The Christian Alternative to Harry Potter
Posted on July 18th, 2007 by catalyst into the Christian Pop Culture categoryI should have seen this coming, but there is a huge market for Christian Fantasy books. Books that revolve around a fantasy world but don't mention, you know who…
For a Christian family who's a little skeptical of some of the messages in the Harry Potter books, then they would find my books safe," said Wayne Batson. Batson's Door Within series features teenager Aidan Thomas, who is suddenly plunged into an enchanted world.
For whatever reason, Christians just aren't cool with Harry Potter.
The use of magical powers by humans is a controversial theme for Christian writers and readers. They cite this biblical verse from the book of Deuteronomy in the Old Testament: "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead."
As everyone knows, I subscribe to the "If it's in the Old Testament, it's only half-right" philosophy. But I'm cool with this verse. People really shouldn't be sacrificing their children in the fire, or you know, casting spells. But especially that first part, no burning kids.
My deal with Harry Potter is I never saw the difference between those books (which I admittedly never read) and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (which I also never read, but did see the movies). However, for whatever reason, the Lord of the Rings novels get a pass from the Christian community.
So can someone who has read both novels, tell me the difference between Harry Potter and Gandolph.
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July 18th, 2007 at 7:35 am
So can someone who has read both novels, tell me the difference between Harry Potter and Gandolph.
Puberty.
Try the veal.
July 18th, 2007 at 7:42 am
The hypocrisy is pretty obvious, especially when churches sponsor movie events to see “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe” by C.S. Lewis. It actually has the word “witch” in the title, for gosh sakes. She is portrayed as evil, but Aslan himself discusses “white magic” in the book, and there are other characters in the series who perform magic for both good and evil.
My perspective is that the Bible passages referring to magical and occult-like practices are things that are an attempt to manipulate the spiritual realm for personal benefit outside of a relationship with God. As Believers, we have the ultimate “magic” in the power of the Holy Spirit. We should accept no substitute! Someone who moves in the gifts of the Spirit could be considered as performing magic, if we define the word to mean anything not explainable by scientific means. It’s semantics, I know, but it is really not a stretch to see how some cultures could view the Holy Spirit as good magic as opposed to bad magic. Whereas in Western culture, we associate magic with occultism, so the knee-jerk reaction is to condemn anything that uses the word.
Besides the obvious reasons, I think that Potter books are open to religious criticism because Rowling makes magic a neutral entity - a tool to be studied and used as one might study physics or chemistry - and there are no religious grounds for the characters to make moral choices with its use.
July 18th, 2007 at 9:21 am
Gandolf is a metaphor for Jesus.
He dies, rises again in X days, and saves everyone. Also he’s got some new white clothes afterwards.
And Tolkien was friends with C.S. Lewis who most people I know claim is the greatest writer ever. Even people who hate Catholics love to go on about how Tolkien was Christian.
Honestly I don’t see LOTR as a metaphor for Christianity, I see it as middle age English stories made nice and decent to tell to children.
July 18th, 2007 at 9:54 am
Very easy….Tolkien was a christian and J.K. Rowling is not.
July 18th, 2007 at 11:51 am
Rock:
Actually J. K. Rowling is a Christian.
July 18th, 2007 at 11:55 am
“However, for whatever reason, the Lord of the Rings novels get a pass from the Christian community.”
A majority of Christians believe any bowl of fodder fed to tham by their perfect leaders I consider both works in the same category. My old church actually showed LOTR in the church during some silly movie night they had and I called some people out on the hypocrisy of the matter to which they of course had no response………as usual.
July 18th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
What if:
1. Instead of casting spells, they just prayed for things to happen.
2. Instead of riding on broom sticks they were whisked away on fiery chariots.
3. Instead of magic wands the had staffs of power.
4. Instead of going on journeys to find books written by ancient mystics, they went to the Vatican’s library.
5. Instead of uttering words of power they spoke in tongues.
All I can say is RIDICULOUS.
Would it than be ok to read?( I probably still wouldn’t read them.)
