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COMMENT
Subject:
Newsletter_30 Harry Potter
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2001
From: Rebecca
Thank you,
thank you, thank you for standing up to the 'witch hunt'. I've
read all 4 of the Harry Potter books as have my 3 children. They
supply a healthy dose of imagination (something seriously lacking
in children's lives today) with values that are in line with the
ones we teach in a Christian home. I became aware of a group that
has put out an anti-potter video and it nauseated me. For one
thing, they make claims that the books teach children authentic
satanic spells and incantations, which anyone who has read the
books will realize is rubbish. For the other, I felt that they
were only interested in their own gain. I was also appalled at
a group that was criticizing Rowling for allowing the Potter imagery
to be used by Coca-cola because it encourages kids to drink sugary,
empty calorie beverages. While I won't argue the merits of drinking
coke, I had to wonder why attack only Rowling? Why not go after
the Burger King commercials that use the Shrek characters? Or
maybe McDonalds for handing out miniature Barbies. Aren't they
promoting anorexia? You see how ridiculous this can get. Let's
let parents actually BE parents and talk to their children about
the difference between real and imaginary. When I asked my 9 year
old daughter if she thought the things depicted in the Harry Potter
books were real, she rolled her eyes at me as if she thought dementia
had finally set in. I'm a lot more concerned about her watching
the preview of the Brittany Spears tour tonight than I am of her
watching the Potter movie. I think it's time for the Christians
who know God as loving and compassionate to speak out before the
ones who see Him as mean and punitive take over the world.
-KW
Response:
Thanks for your insightful words. You make several good points.
-David
GOOD
AND EVIL WITCHES?
Subject:
Newsletter_30 _Harry_Potter_Is_Dangerous
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2001
From: Eric Waltersdorf
David, All
my reservations about H.P. come from the fact that it sells the
notion that there can be good witches and that there is some nobility
in witchcraft if it is used for "good". That's nonsense. There
is no good witchcraft.
Is H.P. a
modern fairy tale. Yes, I believe it is. Can it be used a subtle
means of blurring God's standard of right and wrong? I certainly
believe it can. That is my concern.
Movies made
from books tend to pick out and exaggerate points of the director's
and screenwriter's personal bias on the original text. Nothing
therefore is left to the imagination or discussion, because a
conclusion is produced in film. From what I have seen so far this
film ended up a dark impression of the book. Too bad. Keep up
the good work.
Respectfully, Eric Waltersdorf
Response:
Thanks for your kind words Eric. I do not think that Potter promotes
witchcraft, anymore than Fantasia does. -David
COMMENT
Subject:
Newsletter_30 HERE IS THE LINK
i WAS TALKING ABOUT DAVID
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2001
From: "Dan Laskowski"
This newspaper
is in the UK.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/dynamic/news/story.html?in_review_id=306029&in_review_text_id=250010
IN CHRIST
Dan Laskowski
Response:
Thanks -David
HARRY
POTTER OPENS THE DOOR TO THE OCCULT
Subject: Newsletter_30_Harry_Potter_Is_Dangerous
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2001
From: "Dan Laskowski"
Greetings
David
For a long time, I have had links pointing to your website, and
though I don't always agree with your reviews I still point others
to HOLLYWOODJESUS.COM, but I must now speak out loudly about your
stand on Harry Potter.
Although the
new Harry Potter movie seems innocuous, according to you, I recently
heard that "Sabrina the Teenage Witch" and "Buffy the Vampire
Slayer" have both attracted so many girls to REAL WITCHCRAFT in
England that a witch website needed to hire extra help to handle
all of the extra traffic. When asked how the young people were
attracted , the teens replied the names of the above listed TV
shows.
I would also
like to add the name of "Charmed" to the list because I can't
seem to pull my 2 teenage daughters away from their intense interest
in it. If I put my foot down and tell them not to watch it, I
later find out that they watched it in a different time slot or
taped it in a different time slot. "Charmed" is total garbage
in my opinion and blurs the lines of good and magic by having
"White Lighters" (white magic) and "demons" mixed together. To
blur the lines further and confuse the viewer further there is
even a "demon" who is "half human" and is now being presented
as "good".
Though I haven't
seen Harry Potter, I'm sure that this same kind of confusion will
be prevalent throughout. I'm hoping that when the movie is released
and you actually view it that you will recant.
Remember David.
