Is it okay for Christians to read or watch Harry Potter?

there’s nothing wrong with the Harry Potter series. it’s just a book so kids can imagine what its like to live in the wizarding world. there is no putting down GOD or anything in that manner. there some of the best books I’ve ever read.

I’d say it’s personal conviction. I personally haven’t read them, but mostly because I simply have no desire to (give me LOTR any day!). I have some friends who’ve read them, some who haven’t. One thing I would say – don’t give it to kids. The only ones reading HP should be those with enough wisdom to at least think about it and what it says/portrays/whatever. I also remember one friend’s mum pointing out something like how it’s the wizards who are glorified in HP, and those who aren’t wizards are dumb, etc (or something like that, I can’t quite remember what she said). LOTR has clear good and bad, and the heroes fight for good. From what I’ve heard, HP is a bit more blurry.

I don’t think it’s necessarily bad to read Harry Potter because everyone has different opinions and different parental guidelines. That said, I am not allowed to read the Harry Potter books or watch the Harry Potter movies right now. I know some people love the books, and I have no doubt that they are well written because they are so well loved, but I personally will not read them, and that’s okay because everyone has different reading preferences. The reason I’ll read LOTR is because it’s an allegory and also, the characters that are clearly supposed to be good do not try to learn witchcraft and use it. Like David said, Gandalf is given those powers by the Creator figure in the LOTR allegory. He isn’t trying to learn it and manipulate it on his own. Otherwise, that would make him evil. I definitely wouldn’t judge HP if you haven’t read it, though. Definitely don’t feel pressured to read it.

Great explanations, thanks. Like many of you have commented below, I’ve read the Lord of the Rings, but not Henry Potter. One of you suggested that HP shouldn’t be given to young children to read. I would second that suggestion, even though I’ve heard so many parents comment on how thrilled they are that their grade school children are reading big books like Harry Potter. The reason I worry about the single digit and early double digiters getting so engrossed in HP is that they are so close to what has been called “The Magic Years” (there is an early childhood book by that name written about forty years ago, the magic years being ages 1-4 in that book. Magic there just means very young children are still exploring the natural laws of the Universe, gravity, object permanence, and so on). It takes a while for a child’s mind to learn the difference between “real life” and fantasy. By the time they hit double digits, most of them have figured it out. This job is hard enough without confusing them with realistic tales of lives that don’t even operate following the laws of gravity!

Actually, she said that she has to make some edits she doesn’t have time to make right now, so nvm. Just one more thing I would add, although the Lord of the Rings is written by a Christian and doesn’t have the same kind of Satanic roots, I’m not certain about what I think even of it.

Here’s a really insightful post written by an author friend of mine.

http://shantellemaryh.blogspot.com/2015/05/faithful-fridays-philippians-48-part.html?m=1

The bottom line is, HP glorifies what the Bible calls satanic/sorcery. LOTR is more about good/vs evil, and inherent power (if I’m correct) than about learning how to do magic.

I think that if you have the discernment to read them, without being swayed, well, that’s your own matter of conscience. I was never allowed to read or watch HP, and I’m honestly glad I didn’t. There are more edifying Christian fantasy books, and one of my favorites is The Ilyon Chronicles by Jaye L. Knight, which is completely magic-free. Those books are wonderful, with nothing controversial.

Totally 😉

Well said.

Having read both the Harry Potter and Lord of The Rings books, I think that your argument about it being about the good guy using magic, and thus it’s bad… is a rather foolish one. Gandalf was a full on good guy. And he used magic left and right. The elves had magic to some extent, and it shows good uses of it. Harry Potter used magic, in a good way to defeat the evil in the world.

Also, Lord of The Rings doesn’t stay in the books. There are camps, and such for Lord of The Rings just as well as there are for Harry Potter.

I wouldn’t ever hand the Harry Potter series to a young child, as they deal with hard things like death, loosing friends, fighting evil, and the inner struggle to not try for power. This being said, I would never give the Lord of the Rings series to a young child, as it deals with harder subjects as well. However, because I wouldn’t give these to young children doesn’t mean that older, more seasoned readers couldn’t read these books.

Well, personally, I don’t watch/read either lol. 😁

But one thing to consider is if the “magical power” isn’t coming from God, where is it coming from???? There’s only one other place it could come from….

Wow, excellent thoughts! Thanks for sharing, @disqus_3V0LBEetNG:disqus!

Wow, y’all have said some good things! Keep the answers coming! =)

But what glory is it bringing God?

You know who Illuvatar is?! *virtual high-five*

I’ve never read the HP books or watched the movies, but i’ve heard that the sorcery/magic in HP is much more Satanic driven than in LOTR. That’s not something that i wanna mess around with, no matter how innocent it may seem. Maybe it won’t affect my relationship with God. But, i’d rather just steer clear altogether and focus my time and energy on something i know pleases God, for sure and for certain. Does HP really honor God? If not, it’s not worth it.

Damsel, it sounds like you are saying my argument is foolish based upon a comparison of HP VS. LOTR.

But I never defended LOTR or made any comparison between it and HP.

God doesn’t approve of anyone using magic or witchcraft as a means of accomplishing good.. In fact, He lumps those who practice witchcraft and sorcery together with others who will not inherit the kingdom of God -as well as those who approve of such things,

Am I saying that everyone who reads these books will be lured into witchcraft, or directly approve to those who do? Of course not, but too many kids (including teens) have been lured into witchcraft via these books who would otherwise not have been,

And if there are LOTR camps that also encourage sorcery and spells, are they any better simply because the magic is more subtle?

Subtlety is the Enemy’s specialty, my friend. Whether it comes in the form of a winsome child or a white-bearded sorcerer that is easy to love.

I know because I use to be a “white” witch who only wanted the power to do “good.” But our definition of good and God’s definition of good are generally two different things.

Here is a link that shows how much the line between imagination and the occultic world has blurred since HP’s conception: http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/Harry&Witchcraft.htm

Your dogs made some good points! 🙂

Aye, that I do 🙂 *virtual high-five*

Another thing I might add is that in The Lord of the Rings, most of the magic-users (the wizards, Sauron, the Balrog) are all Ainur (basically, angels, or, in the case of Sauron and the Balrog, fallen angels).

I would say that there is a difference between what is considered magic in-world and what is considered magic out-of-world. What the elves do would be considered magic in our world, but in Middle-earth, it is not ‘magic’. It is inherent ability that was given to the race of elves by Ilúvatar when he created them.

For someone to want to ‘learn to do Middle-earth magic’ properly, they would have to go back and have themselves born as an elf (or created as an Ainur) 😉

I don’t read HP personally but it’s up to others whether they want to make that choice. I’ve been asked the same question and my answer is basically ‘because LOTR is clearly fantasy whereas HP normalises and even encourages the occult.’ With family on both sides involved in the occult since way back, I’m not comfortable with books that make out like it’s a normal thing that can be used however you want. It’s not just HP. Skulduggery Pleasant is another series which springs to mind. There are a few other books but I can’t think of them off the top of my head.

Sorry to be a killjoy but don’t get too excited. HP isn’t that well written 🙁

My dogs thank you, of course. drF.

I have read and watched the Lord of the Rings but not Harry Potter as well so I definitely know where you’re coming from, Olivia.

I think if you look at what is going on in both series there is a pretty big distinction. In the LOTR, the heroes that have magic are the wizards (Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast), the Balrog, and Sauron. Like I said below to @GuitarwithArms:disqus, those are actually all maia (angels) created by the creator of Middle-earth, Eru Illuvatar. The balrogs and Sauron revolted and were working against Eru’s purposes so he sent five angels to assist them (Gandalf, Saruman, Radagast, and the two blue wizards). Only Gandalf ends up staying the course and doing what he was sent to do. We all have gifts but it’s our choice how you use them.

In Harry Potter, the heroes use witchcraft, spells, and fortune telling to harm their enemies. There is a difference. There is some stuff in LOTR that could be called witchcraft (Saruman and Denethor communicating with Sauron via Palantir, the ring, Nazgul, etc.) but it is all shown as wrong. This is the main difference. Harry Potter encourages using spells and telling fortunes in tea leaves because that’s what all the heroes do. The objects similar to that in the LOTR are shown as wrong and evil like they really are. Just look at how those who used the rings or palantirs turned out, Saruman, Denethor, Smeagoul (and to a lesser degree, Bilbo, even being around it a little corrupts you), and the Nazgul all died.

The big difference is this: in Harry Potter, it’s cool and upstanding to use dark witchcraft to hurt your enemies. In LOTR, those who attempt to use witchcraft or other dark magic and spells end up dead or insane which is what will happen if you really go after that stuff in real life. Witchcraft is a real thing that really happens in real life and not something we can afford to play around with. It will corrupt and destroy you, just like the ring.

Thanks for your post, mrose. Since I’m already ancient, I can tell you that I have known two different men who had “dabbled” in sorcery a couple of decades before I knew them. They both quit. One quit absolutely “cold turkey” (means suddenly, completely, with no medical support) because he got the liver scared out of him. The other hadn’t gotten as far in as the man who quit. He was a screen writer and a director and he kept references to witchery in his Hollywood stuff, but he told me, “I read a lot of books for background stuff, but I never included anything that I didn’t change significantly, chants and spells and whatnot. I sure didn’t want to risk anybody trying it for real.” These men were not professing Christians, they claimed to be agnostic, but they sure were dedicated to trying to be on the side of goodness and not evil. Their lives spoke for them. They did seriously hard things when the culture around them was asking them to party-hearty.
It is quite a challenge for a Christian to understand that God and the Universe created by God extends way on out there beyond human understanding. We do believe in a reality beyond the physical part of it we take action in every day. We do believe that the love of God for us transcends the whole universe, the parts we know and the parts we do not. But as we come to know and shun evil here on earth, we have to trust that God is also handling the evil beyond what we know.
And now the doggy crowd is signaling for their supper! drF.

You’re right. If something doesn’t honor God, we shouldn’t be part of it!

Well you remember all the important stuff. XD

Eru is just in the Silmarillion (no move of that… yet) which another of JRR Tolkien’s works in which he details the origins of middle-earth and what happened before The Hobbit/LOTR start up.