One Love
July 19th, 2007 at 12:02 am
A good book to read, is “looking for God in Harry Potter” by John Granger. It’s not the typical Christian apologetics book looking to justify compromise. it’s actually a good piece of literature.
July 20th, 2007 at 7:53 am
Really? I didn’t know that.
I can hear the age old argument echoing from evangelical circles: If she’s a christian, why is she writing about spells, sorcery and witchcraft? How does that glorify God?
July 20th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
Why don’t we gather up all of the books that we don’t agree with and have an old fashion book burning. Surely if we don’t like them they must be bad. How about “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Alices Adventures in Wonderland, The Diary of Anne Frand, Arabian Nights, Call of the Wild, Catcher in the Rye, Charley and The Chocolate Factory, Gone With the Wind, The Grapes of Wrath, Hamlet, Macbeth, Etc Etc Etc. Now it is acceptable for Christians to read the Chronicles of Narnia but here but a middle school tried to have it banned in 1990 “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. C.S. Lewis. Macmillan. Challenged in the Howard County, Md. school system (1990) because it depicts “graphic violence, mysticism, and gore.” I’m sure the school system would rather have its children reading something which adheres to “good Christian values.” This was just 17 years ago.
These are all books that people have tried to ban. What happens when a group of people want to ban our Bible. Which by the way they have tried.
I know a lot of christian kids who have read Harry Potter and to my knowledge none of them have tried to sacrifice a chicken in the backyard yet.
July 22nd, 2007 at 2:56 pm
“Why don’t we gather up all of the books that we don’t agree with and have an old fashion book burning. Surely if we don’t like them they must be bad.”
A bit dramatic don’t you think?
I don’t agree with Harry Potter as a good childrens book. Why is it that they read this book to elemantry school children? They don’t read the chronicles of Narnia? If they need books to get childrens imagnation how about sticking with books that actually teach them something. What does Harry Potter teach these children? What are we filling there minds with? Harry has proven to be a whimy rebellious teen in all of his books not to mention that the popularity of white and black magic has raised among youth. The white magic referred to In Narnia is the magic of Jesus christ not of Nature or some mysterious power. It is the power of the Blood of Jesus Christ Washing away the sins of man and making them a pure white that we cannot even began to grasp. That is the kind of White Magic i would gladly have anyday and everyday.
Thank you and have a good day.
July 22nd, 2007 at 8:17 pm
Hey there. I was wondering, would you be able to link us to that study/survey? I’d be really interested in reading it.
Thanks!
July 22nd, 2007 at 8:34 pm
The reason they read Harry Potter in elementary school is because they are children’s books. I don’t think that we give kids enough credit. They can separate the difference between fantasy and reality better than some adults I know. Lets face it Harry Potter made reading cool again. A generation of kids who could of grown up never reading a book are now at ease reading an 800 page book. I would rather have kids use their imaginations and be exposed to magic which they know is not real than become illiterate. Reading expands the imagination, people who start reading at a young age and enjoy it will be more successful in college and life in general. If they only read to learn something and not for pleasure than odds are they will not enjoy reading later in life. If children are forced to only read christian books and are not allowed to read for pleasure they will eventually rebel and then you might really have something to worry about. Kids are not a dumb as you think.
July 23rd, 2007 at 7:59 am
On Friday night as I waited for the bus across from Powells, there were people lined up around 2 blocks waiting to buy the the new Harry Potter book. Those who were dressed up and who were clearly more into it than anyone else were older people (most of them not with kids and clearly too old to have young children). I would agree that we don’t give kids enough credit and we give adults far too much. (This being said with no particular opinion about the books).
July 23rd, 2007 at 7:59 am
Good point, Finally Speaking Out. Kids aren’t as dumb as you think.
Also, I think, if anything, the Harry Potter books are a great opportunity for open dialogue between parents and their children. If you want your kids to know that Harry Potter isn’t real, not letting them read the books isn’t going to really do anything. You have to talk about it with them.
