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Home > 2007 > July (Web-only)Christianity Today, July (Web-only), 2007  |   |  
Speaking Out
What Would Jonathan Edwards Say About Harry Potter?
How the preacher responded to pop culture's version of transcendence.
Josh Moody | posted 7/24/2007 09:20AM

[WARNING: SOME PLOT SPOILERS.]

So there we have it. The most engrossing imaginative world created at the start of the 21st century is essentially pagan. Don't get me wrong—I like the Harry Potter ...

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Displaying 1 - 25 of 52 comments.Page: 1 2 3     Show All 

Jane Gallagher   Posted: August 06, 2007 2:06 PM
Wow, now I remember why I'm an atheist. This is insane. Both sides of this argument are reading way too much into it.
Anonymous Posted: August 06, 2007 2:00 PM
I would like this article more I think were it not written from the pseudo-perspective of Jonathan Edwards. There is simply no way of telling what a deceased person from a completely different historical context would think about a modern phenomenon, and frankly, I think it's a bit presumptuous to assume that we can predict his opinion. I do, however, appreciate reading an analysis of Harry Potter that manages not to condemn the books at face value. For the most part, the critics of the books I have read which condemn the series as unholy obviously have not read the books to begin with. But honestly, I am tempted to think that any serious spiritual analysis of Harry Potter is reading a bit much into a children's book.
T.J.   Posted: August 03, 2007 4:49 PM
The controversy swirling around HP lies at the root of the problem with the church in America. We want to justify why we do things (and watch things and read things) we KNOW we shouldn't. We have PASTORS currently preaching from SPiderman movies, 1st , 2nd and 3rd Shrek, The Matrix, Harry Potter...people are not reading GOD'S WORD...they are going to the movies and then the PASTORS STRIVE to come up with a spiritual message. It's quite sickening. Now if anyone reads their bible, YOU KNOW THAT RIGHT AFTER SAUL WENT TO THE WITCH OF ENDOR FOR DIRECTION......HE dies..........THAT IS WHERE DEALING WITH THE DARKNESS PUTS YOU....IN THE GRAVE....> death permeates the potter books.....witchcraft and wizardry is the foundation of the whole series..... how can a loving CHristian parent open their kids up to satanic nonsense......WE KNOW ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL...OUR GOD IS SUPERNATURAL.....and if we are walking with Him....we should see the supernatural/miracles in our lives. I do.
M Elward   Posted: August 02, 2007 4:49 PM
I am saddened and annoyed that you presume that Jonathan Edwards would have liked and condoned Harry Potter. He would have known scriptures and obeyed it. We are told plainly not to have anything to do with witches, wizards, sorcery or any such thing, and however you try to pretty them up, they are an abomination in the sight of Almighty God. Magic is an evil force in the world and belongs to the Devil. Harry Potter captures the imagination, but my main quarrel with it is that it makes out that some wizards are good, which is in total contradicaion to the word of God, ther is no such thing as good witches, they have their power from the Devil. I I
Matt   Posted: August 02, 2007 10:42 AM
In response to Sanctimonious: there is only one sentence in this entire article that references Homer, and that merely references a well-known symbol to make a point. In what way does referencing the Trojan Horse automatically mean that the author supports or agrees with Odysseus' lifestyle? Whenever you reference the Bible, are you saying that you support David's murder of Uriah, or Solomon's life of sin with his wives? How about Cain's murder of Abel, or Satan's pride? Your comment was unnecessarily vituperative and completely devoid of understanding.
Frederiksen   Posted: August 01, 2007 6:26 AM
KGLEE... Remember that according to the Qu'ran you will burn in (their) hell for believing that Jesus is the son of God. And the Muslims will burn in (your) hell for not believing that Jesus is the son of God. Seems to me the lucky ones are the Harry Potterans who have no hell to go to. Only life. And since you consider the Bible to be The Truth, what other writing could possibly challenge that truth? In that sense, why would you ever avoid exposure to other documents? How can they ever challenge you?
