Harry Has The Right To Know The Whole Truth

[backstagemystic]

No: HPFGUIDX 75774

Buttercup wrote:
>>4. Harry should be allowed membership into the Order
and be able to attend their meetings. After all, the
purposes of the organization is to stop Voldemort, and
only Harry can do that. <<
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Harry is NOT emotionally mature enough to be part of the Order 
(especially now, as he's overwhelmed with anger, guilt and grief).

Plus, he has NOT mastered keeping Voldemort out of his mind.  With 
Harry sitting there, one might as well hookup a remote cam and 
speaker to allow Voldie to eavesdrop on the meetings.

Harry has talent and a good and brave heart, but he still lacks 
crucial knowledge and wisdom, and those simply cannot be *handed* to 
him by Dumbledore.  

Those will only come with time, experience (including hardships) and 
maturity under Dumbledore's patient guidance...and he's slowly 
getting there, but he's not there yet.  

Right now he acts too rashly and impulsively, and does not truly 
think things through enough to consider the broader picture or long-
term consequences...he simply has not developed the scope.  

There are two scenes in OOP which are worth re-reading in regard to 
this.

The first is on pp 476-477 (Am hard cover), where Sirius has to 
prevent the equally emotional and rash Weasley twins from charging 
off to St Mungo's to visit their Dad after he was attacked.  Sirius 
had to knock sense into the both of them, to get them to trust the 
adults handling the situation.  Here's a very relevant snippet:

[Sirius]:  "Your father knew what he was getting into, and he won't 
thank you for messing things up for the Order!" said Siruis angrily 
in his turn.  "This is how it is - this is why you're not in the 
Order - you don't understand - there are things worth dying for!"

When Sirius says " - you don't understand", he's NOT talking about 
information or knowledge the boys are lacking, he's talking about a 
deeper, mature and higher understanding (wisdom and common sense, if 
you will) for which the two boys are too young to grasp.

The other relevant scene comes between Phineas and Harry (pp. 495-6 
Am HC):

[Phineas]  "You know," said Phineas Nigellus, even more loudly than 
Harry, "this is precisely why I *loathed* being a teacher!  Young 
people are so infernally convinced that they are absolutely right 
about everything.  Has it not occurred to you, my poor puffed-up 
popinjay, that there might be an excellent reason why the headmaster 
of Hogwarts is not confiding every tiny detail of his plans to you?  
Have you never paused, while feeling hard-done-by, to note that 
following Dumbledore's orders has never yet led you into harm?  No.  
No, like all young people, you are quite sure that you alone feel and 
think, you alone recognize danger, you alone are the only one clever 
enough to realize what the Dark Lord may be planning..."

And contrary to some arguments, Harry WAS informed rather 
extensively, AND warned urgently about the need to take Occlumency 
seriously.

He was informed that Voldemort, an expert at Legilimens, now knew 
about the psychic connection between himself and Harry, and deduced 
that it would work both ways.   He was also informed that the normal 
barriers of time and space didn't seem to apply to that connection.

And Snape confirmed Harry's OWN question when Harry asked if 
Voldie "...might try and make me do things?"  

Snape also warned Harry about handing an opponent emotional weapons.

Harry didn't give it much thought or care, despite the urgency 
emphasized by Dumbledore, Sirius, Lupin, and Hermione (basically 
among those who are most important to Harry).  

Harry wanted the dreams to continue, so he didn't bother to 
practice...and he paid for it in the form of the terrible, and 
NEEDLESS, loss of his beloved godfather.

It was a harsh and sobering lesson for Harry to realize how easily 
he'd been deceived by Voldemort, how his own rashness endangered 
himself, his classmates, and the members of the Order who had to 
rescue them. 

>>
5. Harry has the right to know why Dumbledore trusts
Snape. What did Snape do to win him over?<<

No, he doesn't.  Just as he didn't have a right to violate Snape's 
memories in the Pensieve.  Dumbledore already made it clear that it 
was a private matter between himself and Snape.

If Harry truly respects Dumbledore, then he'll respect the fact that 
Dumbledore has clearly stated to him, twice, that he trusts Snape.  

I'm sure it will be revealed to Harry in due time.

Perhaps Harry needs to learn to trust others as well.

As Hermione stated (paraphrased):  If we can't trust Dumbledore, we 
can't trust anyone.

BM