The Harry Potter debate – a readers digest version

Back in April I wrote ‘The best arguments against reading Harry Potter, with some critical responses – a faux debate.’ It was over three and a half thousand words long with twenty-two headings, and thirteen discussed Bible verses. It was long!

It seems to me, therefore, that a ‘readers digest’ version might be called for – which is this post. Please, however, don’t make the mistake of thinking that this is the whole story. If you want the nitty gritty rather than the pretty pithy, then click here and dig deeper.

So here are the simplified best arguments not to read Harry Potter, with my slightly longer, but still abridged responses.

Reasons not to read Harry Potter

Reason 1

It glorifies witchcraft which the Bible forbids (Deut. 18).

Reason 2

It’s too dark and passively promotes paganism.

Reason 3

It was researched using real rituals and references real spells.

Reason 4

There is no under-girding biblical worldview (which exists in other fantasy stories such as the Chronicles of Narnia).

Reason 5

It doesn’t add anything to our faith journeys – and it won’t be in Heaven.

Reason 6

A Christian’s limited reading time should be spent on more obviously helpful books.

My Responses

Response 1

This misunderstands the ‘forbidden sorcery’ specified in the Bible which is very different to what’s in Harry Potter.

By confusing the two together, we nuance what the Bible is actually forbidding and dilute its real teaching. If anything, Harry Potter condemns the same specific practices the Bible does (child sacrifice, talking to evil spirits, deceiving people out of their money through trickery etc.).

There is also no small a difference between reading about something and practicing something. If there wasn’t any distinction then we would be limiting what we consume far more widely and strictly. This would include getting rid of some Christian classics.

Response 2

The worldview of Harry Potter does not condone ritualistic worship or false religion. Even when the author borrowed from pagan rituals, they are heavily adapted, and mashed together randomly. Wiccans themselves reject Harry Potter as based on their own practices

Although there are some very dark moments in Harry Potter, they are no darker than some in Lewis’s Narnia or Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. High School texts (such as Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye or Shakespeare’s Macbeth) also present dark or sinful behaviour.

There is nothing specific or particular to Harry Potter therefore. Distinguishing for this reason is randomly cracking the whip. Censorship is not the answer, careful reading with young people is.

Response 3

Rowling researched alchemy, religious history, spell-craft, medieval remedies, Shaman culture, and witch trials. This research has been fully documented and exhibited.

The Inklings (most famously Lewis, Tolkien and Williams) researched and studied the same materials that Rowling did, and they were a Christian group. This research led to the invention, for instance, of the Necromancer in Tolkien and the witch Jadis in Lewis.

The research of a topic does not equal the practice of what is researched. Assuming a subversive plot to encourage children into actual witchcraft is just not what is going on. Rowling herself quoted in a CNN interview:

‘I absolutely did not start writing these books to encourage any child into witchcraft. I’m laughing slightly because to me, the idea is absurd.’

Response 4

(Spoilers)
Rowling calls herself a practicing Christian and attends church. The explicit amount of Christian theology throughout the series shows evidence of real Gospel knowledge.

Love in Harry Potter is presented as the most powerful force in the universe which was ultimately shown in self-sacrifice: First, Harry’s mum sacrifices herself for the sake of her son, and then eventually, Harry sacrifices himself for the good of the whole world. His sacrificial death also ends in resurrection which provides a powerful protection of love over all he had died for. This is, quite simply, the clearest fictional presentation of the Gospel in metaphoric form that I have ever read.

Morally, there is no underage sex, nor are there unhealthy relationships with narcotics or alcohol. Even lying is shown to have serious consequences. Harry Potter actually contains a rich tapestry of discussion topics, almost all of which are resolved in ways fully compatible with a biblical worldview.

Response 5 & 6

I have found much in the Harry Potter series that has encouraged, edified, and supported my faith. The artistic celebration of self-sacrificing love over evil, the power of resurrection, the need for a humble saviour, and the power of authentic community demonstrated in the books have often caused me to turn to worship.

The strong Christian themes, the Christian moralistic worldview, and the description Rowling gives of her own faith should lead us to assume that the simple presence of witchcraft in the Harry Potter series is not enough to reject it out of hand. Using that same measure, we would also have to reject many other fabulous books that also claim an explicit Christian basis.

Does this mean every Christian should read it? No, it doesn’t. It does, however, mean that we should evaluate how healthy we think it would be for us and our children with the same critical standards we should apply to everything else.

Want more?

Do read the full article here for a deeper discussion and a bit more meat.