Christians and HP revisited

[Beth]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "Terry James" 
<terryljames at h...> wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> >From: "alora" <chrisnlorrie at y...>
> 
> C.S. Lewis.  And the Narnia series cannot really be compared to 
HP, as Lewis 
> was quite clearly writing an allegory of several Bible stories.  
However, 
> just because books aren't retellings of the Bible doesn't mean 
they're 
> demonic.
> 

One of the articles  
http://www.ev90481.dial.pipex.com/harry_potter_granger.htm  I came 
across is by John Granger, who I see is going to be giving a 
featured presentation at Nimbus 2003. He says that before Lewis was 
known as a Christian, "his published fiction was greeted with a 
yawn - and a confused yawn at that." But after /Mere Christianity/ 
and /The Screwtape Letters/, people saw his books for what they 
were. 

He goes on to point out allusions to Narnia, specifically Digory 
Kirke/Cedric Diggory and that "Objections to the magic in Harry 
Potter, however, mistake the edifying use of magic in literature for 
actual invocational sorcery condemned by Scripture which it clearly 
is not."
 
> 
> Wish I could help you, but I deal with the same thing.  My dad 
gets on to me  all the time about reading such "trash" and exposing 
my kids to demonic  evil--I let my six-year-old watch most of the 
first movie, but not the  second, because contrary to what he 
thinks, I'm very careful about what my kids see or hear. 

What I found really interesting was Granger's analysis of CoS: "The 
finish to Chamber of Secrets, as morality play, is the clearest 
Christian allegory of salvation history since Lewis's The Lion, the 
Witch, and the Wardrobe." (Pullman fans should just scroll down 
through the middle part :o))

 > Wish everybody was that understanding.  But my dad hasn't 
approved of  anything I've ever done anyway (think Snape meets 
Vernon) so I try to ignore  him.  Bit difficult, though, when they 
try to make you feel like a horrible  parent.
> 
> Tery LJ
> 

My problem is, my dad hasn't been horrible. Saddened, maybe, at some 
of my choices, but still loving. We used to have long discussion 
about all kinds of things when I was a teen (on my every-other-
weekend) and while we didn't agree on everything, we could talk. But 
his statement about feeling uneasy is one of those difficult-to-
address Christianese phrases. At this moment, I don't know if 
bringing up Granger's (Isn't his name a wonderful irony?) points 
would make him willing to discuss or drive a wedge in our 
relationship.

I'm just thinking this through as I "write it out" of me, sorry. But 
boy! What a sock in the gut that was!

Beth