None of this means that Voldemort is above striking a bargain to get what he wants. Through one of Voldemort’s minions, Harry is offered something he greatly desires in exchange for his cooperation. Surely this is a devil’s deal—unlikely to end well—but it would be foolish not to recognize it as a potentially effective strategy. Satan, himself, tried to tempt Christ in much the same way (Matt. 4:8-9). Lewis argues that the reason so few of us understand the significance of temptation is that we so quickly give in to it. He writes in Mere Christianity, “Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is.” Those who choose to engage in the battle need to know that they will be sorely tried.

Battling Back

Fortunately, Harry does not have to go it alone. In fact, isolation would have been his undoing. He can rely on trustworthy principles, and the support of his mentors and friends. Together these serve as an effective arsenal against Voldemort’s attacks.

One of the more refreshing aspects of many of the Harry Potter films is the emphasis they place on making right choices. We are, in large degree, what we think and do. Dumbledore, in The Goblet of Fire, tells Harry that everyone will soon have to choose “between what is right and what is easy.” Sirius Black reinforces this idea in The Order of the Phoenix by telling Harry that the quality of our lives is determined by our choices. Those choices are informed by universal principles. In The Abolition of Man, Lewis explores the importance of right belief in the value of moral principle, and how its absence would doom humanity to an animal existence. Where there is no sense of right or wrong there can be no moral violation – anything goes. But where right and wrong are recognized, even though their particular expressions may vary a bit, they serve as guidelines for action.

The Order of the Phoenix also places great store in fellowship. Harry has friends who share his commitment to do right: particularly Ron and Hermione, but there are others as well. He has protectors, such as Dumbledore, Sirius Black, “Mad-Eye” Moody, Professor Lupin and other members of the Order. They are there to instruct and guide Harry, and to protect him when they can. All are willing to sacrifice, even endanger their own lives, for him. Lewis notes in The Four Loves that, “Friendship is something that raised us almost above humanity. This love, free from instinct, free from all duties but those which love has freely assumed, almost wholly free from jealousy, and free without qualification from the need to be needed, is eminently spiritual. It is the sort of love one can imagine between angels.”

It is precisely love—particularly the capacity to give and receive love—which ultimately separates Harry from Voldemort. If there were a word to describe Voldemort’s most significant weakness, it would be supreme self-confidence. G.K. Chesterton (one of Lewis’ influences), in Orthodoxy, compares self-confidence to madness: “…a man will certainly fail, because he believes in himself. Complete self-confidence is not merely a sin: complete self-confidence is a weakness.” Love of God, and even love of others, is a time-tested biblical battle strategy. Voldemort self-confidently relies on the fear his power evokes, but as the Apostle John points out, “perfect love casts out fear” (1 Jn. 4:18).

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