Yeah, its really kind of ridiculous how out of hand it got. If anything, Harry Potter teaches kids about morals, good vs evil, and most important... it gets them reading!

Check the archives.

I think it's really sad how so many people think that a story an innocent woman started in a cafe could be so wretchedly evil.

actually, the whole issue is pretty funny.

As with all things, not everyone is going to agree that Harry Potter is an appropriate book. Its unfortunate that it got so out of hand.

Blah - don't be so mean:) - unless of course, you have a quicker way than I do to *check the archives* , I think we will be discussing a lot of topics more than once...

No - I don't think Harry Potter is evil however some people put these books in the same category as Halloween - a *non event* at a lot of private schools these days. Must make it very difficult for children to relate with their friends from other faiths. I don't think a lot of these folks have even read the first book - they just saw the picture of the broomstick and that did it for them :)

Did you know that Daniel Radcliff (Harry Potter) isn't allowed to hear or read any publicity about himself? Guess he won't be reading this...

Me personally.. yeah I think it could be evil.

People are hatting on him cause of the magic stuff... sure its all fictional but would you really want to be filling your mind with that stuff as a Christian?

It all comes down to a personal decision. I won't tell you to stop.

I put the Harry Potter series in the same group as the Tolkein "Lord of the rings" books:

They're fictional,
They're moral stories of the fight between good and evil
They're a great read
They get kids reading
They're very good at expressing personality and thus getting people to see the different sort of folks it takes to run a world

No ... these books are not evil: They are the antithesis of evil, they are good.

Metaphor. That's when you use one thing to talk about soemthing else. Basic grade 10 English exam question. And authors have been using "magic" as a metaphor for spirituality for 1000 years.

Now Left Behind. That's another story. Don't think that's supposed to be taken as metaphor. Again, Revelation was metaphor and Left Behind ain't. Hmm. I'm seeing patterns here.

Somebody out there is terrified of metaphors.

I personally find the Potter books and movies quite entertaining, hey they're not just for kids anymore. Lets face it, if a parent can't talk to their kids and explain this stuff isn't real, there is something lost in the communication between parent and child. They are stories, meant to entertain and keep the imagination in everyone alive, imagination seems to be an endangered concept when this kind of debate is carried on about fictional books. I wonder how many parents forbid their children to read Potter books and recite to them fairy tales?
One event in my life that struck me as I was reading this blog was when my nephews were younger, we had watched a scary movie the previuos night that took place in a jungle. The next day we were going for a walk in the woods when the youngest turned to me and asked if there were monsters in this forest, I explained, no, that was made up and he was o.k. after that, itr's what we teach our children about fact versus fiction that makes the difference.

"Somebody out there is terrified of metaphors."

... which is really quite interesting, considering that the Bible is loaded with them. Take away the metaphors, and there ain't much left.

The right wing is afraid of wiccans and other pagans because of the growth of those faiths and feel that children will chose the Goddess over God thats why DVCode got so out of hand.and harry potter was met with outrage, But this is just my opinion

It is possible that reading or watching Harry Potter could lead children to being curious about witchcraft. It is even more possible that not allowing your children to read or watch Harry Potter will make them more curious about witchcraft than actually reading the book or watching the movie because they could then be obsessed with it. Then these niave children could start going behind the parents' back and getting involved in witchcraft and unsafe demonic activities.

I would be happy if my kids watched Harry Potter or even happier if they read the book (because then they would be reading) and were not afraid to ask me questions. It is natural to have curiosity about magic. It is not evil.

What I have a problem with is that some Churches ask these kids to give up santa, Halloween, "bad movies" etc. and then wonder why their kids don't want to go to Church. don't love God, and don't read their Bibles.

I loved reading the Harry Potter books, with my son. (I had to wait until he finished, before i could start. luckily, he is a fast reader, and so within a day, I got in.) Then the discussions would begin. These are not overly complex books, but, as others have discussed, cover multiple topics.
Suggestion: Check out "The Gospel According to Harry potter". It's a good companion book.
I would be interested if anyone has used any of the Harry Potter series, as a bookstudy group for youth, with "the Gospe...." as a reference material, or weekly session guide

evil? wow...
no. (just my opinion)

if anyone out there is a total harry potter freak, then you will be excited to know that book 7 is officially:
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"

need a good fan website? go to mugglenet.com

back to the original topic,

wont banning something from a child make them more intested in checking it out? especially if it is something as popular as harry potter

:D

happy_child

"It is possible that reading or watching Harry Potter could lead children to being curious about witchcraft. It is even more possible that not allowing your children to read or watch Harry Potter will make them more curious about witchcraft than actually reading the book or watching the movie because they could then be obsessed with it. Then these niave children could start going behind the parents' back and getting involved in witchcraft and unsafe demonic activities."

Oh Puhleese.

You wouldn't know a demon if it came up and bit you in the asfoetida.

Does the idea that a child is the only one who can defend the world against evil and darkness sound familiar to you? Is "magic" evil but "miracles" are holy? The Potter books have done more for child literacy than any other book ever published and are a child-friendly way of teaching about good vs. evil in the world. How can that be evil?

We should also bring in Clarke's law: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." In an very real way, the Harry Potter books are only SciFi using a sufficiently advanced technology: matter transmission, matter reorganization, advanced chemistry, etc..

There's not a one of us reading this who would not be burned as a witch in times past ... the things we use and think nothing of, like the 'net, are a sufficiently advanced technology to be proof of magic.

i love harry potter.

i think my kids like it too.

i was so excited to read that the name for book 7 was finally announced!!!

Witch said "You wouldn't know a demon if it came up and bit you in the asfoetida"

You are absolutely right Witch that I have never seen a demon but you are absolutely wrong that a demon would ever come and bite me anywhere or even show themselves to me. Demons are cowards and are way too afraid of my Jesus to come anywhere near me.

ROFLMAO!

I can understand where Serena is coming from.

Guidance is needed. Cause kids are very impressionable

Heh... I remember reading a story some years ago about a mom who bought her son a video game or something like that... and later her son was looking for gold coins in the sofa... heh

Really funny but it can be concerning as well...

Oh and I think there is a difference between "magic" and "miracles"... the "source" of there "power" is from different places.... and i don't mean demons as one of the sources...

Serena said: "It is possible that reading or watching Harry Potter could lead children to being curious about witchcraft".

The Amazing Randy, a skeptic scientifically-minded stage magician, still has a million dollar challenge available to anyone who can do anything
"supernatural".

So far, no-one has claimed the prize...