Religion

[pt4ever]

Original Yahoo! HPFG Header:
No: HPFGUIDX C6250
From: pt4ever
Subject: Re: Religion
Reply To: [Yahoo! #6215] Re: Religion
Date: 8/8/00 1:37 pm  (ET)

>>>
> I am a Christian and do not see how the two worlds [Christianity and
magic] could intertwine but I suppose that the book is intended for
a younger audience that would probably not recognize the clash of the
two worlds.
>>>

Let me add a disclaimer before I begin -- the following is my opinion. I
hope I'm not offending anyone. I respect the right of everyone to
practice whatever religion they choose, even if I don't agree with their
beliefs. That said...

This conversation reminds me of "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson
Burnett (sp?). Mary, Dickon, and Colin frequently refer to "Magic"
as what helped make Colin well. Mrs. Sowerby encourages this, saying
something to the effect of, "The Great Magician doesn't care what you
call it, He knows what it is." (That's not a direct quote, but I don't
have a copy handy.) As a Christian, that's my take too...after all,
magic used for good can certainly have the power of God behind it,
and magic used for evil can certainly have the power of Satan behind
it. Voldemort seems a very Satanic character, IMHO.

As for the celebration of Christmas or Easter, both (especially Christmas)
are celebrated widely around the world, even by those with no ties to
Christianity. Perhaps JKR thought if she had Harry celebrating winter
break or spring break, many of her readers would innundate her with
questions like, "What about Christmas? Why doesn't Harry celebrate
Christmas?" If I'd read these books when 8 years old, I would have asked
that...just my opinion, though...

-- JoAnna