KurtTGS   Posted: July 31, 2007 7:35 PM
Beth M nailed it.
Sanctimonious   Posted: July 31, 2007 7:32 AM
Ugh! I am a sanctimonious Christian, and I can't believe this magazine is supporting the works of that pagan Homer. The Iliad is clearly pagan. Doesn't Odysseus live in sin with a witch? I read the poem, and I think that Achilles has a bad, un-Christlike attitude. My goodness, what about all those foreign gods! I refuse to let my children read this filth. I live in fear of this world. It beat up my God, and I am afraid it might take me out too. I am afraid that children will read Homer and kidnap other men's wives. You need to rename your publication, "Satanism Today". Unsubscribe me, because Homer is rotten to the core.
Karl B   Posted: July 30, 2007 12:40 AM
C.S. Lewis wrote in The Problem of Pain: "When we act from ourselves alone - that is, from God in ourselves - we are collaborating in, or live instruments of, creation: and that is why such an act undoes with 'backward mutters of dissevering power' the uncreative spell which Adam laid upon his species." He then refers to Christ's work on Calvary: "There the degree of accepted Death reaches the utmost bounds of the imaginable ... not only all natural supports, but the presence of the very Father to whom the sacrifice is made deserts the victim." There are parallels to HP. He also aligned his will to accept death, understanding that his self-sacrifice was necessary to save others. As he took his final steps toward death, he lost the supporting connection to his natural father. In the moments after, he found himself at King's Cross and learned soon after that his self-sacrifice had truly undone the "uncreative spell," that the last enemy, Death, had been destroyed!
JakeT   Posted: July 29, 2007 10:40 PM
it's amazing to me how even-handed CT's commentary on HP is. And how off-kilter and reactionary some of the reactions are.
Joel   Posted: July 29, 2007 12:41 PM
It's so disappointing to see how many Christians are missing the fact that these books are essentially Christian, not pagan. Did you see the Scripture quotations in book 7? Did you notice how self-sacrificial love is what conquers death and that Harry in obedience to his father (figure) sets his face resolutely to his own cross for the sake of others, only to find that his sacrifice (like his mother's before him) defeats death itself? The theme of the cross if much clearer in these books than it is in our beloved Tolkien. It's quite clear now that J. K. is indeed a fellow believer. It's high time we treated her like one instead of ostracizing her.
Joel   Posted: July 29, 2007 9:05 AM
It's so disappointing to see how many Christians are missing the fact that these books are essentially Christian, not pagan. Did you see the Scripture quotations in book 7? Did you notice how self-sacrificial love is what conquers death and that Harry in obedience to his father (figure) sets his face resolutely to his own cross for the sake of others, only to find that his sacrifice (like his mother's before him) defeats death itself? The theme of the cross if much clearer in these books than it is in our beloved Tolkien. It's quite clear now that J. K. is indeed a fellow believer. It's high time we treated her like one instead of ostracizing her.
Joel   Posted: July 29, 2007 7:56 AM
It's so disappointing to see how many Christians are missing the fact that these books are essentially Christian, not pagan. Did you see the Scripture quotations in book 7? Did you notice how self-sacrificial love is what conquers death and that Harry in obedience to his father (figure) sets his face resolutely to his own cross for the sake of others, only to find that his sacrifice (like his mother's before him) defeats death itself? The theme of the cross if much clearer in these books than it is in our beloved Tolkien. It's quite clear now that J. K. is indeed a fellow believer. It's high time we treated her like one instead of ostracizing her.