July 23rd, 2007 at 8:08 am
I think that is good for just about any topic Rock. Talking with kids about things instead of ignoring them and hoping the kids don’t notice is dangerous because kids will try to find out on their own–and that can lead to false information or just plain bad information. I think the best example of this is sex (and all that that entails).
July 23rd, 2007 at 5:36 pm
I’m a school teacher and I went back and forth for awhile on the books. I have read every book and just started the 7th book. Bottom line—kids read the books and teachers read the books to kids because they are very well written pieces of literature.
They are NOT dark and haunting like the Harry Potter books of my day—John Bellairs. I can remember being a 7th grader home alone reading those books and being TERRIFIED.
As a teacher I like the fact that the books have motivated children to read. However, I think most kids attempt to read them too young.
I think it’s ok for Christian kids to read them if it doesn’t hurt their conscience. I think TV shows like Charmed, and Buffy are much more harmful.
July 23rd, 2007 at 6:16 pm
“The reason they read Harry Potter in elementary school is because they are children’s books. I don’t think that we give kids enough credit. They can separate the difference between fantasy and reality better than some adults I know. Lets face it Harry Potter made reading cool again. A generation of kids who could of grown up never reading a book are now at ease reading an 800 page book.”
THANK YOU! What kindof parent COMPLAINS about their kid reading 800 page books!!?!? And yes, we don’t give kids enough credit. (I do but most adults don’t.) They are smart…..many are smarter than most adults.
July 24th, 2007 at 6:39 am
>>THANK YOU! What kindof parent COMPLAINS about their kid reading 800 page books!!?!? And yes, we don’t give kids enough credit. (I do but most adults don’t.) They are smart…..many are smarter than most adults.
I know way too many people who care more about what their kids are reading then if they’re reading at all.
I read Jurassic Park when I was 12, because dinosaurs were awesome, I didn’t care about the swearing and such, no I wanted dinosaurs. So I ended up reading a 300pageish book. When I was in middle school, my mother bought me the entire Dune series, and she didn’t get upset that it had themes of religion=bad, the main characters were space-muslims, or that it has at least 4 sex scenes. Actually in retrospect she probably didn’t know about the sex scenes.
July 24th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
i wanted to add that i am a kid. i am in fact a teenager, a more opinionated kid lol. It is not that i disagree with kids reading a good book. heck i loved Bridge to Terabithia as well as many other of my elemantry school books. I love reading a good long book. In fact my idea of a short book is 400 pages. However do we read books about the christian faith in public scools? no in fact if anyone did there would be a huge debate of seperation of church and state, which in fact refers to a letter that was written by Thomas Jefferson that stated that no state was allowed to interere with religious beliefs. I find it frusturating that a book that has good literary elements but happens to contain witchcraft is excepted into the schools but a book that is about christianity would be rejected.
My opinion.
http://teen2teens.blogspot.com/
July 24th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
???
July 24th, 2007 at 6:19 pm
Lighten up! Harry Potter is not treated as a religous book. I have Bridge to Terabithia and it is only 163pgs. (It is still a great book) If Harry Potter was endorsing a religion than I wouldn’t believe it should be in school. If all books with magic were omitted from schools you wouldn’t be allowed to read Bridge to Terabithia, Allice in Wonderland etc. Just about every classic children’s book contains magic in it.
July 28th, 2007 at 10:58 am
You know we are all arguing about whether or not kids should read this book. I find it funny that when a kid (me as well as my 4 siblings) say we don’t like what the book teaches us or how it makes us feel, you don’t listen. So are you going to fight with a child and tell them that this book is good for them no matter how they feel or their opinion?
http://teen2teens.blogspot.com/
July 28th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
God’s Pen,
I feel that if Harry Potter books make you feel bad you should not read them. If it were Alice in Wonderland, Chronicles of Narnia, Peter Pan, Snow White, Cinderella or any other books and they made you feel bad i don’t think you should read them. But if your friends have no problem with them then don’t judge them. There are some people that wil onlly read the bible and that is perfectly all right for them. For me it is just a fantasy book and I know it is not real. If others can seperate fantasy from reality than they should have the option. Reading should be for pleasure I don’t like popular mechanics–others love it. I love reading the Bible, fantasy, mysteries etc. Are you going to tell another person they should not read this book no matter how they feel or what their opinion is about it. Being God’s Pen would be a heavy load for anyone.
