Christianity in HP? (WAS: Dumbledore's Death)

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 151060

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Rachel Crofut" <rhetorician18 at ...> wrote:

Rachel:
> It seems to me that JKR wouldn't use witches and wizards (often associated 
> with being in cohorts with the devil, see the Salem Witchcraft Trials, the 
> term "witchhunts" which refer to looking for the bad people, and many other 
> negative associations) to express Christianity.  Also, I would assume that 
> JKR would respond to the Pope and insist that she was attempting to teach 
> children Christianity, I don't see her allowing the Pope to suggest such 
> things about her series if she was really trying to instill Christian 
> morals.  Rather I see her encouraging children to learn more about the world 
> in which they live and, also, to live morally.  A book doesn't need to teach 
> Christianity to teach morality.

Geoff:
I speak as a evangelical Christian and my response to your first sentence would
be "Why not?"

For many years, I allowed myself to be swayed by members of my church into
thinking that the HP books were bad without looking for myself. However, I have 
now come round to the point of view where I believe that they -  and this 
discussion group - present a very good platform where the fundamental truths of 
Christian faith can be discussed.

Those who argue along the lines of your first paragraph cannot see - or refuse
to see - a level playing field. C.S.Lewis and J.R.R.Tolkien were both staunch Christians -
Lewis a non-conformist and Tolkien a Catholic. Both of them use the concept of 
witches and wizards in their books which are considered perfectly legitimate reading 
material for Christians. Lewis gives us the White Witch who, like Voldemort, seeks the 
complete domination of Narnia and has progressed a good deal further along the road to 
this than JKR in her Wizarding World.

Tolkien gives us at least three wizards (Gandalf, Saruman and Radagast) who
started on the side of good (white?) although Saruman has been seduced to the
side of evil. Sauron can in in many ways be compared to Voldemort although in 
Tolkien's cosmos, he is probably far more evil, being a fallen angel comparable to Satan.

So, are we drawing a line of demarcation in which we are attempting to direct what we 
should and should not read or is it just plaina and simple bias?