[HPforGrownups] Re: God in the WW?

[Britt Rossiter]

No: HPFGUIDX 132167

Brian wrote:

><< snip >>> Now, the short answer is this: No character has referenced God (or any other known ultimate reality), yet.  No one has even said, "Oh God," or "Thank God."  The closest we have is "Merlin," yet I stop short of thinking that Merlin worship is a feature of the WW.  Yet, I have no solid reason for excluding that possibility.
>
>Yet Christmas and Easter remain, and the WW follows muggle traditions, and this is significant. << snip >>
>  
>
brossiter responds:

Don't forget that Harry himself was christened, as confirmed by JKR on 
her website, an event Sirius, as Harry's godfather, attended.  This is a 
little bit of evidence (mind you, just a little) of Christian-oriented 
wizards, though - tellingly - it's not in the books, most likely to 
avoid too many potentially offended sensibilities. 

I can understand how secular wizards in the WW might exchange presents 
at Christmas and the like, but I find it harder to see why secular folk 
would go to great pains to christen their child (and it was something 
that was done deliberately, and at great risk, given JKR's statement 
that it was a "hurried" affair in light of LV's pursuit of them).  Even 
if the Potters' decision to have Harry christened, in the face of that 
risk, was a nod to tradition as opposed to an expression of faith, then 
where did the tradition come from?  Lily's Muggle family?  Petunia Evans 
Dursley does not strike me as the product of a deeply devout Christian 
upbringing.