Along those same lines, in Harry Potter, only certain people are born with the ability to use magic. And to be able to control it, they have to go to a school for it. So by that argument, the wizards of Harry Potter’s world are only using abilities that they were born with, and just like in the Lord of the Rings, some of them choose to use it for evil and others choose to use it to fight evil.

I also want to point out that when Tolkien wrote the Lord of the Rings series, he specifically said that they were not allegorical. They were their own story created by him. Granted he was a Christian, so there are Christian elements in it, but it isn’t an allegory. In the same way, Harry Potter is not intended as an allegory for Christianity, but that doesn’t prevent it from having some moments that are allegorical. For instance, the battle between good and evil, the triumph of good over evil, and the willingness to sacrifice yourself for the good of others.

Running from problems is generally not advisable.

The world’s a big place, Daniel. When are you going to stop running from it and start fighting it?

Also, LoTR is not “devil’s stuff.” In fact, I would call it a much more holy book than most books that are written as ‘Christian books’ today. J. R. R. Tolkien was a Christian, and there have been few times that I have seen more clearly Christ and his sacrifice than through reading LoTR.

Excellent analogy. I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. However, I don’t think we shouldn’t read HP just because it might be bad. We should know our enemy.

Siigghh……. “Big books like Harry Potter”…

Please give me something to punch. Or at least glare at menacingly.

Here’s the deal, HP is not good literature. It just isn’t. There’s no richness, there’s no texture, there’s no complexity. HP is like cotton candy, LoTR is like a steak. The cotton candy is yummy and makes you feel good up front, but leaves you as empty as you started. Steak takes some time, it takes preparation, you have to cut it up… but it leaves you full when you’re done.

thatcher has a fair question. Christians, in our legalism, love to ask “what’s wrong with it?” But we are not bound by the law, we are bound by righteousness. So I would ask, what’s right with it? How does it bring glory to God?

I believe that both wizards are the same and we should avoid anything having to do with the witchcraft culture. My concern is when did we start accepting filth, occult, and witchcraft as a form of entertainment.

Having the knowledge of these books and movies does in no way enhance ones walk with God. The only effective way to fight this culture is to remove oneself from all aspects of it and learn the Word of God. That is what will teach you about evil. We are specifically told in scripture what we are to read, do and say. And our activities should always be in agreement with scripture. Nowhere in scripture does it tell us to study evil in order to know it.

God tells us to not love the world or anything in it, that we are to think on things that are righteous, and to come out of the worldly system. Is there anyone who can argue that?

If we continue to participate in the world’s love for the occult, we are putting ourselves way outside the boundaries of practicing righteousness. It is time for this generation to start running with saved instead of consorting with the lost. God will not strive with man forever.

Psalm 1:1-6 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,which yields its fruit in seasonand whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked!They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

Are you saying that reading HP would help us ‘know our enemy?’ Because if so… isn’t that still like playing with fire or the Ring? I think there’d be other ways to know our enemy without reading HP (if the magic in HP is from our enemy, which I can’t say for certain it is, not having read it).

Is the magic in HP actually witchcraft though? I mean, does it actually differ from the kind of stuff the good guys use in LOTR? If it is, and HP portrays it as cool, that’s definitely not good. But not having read HP, I can’t say whether or not the magic there is any different from that in LOTR. I think some people might say it’s different, and some say it’s the same.

“So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

I would like to posit that we should decide to conquer things, not run from them.

I haven’t read or watched Harry Potter so correct me if I’m wrong but I think this is the difference. In LOTR, some characters have innate magical abilities that they are “born” with (to the extent angels are born of course). They use these powers just like you use your arms or legs; it’s just part of who they are. Some use magic for good, some for evil just like some use their arms for good and some for evil. Even if the magic in LOTR is wrong there is no way for a (if you’ll excuse the term) muggle to “gain” magic. In HP, you can become initiated into magical cults and gain this dark power for yourself without consequences. Dark magic and witchcraft are real things not to be trifled with. HP shows that you can (and to a small extent should) try to become immersed in witchcraft. LOTR shows no way to gain magic and those that medel with witchcraft end up in big trouble. The perfect example is Saruman who studied Sauron’s ways so intently that he eventually succumbed to them.

I think we agree that witchcraft is evil. In that case, LOTR shows evil power as something that cannot be gained by a normal person and those that try end up in dire straits. HP shows witchcraft as a good thing that the good guys use for good when in reality nothing is further from the truth.

I don’t think you can change my mind but I’d love to hear more. 🙂 Witchcraft is a real thing that really happens today and I think we can all agree that it’s evil. The difference is that Narnia and The Lord of the Rings show witchcraft as something to be shunned (everyone who practices it ends up dead) while Harry Potter praises it as something good when in reality it is very dangerous.

You say there’s better Christian books… can you point me to them? I’ve been looking at other “Christian fiction” books and have been severely disappointed recently; all of them turned out really weird. Any suggestions? Sounds like you know what you’re talking about 🙂

I really want to read The Ilyon Chronicles because so many of my blogger friends love that series! Another great Christian fantasy series is the Tales of Goldstone Wood. Not only are they incredibly written and mind blowingly complex, but they also present beautiful allegorical storylines. I honestly can’t get enough of that series!

That’s a great point!

Ha! Music is an awesome symbolism. Balrogs are just Maia created by Eru. Only one Valar, Melkor/Morgoth revolted. However, he convinced several Maia (including Sauron, the Balrogs, and others) to follow him. Here’s the best explanation you’ll find: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxgsxaFWWHQ. There’s a link to part 2 at the end. Have fun!

I´ve read your comments, and find them all fascinating. I did notice that nobody addressed the issue of alternate realities (or at least I didn´t see it). In fiction the author creates his/her own universe, which obeys their own rules, to suit whatever purpose they´re trying to accomplish. Sure, there´s alot of book settings which follow rules quasi-identical to the rules our real world follows, but none of them are actually real, because, duh, it´s a fictional story.

This rule applies even to fictional stories that we find positive as Christians, like the Narnia series written by respected theologian, C.S. Lewis. Even within the Narnia series there is magic and bad moral choices committed by the good guys. However, the Narnia series is more acceptable in its correlation with our real reality, because after all, it is a story based on the Bible´s narrative. With this series it´s easy to sift the profound truths from the narrative setting.

Both HP and LOTR have a twist of sorts in their settings, changing the place of the series, and they both have less-than-acceptable content for us to extrapolate (which you guys have already pointed out in other comments). Here´s a crazy idea; maybe in the authors’ fictional, unreal reality, it´s not actually morally wrong to do the things that would be unacceptable in our real reality. And if that theory is right, then it´s our job, as wise Christians to extrapolate the good teachings in these books from the fictional ones.

I´m not sure on this one, though, what do you guys think?

I love it! I think you’re right on track!

I totally respect your opinion and decision, but I thought that I ought to point out that Harry Potter was ALSO written by a devout Christian author, and contains biblical truths. 🙂

I think it’s great that you have your own opinion, and I totally respect it. But as a devout, lifelong Christian who has read Harry Potter more times that she can count, I have never found it to encourage sin or dishonor God in anyway. In fact, I have learned many valuable truths from it. It is a personal decision though, and I respect yours. 🙂

the author does create an imaginary world that is kept secret from the humans because if humans in the story found out about the world they would try to learn magic so they could use it to become rich and powerful. in order to discover the biblical truths in Harry Potter you need to read the books, when i read them i found lots of biblical messages in it. i definitely wouldn’t recommend it to a child who cannot define the difference of reality to fiction. the books do have a strange twist of irony which i really liked but it builds the story up to be whole and in the end it is light with the secret world cleansed of darkness.

It may not be quite as classic a tale of good vs. evil as LOTR is, but that’s because Jo is dealing with humans, where Tolkien deals with races. Tolkien is also a Christian theologian, where Jo is a Christian. So yeah, her lines are greyed a little bit more due to the agency that characters practice, but it’s still a brilliantly written tale of good vs evil. I am a devout Christian, and can draw the line between fiction and reality. I love Harry Potter. Nothing’s ever going to change that. But does that mean I’m not righteous? Not a “good” Christian? Most definitely — NOT. God is first in my life, always. I love and praise Him, and live my life in the manner He has instructed me too. And I have no moral qualms with reading, enjoying, and learning from, the amazing series that is Harry Potter.

You’re right. Maybe cotton candy made with fake sugar. Can’t argue there. drF.

books like harry potter and lord of the rings and Narnia all helped give me a better under standing of the bible they are what lift up my faith and encourage me. when i finished one of the books my sister ,who has read them, and I would talk about what we found amazing in it.

I have read and watched Harry Potter (multiple times) and am currently working on reading Lord of the Rings. I have never viewed fantasy as a means to actually “do/practice magic.” I just see it as something fun and entertaining and something I usually connect with or find meaning in. Like how this one character in the end overcomes his fears of standing out and takes a stand for something and becomes a leader. And his bravery ends up inspiring others to stand up for what is right. Or that people can overcome tragedy. Or just because you make a mistake, it doesn’t mean you can’t keep going on the path you were on, that you can be forgiven. Or that there is always hope. (I could go on.) It is the same with Narnia. Narnia has more symbolism for me obviously, but I enjoy many fiction books. (Really that is a good portion of what I read.) But a lot of times I use them as connectors to get to know people, things I love and share with friends, things I can personally love. I believe it is really a personal choice (or one you have to listen to your parents for.) I mean my parents are cool with me reading and watching Harry Potter, but don’t want me to watch other movies that have no magic in them. (And since I am 18 they have said I can, just to not have my younger siblings watch, but I have made it this far on there decisions and am ok!) God may put it on one persons heart that Harry Potter (or anything really) isn’t something they should do. But someone else it’s not a problem for them. This is something I have with an open fist. I am open to discussion and it isn’t a You must agree with this sort of thing. (Like the fact that Jesus died and rose again. That is a closed fist thing. And you aren’t convincing me otherwise.) Ok I hope that makes sense! I am tired and tend to ramble on!