Todays media is not like what happened with Zeus. People didn't
see Zeus on TV every day. The printing press hadn't been invented
yet. There weren't newspapers on everyones porches with the headlines
"ZEUS IS GREAT!". TV and Movie media is ALL CONSUMING and for
the 90-120 minutes the viewers of the Harry Potter movie will
be absorbing everything they see. The press and media are already
sending out the message "HARRY POTTER IS GREAT!"
In Christ Dan Laskowski
http://musicinit.com
Response:
Zeus was bigger and more important than Harry Potter could ever
hope to be. We are talking the difference between an elephant
and an ant. Your attempt to minimize Zeus is charming but not
historically correct. Zeus was worshipped for 2000 years and his
temple was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Potter
is not worshiped and is a flash in the pan, historically speaking
-David
THANK
YOU
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2001
From: "E.M."
Thanks for
the sound and enlightening comments on Harry Potter. When I was
reading the series for the first time some of my more evangelical
Christian friends would raise an eyebrow (or more) and I would
politely explain to them the fact that it is just a work of very
creative and enjoyable fiction. I hope a lot people that disagree
with the film read the review above and will most importantly
read the books for themselves and see the movie. Yes, Harry Potter
can be dark (I think too dark for some children), but the writing
just seems to get better with each novel.
Someone mentioned
Tolkien earlier. I am more eagerly awaiting the LOTR
movie series and re-reading the series right now. Someone mentioned
Tolkien "may not have been a Christian" this is a wrong statement.
Tolkien was a devout and faithful Catholic and great friends with
C.S. Lewis. Tolkien's books, espeically the Silmarillion are full
of mostly unintentional Christian themes simply because that was
his worldview. In fact, before I am became a Christian I read
the LOTR and was disappointed to find out Tolkien was a Christian.
;) (people can be silly)
Response:
Thank you! Tolkien was a Christian, indeed. -David
Faithfully
in Christ,
Emily M.
Response:
READING
NONSTOP
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2001
From: Heidi
I had gotten
an e mail from my sister in law about how good harry potter books
are- My husband picked one up for my daughter the other day.My
daughter has been reading it nonstop and is upstairs right now
reading the first book (She's been reading it since 7.00 pm off
and on last night.(I've read a bit too) While I was bringing her
home from school today we were talking about Harry potter and
I told her that in real life witchcraft is not good- She asked
me why- she seemed to think it was ok! (she's 9) Normally wizards
and witches are portrayed as from another time, But this book
is not like that. I think we really need to help our kids understand-They
may think its cool and that "I wish I could do that or "wouldn't
it be neat if we could fly or so on- They don't realize the evil
in the real world -they are innocent- So we need to let them know-
This is Harry Potters world- Not our world. I have explained that
in the real world satanists and people (not all wiccans or nature
lovers ect) do horrible things- ie kill babies and burn animals.
I didn't want to go any further than that. I explained to her
that in real life we can't fly, but when were in heaven we will.
We need to make sure we leave the magic in harry's world,because
its not the same here. Here it is evil- If we don't talk to our
kids about it it may seem mythical, and magical- they may want
to get into something that they don't realize is very bad. We
need to educate our kids because not all kids might think that
its all "make believe".
Heidi
Response:
Killing babies, etc? Harry Potter is any thing but this. Apples
and Oranges. Thank you for voicing your concerns. -David
DISAGREE
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2001
From:
"Troy
Harry is a
Potter, and our children are his clay. Have many parents had a
real sit down with there child and explained that magic is real,
witches are real, demons are real, and they are all under the
controlling influence of spiritual darkness? My guess is not,
probably because that might be too "scary". So to keep things
"neat" and "controllable" they prefer to portray witchcraft as
harmless and imaginary, but it is neither harmless nor imaginary.
Enter, Harry Potter, the lovable character who "softens" witchcraft
by using it in a good vs. evil conflict, who wouldn't cheer for
the hero in the story. However, deep inside the heart and mind
of a child a change has taken place, a door has been cracked,
a bridge has been crossed. It so subtle that it is nearly unperceivable,
almost like the hand of potter gently impressing the clay. They
perceive the use of magic as playful, almost benign. Now the line
has been "grayed". "Daddy, kids are playing Harry Potter at school,
pretending to cast spells, is that okay?" "Daddy, I saw this girl
at school, she had a pentagram necklace, she said it gave her
powers like Harry Potter, what do you think?" You can obviously
see were this heads. Be the gatekeeper God meant you to be now,
so you won't have to back peddle later. Bottom line: Make a better
choice than Harry Potter for your child's mind and spirit.
