Harry Potter under fire

Before I begin let me confess up front, I have read and enjoyed the first five Harry Potter books. While I am confessing let me add that I have also read the following books that contain (and even at times promote) magic: The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King, The chronicles of Narnia, The Giving Tree (talking trees are magical), The Grimm Brothers Fairy Tales, Mother Goose, and numerous other books. In fact if you come to my home you will find well over 200 books of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Most of them I have enjoyed, some I have disliked and a few were brilliant. Now that you know were I stand let me share some of my thoughts about this new round of controversy over the latest Harry Potter book. (If you want to read a great essay on this book and the Christians response to it, check out this link: http://www.christiancounterculture.com/articles/Harry_potter.html)

My first thought is that Harry Potter isn't for everyone. There is the very real possibility that you have prayed about this issue and have come to the firm conviction that God does not want you to read these books, or to allow your children to read them. Fine. In fact, great! If God is convicting you then I can only applaud your dedication to stand by his commands in your life. But please do not make the mistake of assuming your personal conviction is a universal law of God. I am not assuming my freedom is a universal you must accept. So please, let us respect one another.

Second, Harry Potter is a fantasy, designed to be interesting and fun, it is not designed to be a representation of our universe. The rules are different in fantasy worlds, when I was a child I could fly in almost all of the fantasy worlds I created in my mind. But back here on Earth my powers of flight were suspended. Okay, Harry uses magic to fly a broomstick, but it doesn't work here in the real world. No matter what kind of occult issues someone gets into they will never soar through the sky on a broomstick. So is Rowling really writing a how-to for satanists? NO!!! It is a plot device, it allows a new and exciting sport to take place that pushes the plot forward. Claiming that Harry's magic is real occult teaching is similar to claiming that Star Trek physics can work to create warp travel here in the real world. Yes, the Bible does make it clear that Christians are not to be involved in the occult, but does Harry Potter equal real occult practice and beliefs? Certainly not! If the word magic is what gets you, then these books aren't for you. Of course neither are the Chronicles of Narnia or the Lord of the Rings, to name just two. Harry Potter operates in a world were special powers exist, some of them are expressly evil and Harry and his friends are not allowed to use them while others are neutral and the use determines the morality (like a gun or car, both can cause harm). The morality is based on principles from the real world: don't harm others, be a good friend, sacrificial love defeats evil. Perhaps that is what one should take from these novels, the reinforcement of our morality in a pretend world.

Third, why can't we be friends? Seriously. Harry Potter is not an issue for division. If you think that I am wrong please take a moment to lovingly correct me, I will read it and I might learn something! But I truly do not understand what is inherently evil about fantasy.

Little Things

Today the shuttle Discovery was supposed to launch and return the American space program's glory. However there was a problem. As I understand it one of the four sensors on one of the booster rockets failed to work. This sensor, like the other three, is designed to shut off the shuttles main engine after the tank has run out of fuel. According to the Associated Press if the engines shut down before or after the tank is emptied tragedy can occur. Because of the possibility that this one sensor could cause problems the entire mission has been postponed.

As I thought about this I found myself thinking about how this seemed an over reaction by NASA. After all there were three other sensors that appeared to be working, why stress over just one? The obvious answer, of course, is safety. The last thing that NASA wants is another accident with a shuttle. Because they are concerned with the lives of the astronauts and their public image they choose to delay in favor of safety.

As a Christian their decision got me thinking about how I interact with God. Do I place my faith totally in Him and delay my decisions if I am not 100% sure of His will? Unfortunately I must admit that there have been times when I have failed to make sure I was 100% with God and I experienced personal crashes because of it. Perhaps NASA has the right idea. Maybe I should spend more time with God so that He can show me the dangers I am tempted to overlook.