seems harder to see---that concerns me. (Sorry, that's another editorial) I would also bring into account, "The Chronicles of Narnia" by the British Christian author C.S. Lewis. Narnia is a fantasy land where animals behave as equals of humans, witches wage war, dragons fly overhead and silver apples mysteriously restore health. It should be duly noted that this story is widely accepted as a Christian allegory, or in other words, the imagery has been and is used to explain Christianity to children. In fact, I found it on a webpage entitled "Favorite Resources for Catholic Homeschoolers." If I have a point in all this, it's that certain characters or kinds of stories are not in and of themselves, evil. I would hope that we would closely look at an entire story before making an evaluation to whether it is appropriate or not. I would also challenge us to be slow and reasonable when drawing cause-and-affect relationships. Just because a child reads a Harry Potter book prior to making a less than God-honoring decision doesn't prove the influence of author J.K. Rowling. In that same vein, every day in this country children of Christians make poor decisions---that doesn't make Christianity the culprit either. For a little more objectivity on Harry Potter, in a review of book 4 of the series in "The Banner," a biweekly publication (IMHO typically conservative in nature) of the Christian Reformed Church, the reviewer's most concerned comments were: "A few unnecessary expletives" and "disturbing violence in chs. 1, 32 & 33." And added, "It is ultimately his good character, not his magical tricks, that carries him through."---- It sounds milder than prime time TV from where I sit. For me and mine, as Sandra and I raise our children in a Christ-centered home, we dialogue with our children about the things they come in contact with; be it a show on Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, a video rental with a witch in it, or maybe a Harry Potter book in our future. My prayer is that through discussing the less than God-honoring things that will aways be in our world, our children will learn how to discern----that's a gift that keeps on giving! Personally, I like that scenario more than putting a household ban on witches, trolls and fairies. (By the way, banning always creates a keener interest.) I would ask all of us as responsible Christ followers to look closely and completely at anything before we decide to commit to condemnation. Think on that as you read this last bit of Christian history: "When the King James Version of the Bible first appeared in 1611, a London cleric claimed that it "sounds like yesterday's newspaper and denies the divinity and messiah-ship of Christ." Another chaplain accused the translators of pandering to King James' interest in witchcraft, and when they sailed for the New World in 1620, the Pilgrims refused to carry the King James Version with them." -Leonard Sweet Peace to all! -Morgan home page back to foyer cafe page .