I would just like to add another truth to you’re amazing list after harry was retrieved from under the trap door in the Philosophers stone he was talking to Dumbledore and he told Harry the reason he was alive, his mother had laid a spell on harry so powerful that not even the darkest curse could kill Harry and Dumbledore said that this spell was her undying love for Harry. This points out spells don’t have to come from wand, cauldrons, or tea cups it shows something so simple can be so power that it defends people from evil. That is in away why Jesus said love as he loved use unconditionally. Who knows it may be what saves a personas life… your love?.

So what you are asking is: Should we not be comfortable reading a book or viewing a movie that describes or depicts witchcraft in detail (for the purpose of entertainment)? I mean if you are agreeing with WisdomSeekingScot that “Harry Potter is encouraged and taught to do stuff that the Bible says is wrong like sorcery and being encouraged to do bad things.” Please correct me if I’m wrong, I do find this a little confusing.

What about some other thing that is abominable to our Lord? I mean, this is a sin that according to God is punishable by death, like adultery or murder. Should we be comfortable with books or movies that offer depictions of those things for entertainment?

I would most wholeheartedly agree with you, if you could support any of this with scripture.

You are completely wrong as your opinions do not line up with God’s Word. By whose authority do you make these statements? Your own, your peers, your church? If any of those I would suggest that you find a place to get some help with your belief system.

I believe that you are leaning on your own understanding and not on the wisdom of God. You are cheating yourself.

Please seek Him and His Word. You shouldn’t need fantasy when you have the opportunity to know the deep secrets of the living God, if you so choose to serve him.

I’m not sure you can call it ‘garbage’ without having read it or having the backing of multiple people who have read/researched it. Harry Potter may well be garbage, but as @disqus_A7z9Q4GJKM:disqus said, LOTR, Narnia, etc, are Christian novels that help me gain a deeper understanding of God.

I think so… but I suppose it is up to your parents and whether or not they think you are mature enough.

Sure, and that’s why in the end it all comes down to whether an individual person finds watching/reading Harry Potter okay. Thank you though, I did not know that the author of HP was Christian.

Witchcraft is not really comparable to a gun. If you want to stop murders, you don’t ban guns, you allow their public use, and severely punish those who use them wrongly. Witchcraft is different. There is absolutely nothing ok with witchcraft. It messes with evil, spiritual realms that are more powerful than we are. People can do seemingly “good” things with witchcraft, but it is all evil. It was strongly opposed in the Bible. Also, consider these verses. Mathew 7:22,23.

Exactly!!! I would also love to hear your story, mrose!

I have never read either Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. I don’t really like fantasy. It’s just not my thing. My mom tried to get me to read Narnia as well, didn’t care for it.

I have read a lot of comments on this page, and some of you said that there are morally good things in both the Rings and Potter series.

Like I said, I have never read either.

But here’s my advice to you, Olivia. When you read a book, is it the kind of book you’d want to read if Jesus was sitting next to you and reading over your shoulder?
Is it a book that glorifies Him?
Do you feel good after you read it?
Do you put a wall over your heart because you can’t relax?
Does it make you a better person?

These are just some questions to ask yourself when you read a book. I hope this helps!

I was never allowed to read/watch Harry Potter growing up but I had read pretty much everything else one summer and so I read it anyway (that’s the only conviction I have regarding reading the books.) I think many parents don’t think it through because they don’t know. They haven’t read HP but they most likely haven’t read LOTR either, they just know everyone else has and they’ve seen the movies. Honestly, I think HP and LOTR are quite similar. Except in Harry Potter there is literally no “gray” area of good vs. evil. Like there is the metaphor of “tearing your soul in half by killing another person” because yeah, it does damage you. And there’s also the major theme of how “love conquers any trial” and not Disney’s true love idea. 🙂 I’d say just straight up ask your parents about it. Cause if I had asked mine they probably would’ve said yes anyway. Another thing about HP and LOTR is that when there is more darkness, it is easier to see the light, is it not? The “witchcraft” itself in either book is not really any different, I mean HP spells are in Latin so ya learn something 😉 and both Gandalf and Harry are super into sacrificing themselves for their friends.

I love fantasy.And LOTR and HP are two of my favorite stories. I was not allowed to read HP until I turned twelve, so I know why some parents do not allow their children to read HP. But now being fifteen and having read LOTR 11 times and HP multiple times also, I believe LOTR to be darker than HP. I think LOTR is a better story, but the concept of wickedness and darkness in LOTR is darker and just more evil than HP. I feel that some people do not like HP because it’s entire story is based on witchcraft, but they do not realize just how much magic and wizardry is in LOTR. Personally they are both great stories and as long as you do not look at these stories as supporating witchcraft, which is stupid, then it is fine to read these books.

I have wondered the same thing. My parents never let me read or watch the Harry Potter series but did let me see the Lord of the Rings. I think that it has to deal with the fact that Harry Potter’s focuses continually around wizardry and witchcraft, however in the Lord of the Rings, the focus is on the battle of good vs evil. Yes, there is some wizardry but it is not the focus or you are learning about it.

Yeah, David, the Palantiri were made by Manwe — Sauron (or was it Morgoth originally? idk) took the one and twisted it to his purposes and made it so the other Palantiri were turned toward Mordor. 🙂 Good catch!

Aaaand, with the Nazgul, witchcraft is what got them to where they were; they used power that came from the “Dark Side,” got rich and well-known, and then paid for it with their souls. Sound familiar to anyone else?

Where is the piece with the Necromancer? I haven’t found it in the books yet, only in The Hobbit movies (epic fail, imo).

Wow, it is great to talk to all of you LOTR fans! XD

So we should buy copies of HP to burn them? That would be fun… jk, jk.

I agree, we should not call man-made things holy. Calling something holy implies that it is complete, perfect, and like God. But assigning things DEGREES of holiness is different. Remember that this creation and man himself was at one time holy. And after the fall, not all holiness and righteousness was expelled entirely (Romans 1:20, Genesis 15:6). Creation is no longer wholly holy, but there are lingering glimpses of glory that we can perceive. So in the sense that LoTR displays more of Christ’s character, his divine power, holiness, justice, wisdom, and truth than most Christian books that are published today, I think that I am justified in saying it is a holier book than those.

J K Rowling is a self-professed witch?????? Ok, that sealed the deal for me, I’m never reading/watching Harry Potter. =P Thanks for the post!

Lol I second what @grace_matson:disqussaid. =P

Thanks! Exactly! Though I wish that everyone struggling with suicidal thoughts would turn to the Bible, unfortunately, many have not been raised to even think of doing that. So God has placed others to be able to help those people.

Yup! I’m all for people making their own decisions on whether it’s personally right or wrong for themselves. Yes, she is a Christian, attends church regularly and everything. She’s just not a theologian like Tolkien, so though she has biblical truths, and very religious themes in her books, it’s not a straight up allegory like LOTR is.

Me neither but I’m betting Tink makes the best king ever!! 😀

Okay, I can see better what you meant by reading it (not as entertainment but examination), although I would still hold that we don’t have to read HP to know what we’re dealing with in the realm of sorcery/witchcraft, and therefore see no good reason to put it in our minds. Let’s just be very careful to respect the convictions of others and not encourage anything that could violate the conscience of a brother or sister in Christ (Romans 14:13). Thanks for your replying and not being offended by my comment, I can come on a little strong at times 🙂

lol, IKR? But seriously though, i’m impressed by the manners usually shown on these discussions-turned-debates 🙂

Witchcraft is real. Dark magic is very real. But, you’re right, Perzeus, the witchcraft in Harry Potter is so different than that of any practicing wicca, that it would not be possible to copy it to any ill effects.

Haha yeah…

Olivia, this is a very interesting question.
I presume that you are still a teenager, like me. And I presume that you are still with your parents. Right now, I say to respect your parents’ convictions. Wait until you are living on your own to worry about whether or not you should read/watch the HP series.
Also, I am not allowed to watch/read Harry Potter, but am allowed to watch/read Lord of the Rings. This may be slightly biased. lol.
I do not consider myself an “Antipotterhead” or a “Potterhead”. My personal opinion on the matter is simply this: if you would like to read/watch Harry Potter, be very very very discerning. If you feel like the Holy Spirit does not want you watching or reading HP, then don’t. There are Christians out there who are involved with the fandom and are still very tight with God.
Below are some debate points for when your friends do point out that LOTR and HP are basically the same thing (these are also things you need to consider. I am not against you choosing to read/watch HP, but keep these in mind.) :
In HP, the difference between good and evil is blurred. The protagonists often lie, disobey authority, etc. This is more of an “ends justify the means” scenario. Also, the witchcraft in this series features actual spells and demon names (so I’ve heard).
In LOTR, the difference between good and evil is more set. And the magic here is completely made up.

I honestly hope this helps.

TL;DR: Respect your parents’ wishes, listen to the Holy Spirit, and be extremely discerning.

I’m not allowed to read/watch either HP or LOTR, but I have friends who’ve read/watched both and I’ve found that reading/watching these books/movies CAN lead into getting more and more interested in Satanism, Demonism, witchery, etc. It might not actually lead into these things, but it can spark interest that could lead into satanism. It may seem pure and innocent, but that’s how Satan wants us to see it. He wants us think that just because they’re written by “Christian” authors, they’re ok.
I think we need to be aware of Satanism, but we shouldn’t get involved in “studying” it. My Youth Pastor’s wife is related to some people that were into witchery for a while, and they got into it by “studying” it.

While there may be stories of HP saving lives, does that really justify the witchcraft in the books/movies, and what about the young people who got interested in witchcraft because of HP? While I agree that many doctrinal truths can be better understood through fiction, does that fiction have to include witchcraft? In my opinion there are many other fun to read fiction and nonfiction books that teach the same “lessons” you “learned” through reading HP and other fantasy books without the Witchcraft.

If J.K. Rowling really is a Christian she won’t be damned, but if she isn’t a Christian, then according to the Bible, she WILL be damned.
And whether or not she’s a Christian, she’ll have to give an account for every deed she’s done.

Yes, God can use anything or anyone to save people, but does that justify Witchcraft or anything else that’s sinful? Biblically, the answer is NO! You may think it’s “just fantasy” but what we expose ourselves to affects our beliefs and views more than we usually realize.

