HP religion debates

[Ebony]

No: HPFGUIDX 8423

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, "Dinah" 
<betty_belladonna at f...> wrote:
> About Philip Pullman's trilogie:
> 
> There were several strong negative reactions from the Church 
about his > books. The NYT article mentions it...

You know, at the church I currently attend, the reading of *most* 
fantasy literature is very seriously frowned upon.  So is teaching 
children to believe in Santa Claus.  So is most imaginative 
material that teaches children "untruths".  So is listening to 
secular music.  So are trading card games like "Magic:  The 
Gathering" and "Pokemon".

It's all a matter of perspective.  I did *not* start this thread to imply 
that Christians were evil or stupid or killjoys.  Quite the contrary.  I 
think people are people, and we are much more alike than we 
are different.   There are Christians who read and enjoy 
Pullman's books--some of us can make a clear distinction 
between the dictates of the church visible and the church 
invisible.  (Lewis himself makes this distinction in the novel "The 
Screwtape Letters.)  But there are Christians who feel that this 
material is harmful to not only themselves, but society as a 
whole.

Finally, I'm not sure I buy the assertion that Lewis was anything 
*but* Christian... to say that would imply a definition of 
Christianity in the narrowest possible terms.  I've read his fiction, 
but his non-fiction works are just as significant and personally 
more meaningful to my current life-stage (my favorite so far is 
"The Four Loves").  I believe he was merely a thinking Christian... 
and perhaps one of the most influential Church thinkers of the 
age.  

To bring this back to the topic:  if it wasn't for reading Lewis' 
nonfiction/theological works a few years back, I'm not sure I 
would have ever read Harry Potter.

--Ebony