July 29th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
God’s Pen: Are you ignoring me? Did I somehow offend you?
I come from a big Christan family and was homeschooled my whole life. We were not allowed to watch movies such as the little Mermaid etc. because of the values the movies taught and because they used magic. Same with books.
My Little Nephew couldn’t stand to watch the movie Polar Express and cried when it was on. His brother loved it and wanted to watch it all the time. That did not make the movie bad for kids. That made it bad for him to watch.
If and when you get out of the Christian bubble you’ll find that no one respects your religion when you live a life of hypocrisy. You will not be able to be “salt to the world” when you say one thing about Harry Potter, but you have no problem with Star Wars, Cinderella, Shrek, etc. No one says you have to like everything. You just can’t put words in God’s mouth and say your preferences are right and holy and what you don’t like is evil.
After all, I know a lot of Christians who would have a problem with the music you listen to (since Christan Rock is a compromise with the world and they can feel that God is not in the music).
I think you’ll have much more success as a “extreme teen for Christ” if you learn to listen and love. Not tell everyone how wrong they are because you don’t like the books they read.
Anyway… peace.
July 30th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Okay, now to answer the original question, as someone who has read both series in their entirety.
In the most literal sense, the difference between Gandalf and Harry Potter is that Gandalf is not human - he is an angelic being sent to Middle Earth in human form. While other races in Middle Earth perform acts of magic, humans don’t. It’s that loophole that allows some churches to accept Tolkien’s work while eschewing Rowling - according to the verse quoted above, descendants of Adam and Eve aren’t supposed to meddle with “magic.” Make the magic-users non-human, and it’s okay!
Similarly, in the Chronicles of Narnia, there aren’t human characters that use magic - Aslan, the White Witch, and Ramandu (Voyage of the Dawn Treader) are NOT human. Doctor Cornelius (Prince Caspian) is a human/dwarf hybrid, but his use of spells frowned upon later in the book. The Lady of the Green Kirtle (The Silver Chair) MIGHT be human, but probably not. And she’s certainly not using ‘white’ magic. Uncle Andrew (The Magician’s Nephew) gets in terrible trouble with his ‘experiments,’ though he never really seems to learn his lesson.
By way of disclaimer, I personally don’t have difficulty rationalizing the use of magic in fantasy fiction as long as the author works out the mechanics in such a way that the protagonists aren’t deriving their power from a demonic source.
Regarding Rowling’s christianity, here’s an excerpt from the interview she recently gave with NBC:
So there we go, for what it’s worth. The debate over what makes one a Christian goes back 2k+ years and has spawned a plethora of sects within one religion. When it comes down to it, it’s really between Jo and Jesus whether she’s a Christian or not.
July 30th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
Sounds like she would fit in well here.
July 30th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Definitely. What fun we would have with her.
j
July 31st, 2007 at 10:04 pm
Hey doug
Not ignoring just stopped. You all amke some great points granted and i am not saying i stand with picket signs or tell kids DON”T READ HARRY POTTER. In fact I actually just wrote an article about harry potter. However, I remeber what is was like in school when the book was being read. I can bet that many of you have never actually had it read to you as a student. MAny of you asked for me to post the survye to stump me and honestly i can’t but i don’t need it. I worked in a library and watched as kids checked out books about black magic and how cool it was. I had friends that read Harry Potter and than tried to do magic. I don’t need a survey to tell me that it changed kids ideas about withcraft.
I am not an in your face kind of a person and when the board got hot i left. So you should know that what i say is what i feel and believe. I call myselfs gods_pen because it is my passion, to voice the opinions of those whos usually are pushed into the dark, virgin teens and teens who don’t do drugs. Teens that just want to have some one tell them that what they believe is okay as well. Instead of always telling them that they need to realize the ways of the world and change.