I’m sorry about the link – it worked this morning but the article is gone now. I took the link down.
I was mistaken. The reason I thought she was a self-professed witch was because my sister (who must have been mistaken at the time) said that she understood that was the claim Rowling made. Then I saw that article and assumed it to be true.
As far as her profession to be a Christian….it just doesn’t seem to be legitimate. Remember, anyone can profess Christ, but aren’t always genuine (Mathew 7:21).
I think a good way to view the two books is this: how are they impacting the world and being used in the world? That is where there is a huge distinction. I really like this article I just found. (http://www.cbn.com/spirituallife/onlinediscipleship/harrypottercontroversy/elliott_richardabanes.aspx – hopefully this link will work 😉 ). Here’s a good quote on this thought:
“CBN.com: There are some people who say children
will not be drawn to the occult just because Harry Potter practices magick and spells, but you’ve found some research that suggests otherwise. What have you found?

ABANES: Right, even J.K. Rowling has said, “Well I’ve never met anyone who has come up to me and said they
want to be a witch now.” But people are forgetting a very
commonly known fact that children like to copy what they see. Children like to copy what they think is cool. We already have examples of kids going out and buying white owls because that is Harry’s owl in the movie. We’ve seen boarding school registrations sky-rocketing in England because Harry goes to a boarding school. So we have numerous examples of this copycat behavior. And the obvious question is, where is that going to stop? Isn’t it possible that kids out there are also copying and wanting to redo the stuff they are seeing in the films or reading in the books? And we have examples of that too. That’s all I’m saying, is be careful and don’t think that your children might not copy what they are seeing and might not want to emulate their hero and the things he is doing. Obviously,
I’m not talking about flying on a broomstick, or making
a pineapple dance across a table. People often hear what I say and they think, “That is so stupid of you.” But I’m
not talking about that. I’m talking about real stuff that
real kids can really copy, and that’s what the problem is.”

Yeah, when I’m talking about the Necromancer, I’m mainly going off the Hobbit movies. However, a necromancer by definition is someone who messes around with death (summoning dead people, etc.) Exactly the sort of thing I would term as witchcraft.

Hey, I hope I didn’t offend you with that comment of mine about the “Potterheads vs. Anti-potterheads”. =) Also, I see that this is your first comment….welcome to the Reb! =)

I’m not allowed to watch Harry Potter either, probably because of the witchcraft and sorcery, which could lead to bad thoughts. (Depends on the vulnerability of the person) I’m not allowed to read it because of that, or because of the content. I am not actually quite sure. But what I do know is that I probably wouldn’t want to watch those movies and read those books even if I were allowed too. I was into LOTR, and the Hobbit (aka any Tolkien books) for a long time, but now I’ve pretty much shifted my interest from story books to Theology, Philosophy, and Apologetics.

But to answer your question if Christians should read those books/ watch the movies. Really there is no profane content in the movies, or anything which I’ve heard that is wrong except the sorcery and witchery. I wouldn’t go as far to say that we aren’t allowed to watch it as Christians, (unless someone gives me strong Biblical proof otherwise) but if that movie causes you to stumble, then don’t watch it. I think that’s where we can say it is wrong. If we are putting before our eyes things that we know will make us stumble. But nonetheless we should all obey our parents regardless of whether the movie/books can harm us!

Liam

Ok I haven’t read them but i’m just going by what people I know tell me. Sorry if I upset you.

If they have helped you that’s good. But you need to be careful when your reading them that you don’t pick up anything that will harm your christian walk.

Hahahahaha! Your talking dogs are cool!

Great comment Liam your right by saying it could cause us to stumble.

She is not a witch! Oh my goodness!
Also, Tolkien often said that his writing wasn’t meant to be christian themed, and that it was simply a story from which people can pull what they wish.

I agree with what others are saying, that you have to be discerning in the things you watch/read. It’s impossible to draw a perfect line between “evil” and “pure” that all Christians will agree on, so in some cases you’ll just have to figure out what your own convictions are.

I, for one, love Tolkien’s works. The Lord of the Rings has a special place in my heart, as does The Hobbit. On the other hand, I’m not allowed to read or watch Harry Potter.

It’s hard to figure out what’s acceptable for magical stories and what’s not. The Lord of the Rings to me is a beautiful, creative, and imaginative work of art. Brandon Sanderson’s books (And many others!) are the same way. I write fantasy like that myself, actually. That kind of fiction isn’t bad to me. However, Harry Potter, while being an intricately woven and fun series, does have that darker side to it. Lots of people talk about God’s power, but many forget that Satan has great power, too. ‘Witchcraft’ and ‘dark magic’ DO exist, and it’s for real. So the whole spell-casting and dark edge thing in the books lose some of their taste for me.

This is just my opinion, though. I know many other strong Christians who aren’t as affected by the darkness or lightness of magic, and I know others who just can’t deal with magic at all. It all depends on what you personally feel is right, while keeping your faith in check.

Dude no way. I wasn’t having a go at you, I promise 🙂 I was just scrolling through the comments out of interest and it struck me. Though I’m confused as to why it’s always LOTR that HP is compared to and not Narnia or something. You know, coz Narinia blurs the lines between worlds (not saying it’s wrong, just saying)

I realize I’m a little late to the party here, but I’ll chip in. This issue reminds me of what Paul was dealing with in 1 Corinthians 8, where he addresses the question of whether Christians should eat meat that was sacrificed to idols. I highly encourage everyone to read those chapters.

If I could try to boil it down to the main points, what power does an idol have? Similarly, what power does witchcraft have over you as a child of God? Can magic beat God? Of course not! Even so (getting further in chapter 8), if your conscience is weak and watching those movies would “defile” your conscience, then by all means don’t do so! And if someone around you thinks that it is wrong, certainly don’t watch, lest you “make [your] brother stumble.”

To sum it up, watching a movie with witchcraft is not wrong in and of itself. However, it can quickly and easily become that way. If you or someone else could be made to stumble because of watching it, then it does become wrong. So to some extent, like others have said, it’s about personal conviction. I’ve never seen/watched Harry Potter, nor do I plan to, simply because I don’t see it as a valuable use of my time.

(P.S., as others have said, Harry Potter has caused some people to pursue witchcraft, and I by no means condone that. I’m not addressing the movie itself or any lifestyles or actions associated with it; only the act of watching the movie.)

I meant the witchcraft that they do in the books and movies

Oh, I’ll warn you, I’m taking a break from the Reb so I might not be able to answer for a while, sorry. =)

Hmm, good question. I definitely believe that God has control over everything, but Satan has extreme power as well. If he were some weakling of a bad guy, there wouldn’t be any power behind the temptations and lies of the world and they’d be easy to resist. I think God could definitely (and someday will, once and for all!) destroy all of Satan’s power easily. But for now, he wants us to have a choice in the matter, even if we choose wrong and let Satan’s power cheat us of his salvation. I think he’s allowing Satan to throw obstacles in our way, like he did with Job, and he just uses those obstacles to either bring us closer to him or bring others closer to him until the day he destroys the enemy. What are your thoughts? No rush, have a relaxing break away from this crazy website! 😛

Hey I’d be up for a gun debate! 😜

@nathantasker:disqus has an excellent point! I highly agree with his post!
I additionally would like to say that there is something to the overall message of the movie/book. For instance, magic in Lord of the Rings isn’t the whole story, nor is the Harry Potter series only about magic. The question becomes: what is the purpose of the magic here? Is it (in a broader sense) glorifying to God? Is the use of magic going to help the story shape up to a point where God is glorified? That isn’t to say the end justifies the means, but to say that nothing in and of itself is evil (Mark 7:14-23) but the way it is used determines whether it is a proper use of magic.

Now that said, I would agree with what people have been saying here. Definitely worth reading the insight people have. Also, I would like to say that I was never allowed to watch the Harry Potter series (or read the books) because of the darker feel of the literature — most of you know what I mean, getting a sense of evil coming from the book… but I digress. 🙂

I can’t say I know why LOTR is the target either… All my friends make them comparative points though.

I haven’t read the book or examined its theological background for myself, but I’ve heard from people that it doesn’t align with the Bible’s description of heaven in Revelation. Correct me if I’m wrong, anyone 🙂

I really dont think we should watch it because nothing in the moviee is real.

I see where you’re coming from. And just to be clear, I’m not saying you or your parents have done anything wrong. There is no “thou shalt not watch Harry Potter” commandment. (-: All I’m saying is that the themes in HP are dangerous.

I think you’re missing the point. Do you agree that witchcraft is evil? Because it is. People who dabble in that and try to use it open themselves up for all kinds of horrible consequences. In the Lord of the Rings and Narnia, some characters (Gandalf, Sauron, Aslan, etc.) have magical abilities but those abilities are innate in them. They use them just like you use your arms, it is just part of who they are. Harry Potter shows ordinary humans becoming “initiated” in magic and witchcraft, makes it look like a good idea to pursue that stuff when in fact it is horribly satanic. The LOTR doesn’t encourage that kind of stuff unless the Witch King of Angmar is your role model. (-:

Does that make sense? Witchraft is used to a slight extent in LOTR but it is always by the bad guys and it always kills them or drives them insane (see Saruman and Denethor or Smeagoul). HP shows people engaging in these magical practices. Again, I’m not saying you’ve done something wrong. All I’m saying is that there are dangerous themes in HP and you should not watch or read the series unless you’re prepared to fight it. I personally have no interest in them at all but it’s okay that you do.

I agree with your second paragraph. But I don’t believe that Christians should stay away from all evil, or stop ‘consorting with the lost.’ How about when Jesus dined with the tax collectors and the beggars? How about when he spoke with the dirty sinner next to him as he died on the cross? His own words were, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)

But back to the books/movies discussion. Romans 14:22 says, “So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.” You don’t approve of reading books or watching movies that have mentions of worldly evil, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, there’s nothing wrong with reading/watching them either, if your heart is in the right place.

I enjoy reading books and watching movies with magical characters and fictional worlds, and that doesn’t make me a terrible person, or someone who needs spiritual counseling, as you suggested. I love God, and would easily give up books and movies if he asked me to. I spend quality time with my friends and family at the movies. I use discretion when deciding which movies are okay and which aren’t. I don’t read books that contradict my faith, and some of those books even strengthen my faith- either through holding Biblical truths or saying something that helps me figure out worldly perspectives vs. mine.

