Wow

[Carol]

No: HPFGUIDX 182095

Lesley,
> I think if I had read a lot of these post's before reading the
book's I would never have picked them up after the amount of religious
comment's and references that have been made about them.
> I didn't see any religious messages in any of the book's and am
amazed at the amount of comment's that say there were.
> I also read the book's because I liked them and have no interest in 
> what JKR's religion is.
>
Carol responds:
A Christian interpretation, whether it explores Harry as an Everyman
or a Christ figure or examines JKR's view of death is only one
possible interpretation, perfectly legitimate given that JKR is a
Christian. But those who aren't interested can explore the use of
mythology or variations on the hero's journey or narrative technique
or simply examine the characters and their development and/or motives.

If I were reading a book by a Buddhist or Hindu author, I most likely
would miss many of the symbols or motifs or themes, not to mention
many of the author's assumptions, simply because I'm not particularly
familiar with those religions. But I wouldn't dismiss the book on that
account.

There are many ways to explore a book, and, IMO, it's a mistake to let
differences in religion or philosophy or politics or culture prevent
us from seeing more universal elements.

If we refuse to read a book by a Christian author, we'll be depriving
ourselves of a large segment of Western literature. Best avoid
everyone from Chaucer to Dickens, not to mention Tolkien, and a great
many other authors as well.

Carol, politely suggesting that you try another thread or examine old
posts to see the variety of topics that have been discussed on this
list, the vast majority of which have nothing to do with religion