Baptism/Christianity in HP: was Looking for God in Harry Potter

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 153412

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "distaiyi" <distaiyi at ...> wrote:

Distaiyi :
> Yes, this is an intriguing discussion... however... I'd like to refer
> you to : http://www.beliefnet.com/features/godparents_chart.html ...
> Particularly where it's called out that "Earth Based" religions also
> have Godparents while Hindu/Muslim do not.
> 
> So essentially any Pagan or Christian sect may have this concept. So
> one might argue that saying the Potters are by force Christian because
> Harry was Baptised is a non valid point.

Geoff:
I beg to differ.

Having looked at the most interesting website you indicated, it would 
seem that the only places where they are actually called  by the names 
"godfather" or "godmother" are in the Christian churches.

Although the Earth-based religions have folk who take on a godparenting 
rôle, they are not actually called by the title of "godfather" or "godmother".

Speaking as a Christian who happens to have been led into a Baptist 
church, we do not have godparents per se because we do not baptise 
children as infants; they are brought to God to be dedicated, rather as 
Jesus was presented to God in the Temple at Epiphany. Baptism is a 
sacrament which they choose for themselves as adults. From this, I would 
surmise that the Potters seems to have followed something similar along 
the line of the  Anglican/Methodist approach.