Harry Potter isn’t evil. Lord of the Rings isn’t sinful. The only way they become those things is if that is what you make it.

On a side note, try to cool your writing voice down a little. I don’t think you’re trying to, but your writing tone takes on a ‘holier-than-thou’ edge when you say things like “if you studied the Bible” or “get some Biblical counsel.” Just some advice from one child of God to another. 🙂

I agree. I have never watched or read the books but i don’t plan to. Love the scripture references:)

Thank you for using the bible to back it up.

You write. Nice to meet another girl who loves writing made up stories. I LOVE TO WRITE!!!

Oh, that’s right! Good point 🙂

What do you think?

But I’ll jump in 🙂 Seeing as God made Satan, He obviously gave him any power he has, and therefore Satan has no power that God can’t control, even if God gave him some areas that he has strong influence over. But I haven’t really researched, so (like always) take what I say with a grain of salt.

Thanks for clearing that up! I agree. Jesus should be involved with every part of our lives, not just the religious parts. I haven’t read or watched Harry Potter, because I don’t feel comfortable reading about or watching it. But I’m not going to judge others about it. If they’re reading or watching Harry Potter while compromising their faith, that’s a problem between them and God. But as long as I know where I stand within my own boundaries, and as long as I’m still listening to the Holy Spirit, I’m able to read fictional books or watch movies.

A lot of answers to questions like this will be opinionated. I think wearing shorts is staying modest. Other people think girls can’t be modest without a long skirt. I don’t believe God will condemn me for using the creativity and imagination he gave me by reading or writing about fictional magic. Other people think any mention of magic is from the devil. There’s really no universally perfect line between right and wrong, and everyone’s convictions are different. I can read/watch fantasy things and still keep my mind focused on God, while others have difficulty with this and should establish their own movie/book rules between themselves and God.

God bless! 🙂

Good thoughts! Anything with sorcery and witchcraft should always be avoided. Even little things like reading your horoscope. I’m also wary of the Eragon series (i think that’s how you spell it) I read it and loved the first book and it just got worse after that. So I like your perspective on this! And you should try Tolkien again!! 🙂

you need to!

This is what comes to mind. A little out of context, but mostly applicable…
Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. 16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.

20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
Romans 14:13-23

I should probably just clarify my comment below. I totally realize that if your family has a preference on this, you should respect it! I don’t want to be a stumbling block to you or anyone else’s family who has rules about this! So I probably should have re-worded that!

Two points:
1) What happens then? So you convince you’re friends who’ve already read it that it’s bad. Then… what? How is that conquering it? Wouldn’t they then try to convince their friends that it’s bad and they shouldn’t read it (what you call running from it)? I feel like the process would kinda be like this: you convince you’re friends that it’s bad, then they try to convince someone else who’s never read it that it’s bad, but then they might say hey, that’s running from it, I should read it too so I can convince MY friend’s who’ve read it that it’s bad, so they read it. The net result is everyone reading it and knowing it’s bad. But everyone’s read it, and what does that do? How does that conquer the book? To avoid ‘running,’ everyone would have to read it to be convinced it’s bad. Which leads to my second point.

2) I still think you can know it’s bad without reading it. We can arm ourselves with (a) research about the book and (b) the opinions of multiple friends who HAVE read it and know it’s bad. Thus we can articulate to our friends who might love it why they should not. It’s like the argument going round a while ago about Shades of Gray. I know that book and that movie is bad. Really, really bad. But I don’t have to read or watch them to find out why. I have researched it, and I have the backing of people who have read it/watched it and know how bad it is. To read it/watch it would be playing with fire, or worse. I refuse to do that. I will (a) run the other direction from evil, and (b) have a good case for why it’s bad up my sleeve to that I can (hopefully) convince others to run from evil as well. And I will do the same or HP (if and when I get convinced that it is truly bad. As I’ve said, I’ve made these arguments about running/not running with the premise that HP is bad, but I am not fully convinced of that myself).

Does that make sense?

Like Rachael said.
I really like this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEAko02HD5o
In a sentence (or two, or five, lol), all biblical accounts of heaven (mostly in Revelation) are focused on God and His glory (everything is for Him and His glory); there is little if any focus on Christ in the account found in the book “Heaven is for Real” or other any other “heaven” accounts. The kids talks about his family, seeing angels, flying ponies, etc. That is a huge red flag for me. The purpose of heaven is for God’s glory!

Could you please explain what you mean by “nothing in the movie is real”? Should we not watch it just because the story is fiction? Jesus used made-up stories; he called them parables.
I’m honestly not trying to attack you, just clarifying. 🙂

So what about it isn’t Christian? I haven’t read/watched it, so I’m really curious.

Wow, I hadn’t thought of that before. The kid talks about all this amazing stuff in Heaven… EXCEPT FOR GOD. Um, if someone had actually been to Heaven, you would think that the focus would be on God’s glory, since that is what Heaven is for. But no! Look at the wonderful ponies and angels! Come see Heaven, everyone! There are PONIES!!

Yeah, I graduated last Saturday! How… did you know? o_O

I think we need to be careful that we don’t confuse “personal convictions” with right and wrong. Right and wrong is not relative. If something is wrong, it’s wrong for everyone, everywhere, every time. If it’s right, it’s right for everyone, everywhere, every time. None of this “it’s wrong for me, but maybe not for you,” “decide for yourself whether it’s right or wrong” business.

That said, convictions come into play based on our evaluation of our own situations, weaknesses, personalities, etc. We can determine whether something will hurt or help us, and that determines whether or not a thing is right or wrong. As I said in my other comment, the simple act of watching a movie with witchcraft is not wrong. However, if you, based on your own life and heart, find that that can be a source of temptation or harm, then it IS wrong for you to watch that movie. Be sure to catch the reasoning there: it’s wrong to watch the movie only because it falls into the category of “Things that may cause me to stumble.” And doing things that cause you to stumble is wrong for everyone, everywhere, every time. Watching Harry Potter has not suddenly become “wrong” for you. It’s watching that movie in spite of knowing what it causes for you that is wrong.

Thought I’d throw that out there. Stay classy!

I’ve read it and I don’t remember reading anything out of line with Scripture. But I never studied it in depth.

So right Emma Berry. We need to be careful want we watch,read, and listen to because God is watching!

I’m a huge fan of LOTR, but i haven’t seen HP. My parents have and they don’t let us watch it for the reasons I put down 🙂 I, personally, think nothing compares to LOTR, Tolkien was a genius. 😀 Appreciate your thoughts on this!

No I haven’t read any of C.S Lewis work because my mum told me not to.

Oh OK. Well, I wouldn’t want to you go against your mum, although I’m kinda surprised that she doesn’t want you to read Lewis. He’s a very highly respected theologian, and his works are both intellectually brilliant, and very Biblically accurate. Mere Christianity is probably his most popular theology book. I personally found it very helpful and challenging. His fiction works, including the Narnia series, are quite amazing. Yeh, there’re fiction, but they have soooo many Biblical allegories, and you can very clearly see how his faith comes out in his fiction. Anyway, as I said, don’t go behind your mum’s back, of course, but I would be inclined to respectfully ask them to explain why she doesn’t want you to read his books. She may very well have a good reason, and I’d be interested in hearing it.

Also, just because the link I used didn’t work (which wasn’t my fault) isn’t a reason to invalidate what I said (felt a little attacked for a dumb reason). And Jo has no control over where her books lead people. Many good books can be used for evil. Her intention may not be to lead people to witchcraft, but there are kids who confessed to being more curious about witchcraft and studying it after reading her books.

I am so sorry! I realize in retrospect, that I didn’t mention that. But you are 100% correct. Thank you.

Thanks! 🙂

I believe this is where we will have to agree to disagree. Both of us have come to our conclusions after much pondering and consideration, which I greatly respect BTW, and they are firmly held convictions. I don’t think we can decide whether or not someone is a Christian. That’s between them and God. We don’t really have enough information to know if she’s genuine, but from listening to her speak about her faith, and from her life (she’s the only person to have EVER lost billionaire status because she donated so much money to charity) she certainly acts like one, regardless of your opinions about her novels. Thank you so much for taking the time to carefully respond to my comments. I’ve loved getting a chance to better understand the other perspective on this issue. So thank you! God bless! 🙂

Thanks for your graciousness.

Ok, I have the same problem. Even my best friend, who is a year younger than me, is reading it, and keeps asking me why I can’t read it! I have read and watched Lord of the Rings (not to mention they’re my favorite books) and my parents said that they were ok.
I have been struggling with this for a while – all of my friends have been talking about it non-stop. I feel sort of left out, but I do understand why my Mom is not letting me read the HP books. Here we go! 🙂
In Harry Potter, witchcraft is a good thing. Everyone uses it. It’s a good thing, right? I do not think that witchcraft is a good thing, even if you’re supposedly using it for good. All witchcraft comes from evil. You can’t twist it to make it good. Everything in Harry Potter revolves around witchcraft. They might call it magic, which sounds a little less evil, but it’s just a mask for what’s underneath.
In Lord of the Rings, yes, there are wizards. But mainly the only actual powers you see being used is by Sauruman. Of course, he is evil. I know that Gandalf uses it a little and he is a wizard, but he doesn’t use it all the time, every day. The books don’t revolve around witchcraft. I can’t remember any spells being cast. (I’m sure there was at least one but that is nothing compared to HP). Reading HP makes you think that magic/witchcraft is a perfectly harmless thing, which it’s not.

Yeah, and LOTR isn’t based on witchcraft – it’s all just from Tolkien’s head.

Ohhh, okay 🙂 Thanks for claritying!

I haven’t seen or read it but what the opinion I heard (which I really liked) was even if it isn’t true at all, it is starting conversations and getting people to talk about heaven and where they go when they die, etc. But you think it didn’t line up? (I have been meaning to watch the movie but haven’t gotten around to it. Would love to hear you thoughts!)