elaine   Posted: July 28, 2007 6:02 AM
whilst i agree that the article was apologeticlly ballanced it should have been an opprotunity for Josh Moody to give Almighty God glory by himself quoting The Word of God according to THE BIBLE
no sophistry   Posted: July 27, 2007 3:44 PM
Does Harry Potter offend? Are Christians to be offended by Potter stories? Surely the stories are complex literature and Christians should have the sophistication to be able to appreciate such literature and arguments against Potter are simplistic? But this is high-brow and insensitive. What offends God about idols? Idols, too, belong in sophisticated religions which have beauty, yet God is offended at pagan idols! You say He should be sophisticated enough to appreciate their harmlessness and the fact that they are just dead materials; but are they not infused with the spirits of other gods? You say we must be enlightened and appreciate high ideals and complex art and foreign religions. The imagination is therefore neutral and Satan does not take subtle shifts in scriptural meaning and draw people's hearts away from God just enough to make them lukewarm and their affections to God just that little bit dead. No! there is a danger. We are to alive in Christ and can enjoy purity not rot
Harmony   Posted: July 27, 2007 3:39 PM
Great article. It made me think. My unlce is one of those who thinks Harry Potter is evil. I see now that he prefers the true story out and out, but I do think that there is still something to be learned from allegorical books and such like Harry Potter. I think Christian themes and morals have a way of making it into literature without anyone realizing it. Everything seems to exist and to be created that way. No matter how hard you try to get away from the truth, it will still keep popping up. God created things so that they would point back to His glory. “Deathly Hallows” contains much of the great story in the Gospels. We have reason to read and enjoy the Potter books. We can teach our children what is fact and fiction in these books and discuss the themes found in them. I have posted on this subject many times at my blog and plan on posting a Christian review of the 7th book tomorrow. http://atthestudy.blogspot. Also, check out http:declarationphotos.blogspot.com
John   Posted: July 27, 2007 9:53 AM
Flannery O'Conner once said, "It is popular to suppose that anyone who can read the telephone book can read a short story or a novel...[Christian] readers are constantly being offended and scandalized by novels that they don't have the fundamental equipment to read in the first place, and often these are works that are permeated with a Christian spirit." Too bad Moody felt the need to justify his thoughts by dragging the great JE through the mud.
Christina R.   Posted: July 26, 2007 10:35 PM
I am shocked that the editors of Christianity Today would glorify Harry Potter, I am saddened that they would presume what Jonathan Edwards would have to say, I am appalled that they would try to find a connection between the Harry Potter series and the Bible. As a Christian who enjoys reading lots of books, I have learned not to equate God's Word with anyone else's words no matter how popular. Christians have come to justify what they watch or read saying there is a "Bible Lesson" here...Who are you kidding....You enjoy it! The editorials at Christianity today are not "Gospel" they are written by people who have been saved "hopefuly" by the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, a sacrifice that cannot be compared to a fictional story that glorifies the very things that God Warns us about and says is evil. If you want to read it, and write about it, than be responsilbe with your opinoins....and call it what it really is! An adventure that has nothing to do with the Goodness of God.
augustine and daniel fan   Posted: July 26, 2007 5:37 PM
Mixing different substances in the book gave rise to controversy. Daniel 2:43 "And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay." Leviticus 19:19 " 'Keep my decrees. " Don't mate different kinds of animals. " 'Don't plant your field with two kinds of seed. "Don't wear clothing woven of two kinds of material." St Augustine in "City of God" contrasts the worldly city of Cain with the godly city of Abel. The two are mixed until the end times. He writes that end times will see the separating out of the godly from the ungodly into two separate components, leaving the city of God separate from the ungodly. Paul writes that Creation groans in expectation, to see the Sons of God, i.e. the good city of godly people. Now, why do we not then pay heed to God's decrees when assessing a book for godly content? This series by Rowling mixes fortune telling and spell-casting with the scriptures and Jesus.
bookdragon   Posted: July 26, 2007 2:15 PM
You have got to be kidding. How do read a series a boy preserved from evil by his parent's self-sacrificing love who grows up learning who he is and that he's called to fight the same evil, and who ultimately sacrifices himself to protect his friends and defeat that evil, AND WHO RETURNS FROM THE DEAD, and NOT see that this is a Christian story? HP is all about death?! I guess the NT is too then. I've certainly heard some non-Christians call Christianity a deathcult, and that makes just about as much sense the claim that HP is.