Response:
Does this mean Cinderella, Sword in the Stone, Fantasia, Lord
of the Rings, The Hobbit, CS Lewis' fiction, Wizard of Oz, etc.
are wrong by the same logic. I am confused. Where do you draw
your line? The magic in Harry Potter is pretty tame stuff compared
to some of these classics. -David
HARRY
POTTER AND CHRISTIANITY
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2001
From: Maggi
I also have
no problem with the Harry Potter film or the books. What I do
have a problem with, are Christians who have no problem with The
Wizard of Oz/Cinderella/Snow White, etc (all of which feature
witches) and yet, they'll attack Christians who enjoy Harry Potter
(and they use they excuse..."its about witchcraft"). Why is one
okay and not the other? They both feature witchcraft, right? If
someone doesn't want to watch Harry Potter, that's perfectly okay
with me, but I have a problem when they jump down the throats
of believers with the "How can you call yourself a Christian"
attitude. Harry Potter is fantasy. The characters are obviously
not real people and even the "witchcraft" is portayed in an unreal,
fantasy way. Right now I'm reading the entire Lord of the Rings
series, which featires wizard, goblins, magic, etc. I was actually
shocked to see Family Christian Bookstires selling the series.
I couldn't help but wonder how many Christians have probably complained
to them about selling "occult books" (which some have called bother
Harry Potter & Lord of the Rings).
I don't know
if I'd let very impressionable young kids, or kids who scare easily
read Harry Potter (or even the Wizard of Oz), but I suppose that
each parent needs to decide for themselves what their child can
or can not handle. I'm going to be an English major in the spring
and I'm trying hard to read all of the major classics and other
popular books (including Harry Potter), so that if we study them
in school, I'll know what we're talking about. I don't believe
that Harry Potter causes people to get involved in witchcraft.
I've know people in the past who are into wicca and stuff and
most of what is in the books is far from reality.
Another thing
I was thinking about...
A lot of Christians
I know of don't even like adults or teenagers reading Harry Potter
because of the witches. But does that then mean that we also should
not read Macbeth since it has characters that are witches? Real
witchcraft does not involved flying around on broomsticks like
in Harry Potter or many of these other fantasy stories. I could
maybe understand the concern of the witchcraft was realistic and/or
gory in nature, but even then, shouldn't adults be able to read
whatever they want to (within reason), without other Christians
accusing us of "not being very Christ like?" I don't believe teens
or kids get into the occult because of Harry Potter or even Marilyn
Manson. Many of them are introduced to it by their peers and get
into it in order to feel accepted. I don't think they read Harry
Potter or the Wizard of Oz, and actually believed that's what
the occult is all about (flying around on broomsticks, making
up silly sounding spells, etc). If they did, then I'm sure that
when they got involved in witchcraft, they were sorely disappointed.
Heck, I even
had Christians freak out on me for seeing the Sandra Bullock movie
Practical Magic because she and a few other actresses play witches.
But for goodness sakes, it was done in such an unrealistic, fantasy
way. If a youngster walks out believe that that's what witchcraft
is really about, maybe the parents should sit down with their
kids are talk to them. Parents talk to their kids about drugs
and alcohol, so maybe we should add the occult to the list. BUT
the adults should do some research themselves. I don't want adults
sitting their kids down and telling them that Harry Potter is
a good example of witchcraft or the occult. Trust me, the real
occult is much more scary and satanic then getting on a broom
stick or saying things like "hocus pocus." If a child gets involved
in the occult, why blame Harry Potter? Why not blame the parents
for not teaching their child the difference between reality and
fiction? If a child goes into a movie like this, thinking this
is what witchcraft is all about, then something is wrong with
that child, not with the movie. If your child is that naive then
maybe you should keep them away from Harry Potter. But if you
have an older child who knows about discernment, then I see nothing
wrong with giving them something like Harry Potter or Lord of
the Rings to read.
Also, why
is it that so many Christians who have strong opinions AGAINST
things like Harry Potter, aren't even educated about it? They
seem to only go by what they think its about or what some other
Christian (who probably hasn't done any research either) tells
them its about. For example, one Christian told me that the Wizard
of Oz is okay because the witches are portrayed as bad whereas
in Harry Potter they're portrayed as good. Hello? Remember Glenda
the GOOD witch, from Oz? So before you start judging things like
Harry Potter, there are a couple of things you need to do:
1) Be consistent.