Loved you answer Abby! My parents have done the same thing for me! They didn’t see anything wrong with me reading/watching Harry Potter. And actually one of my favorite memory’s/things my dad did for me was quickly watch all 7 Harry Potters with me so he knew the full story (And I watched with him because it was on!) and he took me to see the last movie in theaters. It was especially meaningful to me because my cousins who I had seen all the movies with me had went and seen it without me. Then my friend who we had talked about seeing the last one since 4th grade (we were juniors I believe when the last one came out) and she went and saw it on opening night without me. And I was really upset! It REALLY showed my dads love for me because even though he enjoyed it, he spent all that time and effort doing something I loved so I wouldn’t be so upset! (Ok I don’t really know why I felt compelled to tell that story…. ha ha! It is one I love a lot!

Okay. Bummer, I was hoping someone could tell me where to find more info on Sauron. He’s a really complex bad guy, so I kind of read about him so I know how to make the bad guys in stories I write. Anyway, thanks 🙂 And yep, that’s witchcraft.

Yeah, me too!

Hmmm. So how is it different?

Awesome comment! Welcome!

I’ve read and watched all the Harry potters and LOTR. What’s I see is imagination for children and adults alike. A creative idea. Why does it have to be blasphemy or satanic? My son isn’t trying to jump off the roof with a broom or worship satan. I believe it comes down to how you inform your children.

As Christians, we are told to be in this world, but not of it (Romans 12:2). I am in no way trying to sound legalistic; I have truly experienced Jesus in my life and when you truly do that, you really don’t feel the need to be filled up with something that is quite questionable. Harry Potter just feels dark, and I have heard that many of the HP spells were taken directly from the satanic black mass. Instead of reading HP, spend time with Jesus! It is soo much more fulfilling! Why should we read what unbelievers read? We are sons and daughters of the one true King! Life is too short to be reading books and watching movies that don’t benefit you in any way.

Well… not to seem stalkerish or anything, but when you disappeared I talked to a couple of people who have mentioned emailing you. So I asked them how you were doing… And wow, that sounds really stalkerish. Anyway, so one person mentioned that you were graduating last weekend.
But I already remembered that you’re graduating — we were talking about college the one time, remember?
And I swear I wasn’t stalking you! 😛

With all due respect, I disagree. It’s not a matter of how you inform your children. Witchcraft is witchcraft. It is all evil and should be avoided at all costs. We can’t justify sin by blaming it on how we inform our children. Please understand that I’m not saying watching HP is sin, I’m saying witchcraft is sin. And if there’s witchcraft in a movie, why would you ever get close to that movie?

Unless the witchcraft is bad and is viewed as such, like LOTR. I agree with Seth. Imagination is good so long as it is not viewing such things as “fine”.

I know this is late, but I am seeing that most of you haven’t read the books or watched any movies and you are clearly judging it from a biased point of view. I am currently reading the books and have seen most of the movies, and to me it is no different than Narnia or LOTR. The witchcraft shown in the books/movies isn’t even real, the author made up all the spells and all the potions. For the most part it is whimsical. If you were asking if Christians should read a real witchcraft book, the answer would be NO. But this is a make-believe world, and the only crime the books have ever done is make a child have a good imagination and make them see that things are going to get better, then I don’t think there is anything wrong with it. Please note that yes witchcraft is a real and dangerous thing, but in the books it is no different than the White Witch in Narnia or the magic that Gandalf has in LOTR.

It doesn’t matter if it’s “real” or not… It’s witchcraft. There is absolutely no excuse for dabbling in any kind of it, I believe. It is very dangerous.

Look, I used to think that they were horrible. But after reading them I realized that as a Christian, I was wrong. The books are fictional representations of more of a world of what if magic existed. Yes they are at a school to become wizards/witches but there kind of wizards and witches are more of the whimsical kind, much like Merlin from the sword in the stone. Black Magic is still represented as bad. The “good” magic, if you wish to call it that- is more of the fun potions. Actually if you want to talk analogy you can find plenty in any book – including HP. Witchcraft is bad and the real deal is very dangerous and it is most certainly something that Christians need to pray against, and be careful about. But reading Harry Potter doesn’t make you a sinner.

Finally someone who has actually read it! And great point, too. 🙂

HP isn’t written by a Christian btw. So I understand for some Christian kids that alone is a no no.

It really comes down to the question of what is really best for me and you. Our goal should be that everything we read and watch brings us closer to God. I would encourage you to read books that increase your faith 🙂 Our relationship with God is a little piece of Heaven right on this earth, and I want to take advantage of it! As a person spends more time with Jesus, they become a better person in general. Would you say that Harry Potter has benefited your life in any way? I am in no way trying to sound confrontational, as sisters in Christ I truly want the absolute best for you in life!

There is just one thing I would like to point out. There is a difference between the magic/witchcraft in Harry potter, LOTR, and Narnia, and that in the real world. You don’t see Harry potter calling on Satan. Gandalf doesn’t get possessed by a Demon to prevent the Balrog from crossing the bridge of Khazad-dhum.

In fact, I would go as far as to say that the magic and wizardry in our culture today is completely different from the real kind. Think about it. The witch doctors in Africa call on Satan and get possessed by demons in an effort to try and cure sick people. Completely different.

As far as I know, the only thing connecting the two is the terms we use. A friendly old man with a blue pointy hat and a stick in his hand, wielding some mystical power is completely different. Even the dark, evil wizards or witches don’t call on Satanic powers. In fact, if we didn’t know that the idea for magic was originally demonic powers, I don’t think that we would ever be able to connect the two.

As something by itself, I believe that magic in movies like LOTR or HP is completely fine. IF we understand the difference. In the real world, the only kind of magic is demonic powers, and it is DANGEROUS.

In the world of HP or LOTR, witchcraft is simply a mystical force, which can be used both for good and for evil.

May I ask you Anna? Why are you so defensive of witchcraft/sorcery in movies? Even if it is fake?

i didn’t mean to be offensive that just my opinion
(sorry if i did offend u)

Oh no, not at all! I was just offering my alternate opinion. Sorry if I sounded offensive/offended.

Narnia was written by a Christian. It is a Christian fiction book. And I like the Harry Potter franchise and the LOTR franchise because that’s the kind of stuff I like but it’s not about what’s in it that matters it’s what u do with it. If it distracts u from ur Godly mission then it’s not good for u but if it’s not a distraction then it’s ok. That’s the way I look at it

Yeah I see where you’re coming from. Level of maturity and perspective does play a part in issues like this. Good discussion. 🙂

Can I ask another question? What then is fun about fake witchcraft?

I am pretty sure I saw that exact LTW performance. I love when Louder then Words does Champion. Where you at Calvary Christian academy performing a couple weeks ago? I have seen you before then if you have.

Hehe the whole book can be debunked in one verse: “No one has ever gone to heaven and returned.” John 3:13 =P

Whaaaat?!?!?! A Rebelutionary from my area?!?! This is so cool! :-). Yes… I was the girl who talked about not needing to be like everyone else.
Where were you sitting?

Agreed! =)

Yup! Definitely a good conversation starter…check out my response to Seth Yoder. =)

Awesome!!! Writing totally rocks!

On the right, knitting…
hmm… I don’t remember you
specifically 🙁 Yes, I was at FLA’s graduation! But I wasn’t in the flag team. I was wearing black pants and a geometric black/green/white top; I had my hair in a French braid. I don’t have glasses, and out in the lobby
area I was in the crowd, instead of off on the edges. Are you remembering me?? Can you describe yourself? I can’t place a Dinsmore, although the name
sounds familiar.

Looks like you live in S*****? (I looked you up in the phone book 😉 Do you go to the D**** Bylers often (instead of the H********* branch)? I work there… so if you do go there, we could meet up. I’ll be there today from 3:00 till we close, and then tomorrow I”ll be there until 3:30 or so, maybe later.
If you’re there, go to the bakery and ask for Laura. I’d love to meet you!

Sorry, the formatting on this is probably messed up. :/

Cool! So we know some of the same people! Do you know David O, Matthew T, or Colin T? They play soccer at CCA. In your yg I know Rachel B. Did you ever meet John, Laura, and Becca M? Or Nathan P? I know them too…
I figured you wouldn’t be able to be out there, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask! 🙂

Yep I know all three of those M’s. I know Natalie L and the others you mention I also know Micheal T and Tristan M. I am at a event with Natalie and she knows who you are. Have a great night!

Hey there! A friend would like me to invite you to his blog. It’s good, I’d advise you check it out!

http://christopher164.weebly.com/

Having read the books, in depth, and having seen the movies, and having enjoyed both, from the point of view of a born-again Christian, I can say, no, reading Harry Potter does not equal dabbling in witchcraft. But it has done something to create a mindset in this world that says that witches are fine and wizardry is cool. The reality is far different, and while often you and I can see the difference, not everyone can. It undermines morals when, in modern times, bad = good. Or even, bad = okay. Finally, there’s no call to be rude, no matter how people talk about a series you love.

Very good point, and sorry I haven’t replied yet I have been busy. I have always been in the habit that if I read a chapter in a fictional book then I read a chapter in the bible. (I read the bible outside of that, too. I am just saying I also read it to balance out my reading). And to answer your question if those books have befitted my life, in a spiritual aspect- no. But as a writer I have benefited greatly by seeing how well written HP is. The author did an exceptional job of having an easy read with a complex story line, it doesn’t matter if you like HP or not- her writing is phenomenal for a modern writer. Thank you for saying that last part of you comment, I agree that we should be focused on trying to better ourselves and to have a God-centered life, but I personally don’t see anything wrong or have any convictions for reading fictional books like HP.

I apologize for saying you all were annoying, I say that to my brothers all the time but mean nothing really by it.

