Hi everyone -- banning the books

[Tonks]

No: HPFGUIDX 159616

 
> > Ken:
> > 
> >Liberal atheists are as likely to ban things as conservative
> >religionists. 
> 
> Tesha:
> 
>    No, I do believe you're quite wrong. Liberals would like you to
> read everything, and cogitate deeply and discover your own belief. 
And as an Agnostic, I feel that anything that makes you be a better 
person is fine - but it is your "doing" - not your "saying" that 
makes it so. 
> 
> In fact the "Liberal atheists' would probably do just the opposite 
of "ban" books, they're likely to hand you a book and say.."What do 
you think now?"
> 
> HP and all the other banned books should be the FIRST you read! 
> 
> So what would you say the world can learn from HP that would make
> better people of all of us? Loyality? Strength? Study? 
>  what else?


Tonks:
I agree with Ken on this one.  Liberal atheists DO try to ban as 
many things as the Conservative Christians do.   Basically they try 
to ban anything that has any religious overtones, everything 
from "under God" in the pledge of allegiance to the term "Merry 
Christmas", not just in government but in the whole of society. And 
they do ban books from schools too.

As to what do the Harry Potter books teach all of us?  How do they 
help us become better people?  Let us begin with the saying of DD.  
All around us people are quoting what I call "wise words of wisdom" 
from DD.  From him we have learned much.  We have learned the power 
of Love, we have learned the importance of loyalty to your friends, 
and we have learned to do what is right over what is easy, we have 
learned to look for the best in people.  That is only the beginning; 
I could go on and on. 

Since folks here are labeling themselves, I will have to say, as 
many of you old timers know, I am what can be called a Liberal 
Christian.  I am a high church Episcopalian.  From my POV, I see the 
HP books as the teaching of Jesus written in such as way as to take 
the `label' out of it and serve it up for all people in all places, 
no matter what their religious beliefs.  And this is a very good 
thing.  As Ken said many Christian do things that shed a bad light 
on all of us and on Christianity as a whole.  I myself was once an 
Atheist and I know the shear hatred that I use to have for `those 
people'.  Many people the world over feel as I once did and this 
closes their minds to the good that can be found in the teaching of 
Jesus.  JKR has said time and again that there is something about 
her religious belief that she does not want us to know until after 
the last book.  I think it is because she has rewritten the Good 
News so that all can hear it openly without bias. I also think if we 
look at the person of DD and his teaching we will see the teaching 
of Christ. I love the fact that he is a really cool wizard.

Tonks_op