Thank you all and I am sorry if I offended anyone.
Rock On J.K. Rowling. Your sucess is an inspiration.
http://teen2teens.blogspot.com/
August 1st, 2007 at 9:49 pm
Has anyone on here read the seventh book? It was fantastic! There are subtle Christian allegorys and imagery throughout the whole series; but the motiff is made very clear and explanitory in the last installment of the Potter books.
People looked foolish saying that the Potter books are actually Christian literature, but now it is beyond a doubt that they are. Certainly people will be trying to say that they are not, but there is not much arguement after this book. Rowling continually qoutes scripture throughout the book and analogizes beautiful the Gospel messge in the conclusion to the Potter saga. I wont give details for the fear of spoiling some ones reading experience, but it was unambiguously a spectacular delivery.
August 2nd, 2007 at 6:05 am
Labeling HP a “Christian” book is quite a stretch, Ian. (Yes, I read it and enjoyed it.) There are strong religious themes similar to Christianity, but the most important element is left out: there is no mention of God at all, let alone anything that would indicate how our faith affects the afterlife. I think it’s interesting and entertaining that she borrowed Scripture to strengthen her unspoken argument for personal virtue and goodness, but it was hardly preachy or intended to make a statement about Christianity. I think you assign too much credit in this case. Even C.S. Lewis adamantly refused to acknowledge his fantasy works were anything but fantasy. He insisted that any religious imagery was purely coincidental.
But even the editors of the WSJ couldn’t help but notice the religious tones this time around.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB118523218924275494.html
*** SPOILER ALERT - DON’T READ THE QUOTED BLOCKS IF YOU WANT TO FINISH THE BOOK ***
Another opinion:
http://swordofgryffindor.com/2007/07/22/deathly-hallows-initial-reactions/#more-443
I can see their points here, but I think the book is at best hinting at religious themes, but that hardly makes it “Christian”.
On the other hand I read some interesting things about Rowling about her own personal beliefs:
http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2000/1000-vancouversun-wyman.htm
August 2nd, 2007 at 7:40 am
Thanks for posting the interview quote, FICM - that’s more informative than any number of book reviews.
August 2nd, 2007 at 7:55 pm
Perhaps I did use language which was a bit strong in describing the Christian message in the Potter books; regardless, one would certainly have to try very hard to read them in the hindsight of the seventh book and not notice the various allusions to the Christian faith throughout the books.
And no she did not mention God, but does that mean that there isn’t something within the books which are symbolic of God? Honestly, i’m not trying to conjure up some hidden meanings in the books, which really don’t exist; but i would just find it hard to argue the other way? (ignorance?).
Lewis said that any allegorys within his books were purely coincidental, but were they? I’m not saying that he was a liar, but how is someone going to write anything without their fundamental beliefs about the universe and life rubbing off in it or even without them being central to the meaning. I mean, before I became a Christian, when I read the books and saw the movie, I audibly stated, “Aslan is Jesus.” And I didn’t know diddly about the Gospel message.
perhaps in the future, Rowling will give more insight on what she intended the readers to understand about certain aspects of the book. until then, we only have our imaginations, common sense, and what rowling has already said. isn’t that half the fun?
here’s an interesting qoute on on why harry potters wand is made of holly
“I gave Harry a wand made of holly wood…It was not an arbitrary decision: holly has certain connotations that were perfect for Harry, particularly when contrasted with the traditional associations of yew, from which Voldemort’s wand is made. European tradition has it that the holly tree (the name comes from ‘holy’) repels evil, while yew, which can achieve astonishing longevity (there are British yew trees over two thousand years old), can symbolise both death and resurrection; the sap [of the yew] is also poisonous.” -J.K. Rowling
August 14th, 2007 at 1:18 am
Wow– how perspective makes all the difference. I actually thought you were making serious alternatives– all which sounded GREAT to me! Who knows– someone just might take you up on those!
March 31st, 2008 at 8:57 am
I think this is a wonderful book!