Not everything that you read has to be about God to make you think about him. If you have to read things 100% about God all the time to keep you focused on him, then you need to work on keeping yourself focused even when you aren’t reading/watching something about him. What I mean is, you can go out into this world, in some places you can’t read Christian fiction because it is against the law, but there are still Christians in this world that are focused on him even with crap going on around them. If you step outside of a Christian comfort-zone (and this goes for me too) what you have to stay focused ON God, is God himself. The bible says to pray without ceasing, and I think that that is God’s reminder that no matter where you are, even if you can’t say his name out loud, you can still pray to him. And when I say “you” I am not directing that at you , Morgan, I am just saying it as a general statement. And this isn’t like a defensive statement, it was just something that got me thinking, something I have to work on. Because sometimes you get in situations where you can’t have everything Christian, and I think a lot of Christians aren’t used to not having that. I realize this has nothing to do with HP! haha! 🙂

I like the first Anne of Green Gables, but the books where she is married drive me a little bit crazy. She’s a bit too imaginative for an adult 🙂

Haha wait, what? I’m sorry, but for me there is no such thing as being too imaginative. If it weren’t for imaginative adults we wouldn’t have any books, LOTR would be left as a simple idea, and Narnia would be an undiscovered world. We are made in God’s image, and he is very creative and he put that in some of us. 😉

Oh okay. Gotcha. I am a writer so for me I was thinking, “How on earth would I be able to write a book without an imagination!” haha. 🙂

I would have to partially disagree – while the only magic in in the world is demonic, it doesn’t always even look dark in today’s real life world. New Age stuff these days is made to look all mystical and fun, never a mention of Satan or demons until you get deep in from what I’ve seen. There’s lessons and classes on bk lack magic around here, but from the ads you’d be sure it’s something completely innocuous. Portraying magic as both good and evil is part of the problem in my opinion – can good come from anywhere but God? No… So watching stuff which constantly tells us a lie (magic can be good or bad, and it’s okay to try out this stuff) is just a lower dose of the real life lie that many many people actually believe, and that is seeping into the churches. Satan wears a different costume in the Western world these days. There is a place you can go to get Spirit guides down the street from our old place, fifteen minutes from us. Lovely people. Offering to have you possessed by a demon for money. This is real. Demonic powers are at work all over the Western world, but the forms we see them in (psychics, some psychologists, some people with schizophrenia, New age followers, mystics, Free Masons, your average person down the street – business people or drunks, modern day witches and wizards) look and sound different to what we see in developing countries, and lay lower. School children in my area, not even in their teens, are talking to spirits. A number of psychologists that I’ve heard of have linked HP to children needing counselling, into occult stuff, suicidal. Close relatives of of mine included. It’s noted that after the release of new HP books, the number of people buying occult related stuff soars. This is not to say everyone who reads it will – definitely not. But why even hold your hand near to the fire? I would venture to say that giving a false view of what magic is (either that good doesn’t come from God, or evil doesn’t come from Satan) doesn’t make it okay – it makes it worse. I pray that this discussion challenges is all to think more deeply about what we believe and why – there are a lot lot of heavy matters here. I really hope I haven’t offended you, that was not my intention at all! But I’d encourage you to take another look and discuss further if you are interested at all. 😀
God bless, Carrie

I have asked myself this same question, and I have at different times taken the no-fantasy-at-all-ever-just-to-be-on-the-safe-side position and the how-bad-can-it-be-let’s-try-it-all position. Being an avid reader, I’ve also asked similar questions about other books and other genres, but this particular question was a big one for me. So, as far as fantasy in general, here goes. I grew up on the Narnia books, and even when the book was shut I would pretend my closet was a wardrobe and my stuffed animals could talk. As I got older I discovered Tolkien’s writing and immersed myself in that. However, I found lots of fantasy that, during or after reading, I realized was fluff and had been a waste of time, or had even been dark and harmful to me. What I found was that I usually knew after picking up a book and reading the cover or after reading a few pages whether or not I should be reading it. The Holy Spirit is there to help us live right, and He would show me if I should not be reading it. There were times when I put my hands over my ears and read it anyway, and later had to repent, but that was my own fault.

As for the Harry Potter books, I saw everyone around me reading them, including people that I respected, and so I wanted to try them. I told my mom and she wisely did not forbid me to read them. (If she had, I probably would have wanted to read them even more.) She told me that she would discuss the book with me if I wanted to read it. I prayed and felt very strongly that HP was not glorifying to God and that I should not be involved with it at all, so I didn’t read them. From what I have been told of the series (by critics and fans alike), it seems that they are being trained in dark magic and that it is extremely unclear what the difference is between good and evil.

I think that there is a very fine and hard-to-see line between fun, imaginative literature (or movies, tv, etc.), but some common themes in books that I have not felt free to read are: darkness and light being hard to distinguish (that could be a whole article in and of itself), other elements that are against God (inappropriate elements, graphic details), and things that may pass under the radar or be justified as “not that bad”, but that can wear down my sensitivity to evil. I also find it very helpful to research the author. C.S. Lewis, author of Narnia, is a great apologist, a brilliant scholar, and a great Christian hero. Tolkien, author of LOTR was also a Christian and a close friend of Lewis’. J.K. Rowling is not a Christian and has made it clear that she is in opposition to some biblical principles. When, as a Christian, you are creating something and you are open to the spirit of God, he can direct you away from evil and enable you to create a great work of art for his glory, whether it directly mentions him or not. When you are not a Christian, the spirit of God is not guiding you; you are guiding you, and you are much more open to the enemy’s deception and manipulation, in your work and your life. (This is NOT to say that anything written by a non-believer is of the devil!) When in doubt, check it against scripture. If still in doubt, seek God and ask a Pastor or other spiritual authority.

Wow, I didn’t mean to write a letter. 🙂 I hope that this can be of some help to someone!

Sorry, but I don’t know what carnality is. Now I feel stupid… haha. And I don’t have time right now to read other people work, I told someone a while ago I would read there’s and I haven’t gotten to it! But it is cool that you are a writer, too. 🙂

OK. That’s OK I guess but it is Biblical. I’ll just give a some scriptures and then we’ll be done! 😀 Romans 8:6 & 7 talk about carnality. The carnal mind is an enmity unto God. There is more in 1 Corinthians 3 and in Leviticus 18:20 and 19:20 as well as in Numbers 5:13. By reading the scriptures presented (in KJV, Hebrew, Greek, NIV, and the Message, which sorta helps its point, all support it) one can understand two things. A) That carnality is bad and is an act of the flesh, or an act of free will being exercised wrongly as you and I know, and B) An enmity is probably a bad thing. Now the dictionary definition of carnality is: 1) Pertaining to or characterized by the flesh or the body, its passions and appetites; sensual, and 2) Not spiritual; merely human; temporal; worldly. Another says 1) Relating to physical, especially sexual, needs and activities. (These are first, dictionary.com and second, oxforddictionaries.com). So one thing I hope to portray is that Carnality is bad, not of God (as it is the free will he gave us exercised wrongly), and most importantly not what we were made to do, Matthew 25:44-46 (KJV is where I read it) and John 4:23 (Again I utilised KJV) might be able to say what God sent us here to do (plus Acts of course and the end of all the gospels but I expected you to know that). So to wrap all that up in a nice soft taco shell, that is why I am against reading Harry Potter and books of the like. I consider them not to be of God and therefore, I am spending my time doing what I want instead of what I should be doing… :/ Sorry if that was long winded. I have read the books before! In fifth grade… And if you ever decide to read The Chameleon then you know how to contact me! 😀 I hope this helps with Carnality!

Ok, it’s biblical and I’ll give a quick explanation. Carnality is anything fleshly. The dictionary supports that as well as Romans 8:6-7 and Leviticus 18:20 and 19:20 all share a similar response to carnality (As supported by the Hebrew, Greek, KJV, NIV, and somewhat by the Message). Basically, carnality is anything of the flesh or something that is NOT of God. Therefore, if you are fleshly then you are not spiritual. Carnality, being an enmity to God, will not allow you to make heaven and God will not know you. I’ve always harbored the belief that a lot of books, a lot of actions, and a lot of everything is very carnal and is shown through what is supposedly flesh-driven in the bible: such as sin of any sort. So, with this in mind I say no to Harry Potter because of this. Hey, if you ever want to read my story you know how to message me! I’ll send it over! Also, if you have any more questions about carnality then you can look it up, do a bible study, or even message me! 😀

I just got to say! I love how everyone is able to state their opinions or thoughts and it doesn’t become an argument!! I think that is SO awesome!

So sorry MimeforJesus, my sister (not Ana, but Melody…she posted an article on here about College once) said she needs to do some revisions that she doesn’t have time to make right now, so I probably won’t end up posting it.

Having never read or watched Harry Potter, I’m in no position to judge it. But I think that often books (or artwork or music) can be interpreted in many different ways. What we’ve seen with this discussion is that some of us see references to magic as harmless imagination, others as allegory, and others as a satanic influence to be avoided like the plague. Are any of these views right or wrong? Possibly – I don’t know. But I do know that because of the gift of imagination, when faced with something like this we each respond differently.

Some of us (myself included) might find magic in literature a threat to our relationship with God. We should avoid it – but make sure we’re not forcing everyone to follow our approach. Others might find it harmless and enjoyable. That could be good. But again, here we shouldn’t offend those who don’t see it that way. As Paul says, it’s all right to edify ourselves – but it’s always better if we can edify others too. I guess this is about pointing each other to Christ, whose love for us is more powerful than any human writer could imagine.

Sorry, nothing new here 😉

I like how you compiled all the answers into one answer! 🙂

Thanks! I’m not sure if I did though :-}

Eh you got the gist of it all! And I feel as though you showed everyone’s base thoughts!

Thanks mrose – good point there! I guess that sometimes we forget how captivating a book like this can be for younger children who don’t have the maturity to see its effect on them. (That said, I think a lot of older people don’t always have this maturity either!)

You’ve probably noticed that what consistently comes up in these “Is it okay…?” discussions is that while something may not be wrong in and of itself, it’s always important to consider (a) whether it helps us honour God, and (b) whether it helps or hinders our brothers and sisters in Christ. In other words, “Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others” (1 Corinthians 10: 23-4, NIV).

Of course, the original context of that passage was about whether it was okay to eat food offered to idols. But I think that it applies to many of the dilemmas Christians face (e.g. “Is it okay to watch Harry Potter?”, “Is it okay to play Truth or Dare?” etc.). Because if we set up arbitrary rules about what Christians can and can’t do, then we have forgotten the power of God’s grace. But if we do whatever we like – simply because it’s not “forbidden” – then we have equally missed the point.

