Religion in the Potterverse/Fairy Godparents/BC/Hogwarts School Fees

[bluesqueak]

No: HPFGUIDX 40611


Pam writes:
> I was once a very committed Christian and I know how hard it is not 
> to see Christian symbolism or anti-Christian symbolism in          
> everything. 

Well, hey, y'know, it's just how we Christians are. Show us a 
reference to godparents,  Friars, Saints names, the phrase 'BC',  or 
a place like a 'dark and overgrown graveyard; the black outline of a 
small church was visible' (GoF p. 552 UK hardback) and we just have 
this strange habit of reading Christian symbolism into them. Silly of 
us, I know, obviously these things don't *really* have any Christian 
symbolism attached to them [grin].

Pam writes:
> Perhaps in secular Britain (wizarding or muggle) Christian symbols 
> should be seen as having a cultural significance, but not a        
> spiritual one. 

No, I think not. If you want to think of Britain as 100% secular, for 
whatever reason, go ahead. James and Lily may have had Harry baptised 
(or christened), thus acquiring Sirius as godparent, because they 
wanted pretty family pictures, or because the ceremony had a genuine 
spiritual meaning to them. 

The truth is, neither of us know their motives, and unless JKR 
deliberately chooses to reveal them ( and on the signs so far, she 
won't ) neither of us are going to find out which version is true. 
The real argument I was presenting in my post [40577] was that 
Christianity exists in the WW, just as it does in Muggle Britain, and 
there's no valid reason a Potterverse magician couldn't be a 
Christian.

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Christi writes:
> Also, I think in Sirius' case his role can be traced to a different 
> archetype--that of the "fairy godmother" (okay, godfather in his   
> case, but in the fairy tales it's usually a woman who gets the     
> job), the one who advises and aids the hero, giving them direction. 
> Like Sleeping Beauty's godparents, Sirius can't remove the evil in 
> Harry's life, but he can help out a little.

I did wonder if Sirius was the 'fairy godfather' (no reason JKR 
shouldn't be equal ops in the 'fairy godperson' department), but 
while he certainly sends Harry gifts and gives him advice (as any 
good godparent should, 'fairy' or not), I can't remember a fairy 
story where the godchild had to rescue the godparent. :-)

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Rosie writes:
<Snip Pip's comments on Ollivander's use of BC>
> Good point there, except most people I know who aren't of a 
> particular faith use "BC"; it's only the people who are really     
> really involved in their religion who use BCE. Is that different   
> where you are? 


I'm in the East End of London. It would probably depend here on 
whether someone  was (to paraphrase the old joke) a Christian 
agnostic or a Jewish agnostic, a Muslim agnostic, a Hindu 
agnostic...I've certainly noticed people I know here who are not very 
involved in their (non-Christian) religious backgrounds not 
liking 'BC'. 

Frankly, I have real difficulty imagining Wizards, who have such a 
total divorce from all things Muggle that they even use different 
money, using a 'BC' dating system just because it's the dates Muggles 
use. Especially when it's being used in a solely Wizarding area like 
Diagon Alley. JKR could have got a not dissimilar effect by putting 
something like 'Suppliers of wands to the Court of King Arthur'. :-)

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Vince writes:
> Does the middle-class wizarding family have an option besides      
> sending their progeny to an expensive private school? 

I think I assumed that Hogwarts school fees were what the British 
call 'means tested'. That is to say, there are school fees, but if 
your child is given a place at the school but you are unable to pay 
the fees, you fill in a (long) form about your family income or lack 
thereof. You then get part or all of the fees paid for you out of 
either a government grant, or charitable funds (usually set up by 
past pupils from poor backgrounds who became very rich in their after 
school lives).

Some old established, rich schools can afford to have up to a quarter 
or a half of their pupils on these 'means tested' scholarships - you 
can get left an awful lot of money over several centuries.  If 
Hogwarts pupils who make good have been leaving money to the 'poor 
scholars fund' (or whatever), for over 1000 years then that probably 
explains how the Weasley's can send seven children to Hogwarts.


Pip 
Squeak!