Don't pick and choose by saying "Well, the Wizard of Oz and Cinderella
are okay but Harry Potter is not" and then use the lame excuse
"Because Harry Potter features witches." If Harry Potter is bad
because it features witchcraft, then shouldn't the others be considered
bad as well?
2) Do you
research. Know what you're talking about. Get the books out of
the library and do some research online (and not just from "Christian"
sources, which can sometimes be quite biased).
I just think
that there are some Christians who love to find things to complain
about. I don't know what they'd do if there wasn't some kind of
"lets condemn this or that to Hell" bandwagon to get onto. I remember
when they used to freak out about Ghostbusters and The Wizard
of Oz (and some still do), then it was Pokemon and now its Harry
Potter. I can't wait to see what's next.
IN HIM,
Maggi
http://www.100megsfree4.com/csministries/index.html
By the way,
growing up I watched the Wizard of Oz every single week for the
longest time. I also grew up on fairy tales. And guess what? I
am not and never was interested in the occult...unless you consider
the time when I used to pretend I could fly around on my mom's
kitchen broomstick.
Response:
Yes you are so right. Thank you for some sanity on the issue.
-David
HARRY
POTTER NON-DEMONIC
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001
From: Chris
I dont think
this movie at all is demonic or will advance the satanic movment
or somthing. All it is is a movie with a cool story and fun graphics
for entertainment. It annoys me when so called "christians" condem
others or try to scare others into coming to know Jesus. You know
what brings people to the Lord? His love. Not the fear of hell
or demons, because if thats all your living for, not to go to
hell, then what kind of life is that? We have to show the unsaved
Gods love for them and that he wants to have a intimate relationship
with them, we have to show them that He's not a mean rulemaking
God, but a God who loves us and wants to protect us. So, intead
of pointing the finger and saying, " this is demonic and your
goin to hell!" say," Jesus Christ loves you and died for you and
he wants a relationship with you." basically. Sorry i kinda got
off track.....so yeah, Harry Potter, not demonic, just fun and
games.
Chris
Response:
You are not off track, you are right on! -David
VALUES
Subject:
'Harry_Potter_Can_Be_Used_Positively_Newsletter_30
Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001
From: Richard
We are bible
believing Christians and struggle with the attitude of some towards
the Harry Potter books.
Before our
children read them I read them. If I thought that they were unsuitable
it would have stopped there. However I found the books full of
values that I can support e.g. importance of the family, sacrificial
love, the clear distinction between good and evil, the fact that
there is always a price to pay, I could go on.
I started
by reading the books to the children and we discussed them. Again
if I thought they were getting the wrong message we would have
stopped.
I was heartened
to hear my 10 year old recognise the actor who plays Madam Hooch
as appearing in a current TV program, a sign , I believe that
she can distinguish between reality and fantasy, and Harry Potter
is fantasy.
God Bless
Richard Stringer
Response:
Thank you for being such a caring parent. God bless you. -David
JEN'S
COMMENT
Subject:
Newsletter_30
Date:
Mon, 12 Nov 2001
From: "Bill Yates"
Love the newsletter.
I think it may be useful for your readers to know something in
regards to Jen's comments "I am sure that Tolkien's (Lord of the
Rings) work will come under fire as has Harry Potter but I believe
in this case that the story is what you take away from it. I have
read the Hobbit and the Trilogy at least 7 or 8 times now and
every time I have learned more from it. Although Tolkien himself
may not have been a Christian, there are Christian values that
are still presented to readers in his story." Tolkien was most
certainly a Christian and extremely instrumental in leading his
fellow Oxford professor, C.S. Lewis, to the Lord as Dr. Lewis
tells us in his autobiography. Makes any talk about the magic
in Lord of the Rings so ridiculous, I am waiting for that discussion
to take place.
