The prophesy...sorry for being boring

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 90174

> Whizbang wrote:
<snip> 
> I'm not sure it's Trelawney speaking when these prophesies are 
> delivered.  It doesn't sound like her voice and she seems unaware of 
> them.  So is she channeling someone else?

Carol:
Hey, Whizbang! We agree here. Since the voice doesn't sound like hers
and she's not aware that she's prophesying, clearly she's channeling
someone or something, very much as the ancient Sibyls she's named
after were supposed to have done (sibyl = prophetess or witch). Given
the foggy belief system in the WW, it's hard to say who she's
channeling, though. It can't be the pagan gods. Can it be the God of
Christianity or other monotheistic religions? I don't think so. An
impersonal voice from the spirit world? I just don't know. It's
interesting, though, that her grandmother was named Cassandra, after
the Trojan woman whose prophecies, though true, were never believed.

Whizbang:
> As for the "one with the power," my feeling is that there were 
> enough "identifying features" as Dumbledore called them, to pinpoint 
> the one who was born with the power.


Carol:
You're still taking your "born with the power" interpretation for
granted. Nowhere does the prophecy say that "the one" is born with the
power. (In fact, he hasn't even been born when the prophecy is
spoken.) It's entirely possible, and indeed probable, that he acquires
the power, or rather the potential for that power, when the curse
fails. Granted, part of the prophecy (the Dark Lord will mark him as
his equal) refers to the events at Godric's Hollow, but the rest of it
has not happened yet. Harry and LV have not yet met on equal terms,
and one or the other has not yet fallen. If Harry already had the
power to destroy Voldemort, he would have done so in CoS or GoF. It
appears that his powers are not yet fully developed. He's still a
wizard in training. In any case, the wording of the prophecy ise
ambiguous, and it's best not to be too certain of our interpretations. 

Whizbang:
  <snip> True, Dumbledore had to wait 
> for all the identifying features to manifest in order to know for 
> certain which boy the prophesy spoke of, as there was only one with 
> the power who approached, not a couple of possibilities.  Just 
> because it wasn't known for sure which boy was the one in the 
> prophesy, doesn't mean it could have been either.  As it was Harry,  
> it was always and only Harry.

Carol:
Again, you're taking your point of view for granted. It's possible
that Voldemort could have chosen--and "marked"--Neville. IMO, the
moment he chose Harry and unwittingly marked him with the scar (which
 may or may not have appeared because of Lily's protective charm),
"the one" became Harry. Until that point, either boy fit the
description and either could have been "the one." (At least we agree
that after Godric's Hollow, Neville was out of the running and the
prophecy applied only to Harry.)

Carol