marloschalesky.com   Posted: July 26, 2007 1:47 PM
As a HP reader, I’d say that the world's imagination wasn’t captured by the versions of the afterlife/transcendent in HP, but with the triumph of good over evil and the power of self-sacrifice. What fascinates people (besides all the interesting details of Rowling’s wizarding world) is the fleshing out of John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." That’s the underlying theme of HP. And there's something in people that wants good to triumph, that understands the nobility of sacrifice for others, that still deplores self-seeking. This tells us that the heart of the gospel still resonates with our generation. People want what Christ is. The heart of Christianity still captures the hearts of the world. As to what Edwards would say? Hopefully, he’d use HP to talk about the amazing thing Christ did for us on the cross, and how we, in turn, can be more like Christ by putting others first, by sacrificing for them, by emulating true love.
Edwards fan   Posted: July 25, 2007 5:35 PM
Being a fan of Jonathan Edwards, his view of God as absolutely supreme and central in His own affections, his passion for God's glory as the center of all things and his concern for lost people, I think Christian America has done a great disservice to, not mainly JK Rowling, but to our neighbors by bashing Harry Potter instead of using it as an opportunity to point people to Christ. Take note of this comment from this pre-HP7 article @ atheism.about.com, regarding the question, "Is Harry Potter a Christian Allegory?" "For the time being, then, it would make the most sense to conclude that the Harry Potter stories are not a Christian allegory. All of this could change in the future, however. Something might happen in the final books which is much more explicitly Christian in nature — the death and resurrection of Harry Potter himself, for example. If that happens, then it would be hard not to treat the stories as a Christian allegory, even if they don’t start off doing it very well."
Anonymous Posted: July 25, 2007 5:07 PM
I am appalled at Christianity Today! I opened my email from you to read about on line dating services and Harry Potter. If you are not going to be a Christian magazine why don't you just called yourselves Today. Promoting Harry Potter, the most subltle and pervasive promotion of witchcraft ever to cover the globe? How many of the young minds are reading the book to see how they are going to share Christ with others who have read the book? I am a missionary in Boliva where the President of the country makes blood sacrifices to the pagan goddess of the earth and has just sent 40 witches to the city of Santa Cruz to evangelize the evangelical Christians. That is what witch craft is all about "pop" culture is the ancient religion of the father of lies. Get into the battle folks, don't just promote the subltle indoctrination of our youth. Please remove me from your mailing list. Thank you. Sincerely, Dr. Mary McDonald - South American Mission Society
Imogen   Posted: July 25, 2007 4:39 PM
Josh, I really think you're missing the mark in declaring HP 'essentially pagan'. At the end of DH, Harry dies willingly to save his friends, is resurrected, and because of his sacrifice the powers of evil can no longer harm those for whom he died. Rowling has repeatedly confessed faith in God, but refused to discuss it any further because it would be a direct spoiler for the final book. I don't think things get much clearer than that.
Brian   Posted: July 25, 2007 4:05 PM
In this book we learn that even the wizards in Harry's world attend church, with quotes from the Bible on their headstones (and deeply significant ones at that). Just because this religious world is unlike ours doesn't mean Harry promotes a different spirituality. Since Harry's world closely parallels ours (except that there is magic in his), to throw explicit Christianity could make for a sticky situation. I feel as if Rowling chose not go into more detail about religion out of respect for her own faith, rather than give it any sort of subservient role to sorcery. There is also no real talk of the afterlife in Narnia, but only the least informed would claim that this means Lewis had a banal view of Heaven. The "cosmic waiting room" happens in Harry's head; Rowling does not specifically state that this is what it is actually like. I felt reading the book as though Rowling specifically led us up to the door of spiritual discussion without entering, preferring to let parents do tha
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