Thanks for the discussion,
Bill Yates
PHILIPPIANS
4:8
Subject: Harry_Potter_Can_Be_Used_Positively_Newsletter_30
Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001
From: Kim L Jeffery
Dear David,
I have been thinking constantly about your last two newsletters
since they arrived and I am struck by the different direction
you are approaching Philippians 4:8 from. I'm a 48-year-old homeschooling
wife, mother of five, and grandmother of [soon] six and all my
life I have heard that verse used to defend the belief that Christians
should "make nice"; that they should flee from any influence which
exposes them to evil, ugliness, sin, the wages of sin, the carnage
created by sin, the attractiveness of some types of sin. The result
of this see-no-evil-hear-no-evil-speak-no-evil attitude is a hardened
sense of self-righteousness, an appalling lack of compassion for
those trapped in sin, and often a frightening inability to recognize
and discern *real* sinfulness when confronted with it. What I
hear you saying as you present your approach to Paul's words in
Philippians 4:8 is radically different. You seem to be encouraging
believers to be fully engaged in their lives wherever they are,
whomever they are with, in whatever capacity they are called and
in the midst of this gritty, sometimes messy, fallen, stricken
world, to be looking constantly, vigilantly for the Word of God
in the midst of us. I cannot tell you how exciting and extraordinary
this insight is. It reminds us that we serve and love a God who
is always seeking to communicate with His people, to be the Light
of the World, who will use whatever means at hand to reach as
many as have ears to hear. You seem to be recalling us to the
old David and Karen Mains idea of the God Hunt, where we are alive
to every situation, word, symbol, recollection and interaction
with our heroic and glorious God who is *always* here and always
at work. Your approach brings excitement and challenge and almost
an electric arc of recognition when we see the Lord's word. Disengaging
means we sit and congratulate God on His good taste in choosing
us. Who has a greater impact and a more powerful testimony? The
person who is alive to the Lord and sees Him at work all around
Him, or the person who fears sullying him or herself with the
muck of the world and instead waits, tracts in hand, for sinners
to find their way to them in a clean environment?
I hesitated
to read the Harry Potter books for a long time because so many
Christians feel deeply that they are evil and a gate to the occult.
But after reading Chuck Colson's comments I decided to read the
whole series and have not only enjoyed them greatly, but have
been quite moved by Harry Potter's self-sacrificing nature, by
his loyalty, his courage, his wit and intelligence. With each
novel I've seen many old stories brought to life (just an example,
isn't Harry seeing his father as the stag in the moonlight very
similar to the old Christian legend of St. Eustace and the stag?)
Harry bears the marks of the evil Voldemort (he is known by his
scar!) but he received the scar and lived through the encounter
because of the love and sacrifice of his parents. This kind of
story telling is powerful and has such parallel to the stories
we Christians love so much that I am saddened that it is fear
which keeps our brothers and sisters from enjoying the beauty
and meaning. Of course I think it's important to discuss the use
of mechanical magic in the wizarding world with our children,
but as we are bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of
the Lord we should be discussing those things anyway. I don't
*want* my children's first exposure to these ideas to occur after
they're grown and out of my home. I read the books aloud to my
family and we talked about them all the time, speculated about
the meanings of names and sometimes figured out that characters
weren't entirely reliable based on clues in their names before
they had ever done anything suspicious. But isn't the muggle/wizard
division similar to the world/believer division as well? The intriguing
thing to me in the wizarding world is that every single person
must make a choice of who they will serve. What more fundamental
life question could we face? And to those who criticize the death
of Harry's schoolmate -- the stakes are high and to make the battle
appear easy and the consequences minor is to betray the memories
of so many who who lost everything. Good *isn't* better than evil
because it's nicer!
Thank you
so much for your newsletters. I have been impressed with the issues
you raise and the call that you give to all of us to be faithful
in all things. I didn't discover your website until after I spent
a year teaching in a small Christian school and can give you a
serious example of the impact you have had in my life. When I
was teaching high school English, I was presenting my students
each week with Latin and Greek roots to English words in hopes
that it would improve their vocabularies and their understanding
of the interrelatedness of language and thought and ideas. The
day I presented the Latin word "mater" and its derivatives, including
"matrix", my 11th and 12th grade students became very restive
and suddenly little pockets of conversation and speculation erupted
all over the class. I was curious about this uncharacteristic
reaction until they said they had all gone to see *The Matrix*
at the local theatre over the weekend and had been trying to puzzle
out the meaning of the film. I, of course, out of respect for
our church's belief that no Christian should see an R-rated movie
had *not* seen *The Matrix* and had no basis for discussing this
film with the kids. To this day I repent of such a foolish restriction
because I lost the opportunity of opening my English class to
an entire period of discussing the meaning and parallels and witness
of an amazing film that I have since seen. That incident totally
changed my perspective on the necessity for me to be culturally
awake and aware. You had a big part in that and I thank you. God
bless you for your ministry!
Very sincerely,
Kim Jeffery
Response:
I am humbled by your letter. Thank you, thank you. By the way,
Philippians 4:8 has set the new tone of my life. At one time I
focused more on what was bad and evil rather than good. You have
made my day -David
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