How can we tell if something is helping us in our walk with God? It’s not easy. But the process of seeking his will for our lives will help us grow closer to Him.

Hi , just read this. I am actually a religious education teacher and saw this and found it very interesting. Let’s consider the fact that the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was written by CS Lewis, a man reknowned as a devout Christian and Aslan is widely known to be a metaphor for Christ (# sacrifice and resurrection at the end?) as was admitted by Lewis himself.

Now let’s consider that Christ himself was not a rule follower and often delivered messages through stories.

Now let us also consider the slightly more controversial idea that Harry Potter too is considered to be metaphor for Christ (# disciples, sacrifice and resurrection?, avoiding the temptations of Voldemort as the devil etc).

Now let’s consider that the Harry Potter phenomenon has single handedly put a massive dent in children’s illiteracy through spreading unbridled joy through the written word to millions of children around the world who’ve never read a book in their lives and whether or not God would think that was bad thing.

It all comes down to right intent. Whether or not your faith is strong enough to believe that God knows what’s in your heart and is clever enough to tell the difference between an attempt to return to the Salem fever of yesteryear or kid who wants to read a cool book.

Nailed it!!!!!!

Whew, I thought I was the only one!

no you cant watch these things.God us to be different among those in the world.you cant put witchcraft,porn etc in your site and expect to grow.remember what you feeding on yourself will make you what you wann be.rich in the things of the world not of God.soo guys please becareful.we need to take the world for Jesus.

My family has always viewed it as more of a personal conviction. My sister and I knew that, in real life, witchcraft was wrong and nothing to be involved in, but reading HP was just a form of entertainment. We were mature for our ages and had long been taught better than to put our faith and trust in magic tricks and sorcery, but to instead rely on God. Personally, I’ve read all of the LOTR series (except The Silmarillion, which I’m starting later this summer) and five of the seven HP books before I stopped because I realized that HP was a greater distraction from my relationship with God. I was one of those kids who put themselves into that universe when I got bored or lonely, and HP was a HUMONGOUS distraction, unlike LOTR. HP is all about the magic, while LOTR uses it slightly less and focuses more on using the magic when it is used to accomplish the quest for the greater good of their world. (Also, no matter how hard you may or may not try, your beliefs will seep into your writing. While LOTR was not meant to be an allegory, JRR Tolkien’s Christian beliefs do show in his books; I don’t know that JKR is or is not Christian, but based on the 5/7 of the books I have read and on tweets she has made, worldly opinions of right and wrong would be those displayed in the HP books.)

I think it real depends on whether it becomes an idol. If you read them, appreciate them, treasure them but don’t put them up on a pedestal by all means go ahead. I did this and I don’t think I’ve been negatively affected! BUT there was another kid I know who was forbidden from reading them because he stayed up all night every night reading them, he was reading them instead of doing things like homework etc. At that point it’s taken the wrong place in your life. Read them, enjoy them, but don’t idolize them.

I absolutely LOVE LOTR!!! I think there are many Christian allusions embedded within the story, along with C.S. Lewis’s work. I feel that magic is not a central point in LOTR, as it seems to be in HP.

I would recommend this book called “Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings” By Anne Marie Gazzolo

If you feel convicted I would say to stay away for sure. But it really comes down to how much it influences you. If its purely entertainment I don’t see harm in it, but if it is influencing you in any way that isn’t honoring to God you should stop immediately! Personally, I used to watch a show called FRIENDS because it was incredibly funny and very entertaining. Most of the show was innocent but because there were many sexual references I felt convicted to stop watching it, so I did. However, I still watch Lord of The Rings without any conviction at all and I loved the new Hobbit movies. Ultimately pray about it and obey what God convicts you of! 🙂

What would you call reading the HP books then? Theoretically it is just a book. However there are real life witches and other humans that are inhabited by Satan who have supernatural powers. I don’t know the reference but the Bible says to keep your mind pure from unwholesome things. This I believe goes for HP.

You have obviously not read the harry potter books. Magic is innate in harry potter as well. You are born with the ability to use magic and if you are not it is impossible to ever become able to use it.

You see, this flusters me a bit.
My parents would always make sure I understood that there is a difference between reading something and knowing it’s fun and games, for recreation, that it’s only make believe and actually believing something. You see, this is where the difference of loves come in, I love harry potter in the aspect that it is one of my favorite make believe stories to read. BUT I love God, a much deeper love, completely different from each other. I believe that the harry potter fandom is a fun community to be in, but I don’t believe that harry potter is real.
As for the Lord of the rings portion, I never understood how people can think that the author being Christian has any difference to the genre itself.

Magic and casting spells is the main point in Happy Potter. He is in a school to learn witchcraft. In Lord of the rings there is some magic but it is not the main point, and the lines between good and evil is clearly drawn in LOTR. Also I have never known anyone go out and buy books on how to cast spells after reading LOTR but I know many people personally who got into magic and witchcraft after reading Harry Potter. Those are the reasons to we do not read or watch Harry Potter.

I really wish Christians would stop having the attitude that it is okay to do something so long as it is just entertainment or when it isn’t real!! Are we reading our Bibles? Christians are supposed to live for Christ ALWAYS and to be set apart from the world, and that includes our entertainment. And witchcraft, magic and wizardry are very real and the Bible is always opposed to them! Our convictions need to come from the Bible, it’s time for us as Christians to be willing to give some things up for Christ and stop worrying so much about entertaining ourselves.

I think that the idea is in the mechanics of the magic in both worlds. From what I’ve read, the magic in the Wizarding World is primarily mysterious. No one understands how it works; no one knows where it came from; and there is little distinction between “good” magic and “bad” magic. Conversely, in LOTR, magic is the doing of Eru Illuvatar, the creator God who is analogous to the Christian God in our world. Magic in Middle Earth really no different than Jesus calling on the sea to be still (like when Glorfindel raised up the river to ward off the Nazgul). Also, wizards in Tolkien’s universe are not really wizards. They are Istari, Maiar–or angels–specifically sent by Eru to watch over Middle Earth. Gandalf used to be a Maia called Olorin, until Eru called him into Middle Earth as the “Grey Wizard” Gandalf. The only reason Istari are called “wizards” is because humans don’t have another word for them. This is contrasted in the HP universe where wizards are an elite and snobbish group of people who hide their magic from the real world because “muggles” are too stupid to understand it–even though it is painfully obvious wizards don’t understand it either. I have a similar argument for the Chronicle of Narnia, but I don’t think it will fit here.

Have you actually read Harry Potter? Because you kinda just misrepresented it there, I think.

In researching the harry potter books, JK Rowling actually studied the occult and Black Magic. There is an excellent resource, Harry Potter and the Bible by Richard Abanes, that explains in deeper detail the demonic conotations of the HP series (books and movies, which you may want to look into for further information). However, LOTR and Narnia are allegorical of the Bible, Christainity, etc.

I did read Harry Potter years ago when the first few books were coming out. They are definitely exciting and fun reading. But I had a secular worldview back then. Now that I am a Christian, I cannot in good conscience recommend them. They are a product of our morally relativistic culture, and they propagate that same worldview.

Not everything needs to be a parallel to Christ for Christians to read it. Yes, Harry doesn’t always act the way he should, but do we? Throughout the whole series, he makes mistakes — some are wrongly glorified (as you pointed out) and others he faces the consequences. I think Harry Potter could be a good discussion point for you and your kids in explaining different worldviews other than your own, because once they leave the nest, they will get slammed with those views and have to sort through them without your help. Now, obviously, I’m not a mom, so don’t take this the wrong way. 🙂 that’s just my opinion.

Olivia,
My parents have this same rule. And to be honest I have always struggled with it. I am a complete nerd. I am very into doctor who, lotr, comics you name it. My parents trust my judgement with those things. However the only restriction they have placed on me is “please don’t watch/read harry potter”. I have always respected their wishes. However it is really hard because everyone who is a nerd like me is into all the stuff I menchoned loves harry potter. My parents have had many discussions with me about the series because all my friends watch them (including my christian friends) I have yet to meet a teen chistian who hasn’t. My parents have explained to me that the harry potter series is different from the other series I read because the author did a lot of research into the occult for this series. All of the spells and posions and whatever else they use in the series are all real. They are spells that the occult use in real situations for demonic tendoncies. Normally I don’t get involved in discussions like this but I have gone through the nerdy christian life without harry potter and I understand how it feels. Never forget that the Lord calls us to honor and obey our parents. I’m not sure how I feel about harry potter personally, however my parents have asked me not to watch them so I respect them. Someday each of us have to stand before God and give an answer for everything we’ve ever done in this life. If it is a personal conviction that you don’t watch harry potter, it is better for you to not watch it because you’d be going against your convictions and you’ll have to answer for that. But if you think its okay, you’ll have to answer for that as well. This is only my understanding of it. I hope this helped. Your sister in Christ Tori

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/fictionreviews/3668658/J-K-Rowling-Christianity-inspired-Harry-Potter.html

It’s about witchcraft. It focuses on, witchcraft. It talks about, witchcraft. The characters use, witchcraft.

I don’t mean to repeat the same point, but surely even “pretend” witchcraft is not okay? (Not to say it is pretend, JK studied occult to write parts of it)

This should be ringing every bell you ever had! Yes, it may have good characters. Yes it may have a good vs evil, but it is ultimately about, inside and out, witchcraft. Why toy with something so evil? Why play around? Why risk the relationship you have with God, for a book?

The devil is trying His best to do everything to kill, rob, and destroy you, and you are holding his gun.

Make believe makes it okay? “Pretend,” witchcraft is good? Healthy? Wise? Inspiring? Godly?

Victoria, I don’t think if this helps, as I am not Christian myself, but I can definitely swear that those spells and potions in Harry Potter are NOT real. If this is opinion of your parents, they are clearly wrong. All the spells in Harry Potter are just Latin words and if someone says in real life “Wingardium Leviosa”, “Accio” or “Expecto Patronum”, which are all spells from Harry Potter, it does nothing. Also, the potions in Harry Potter mostly have an ingredience which is from some creature invented by J. K. Rowling for these books, so they clearly aren’t real.

There are no necromacers in the world of Harry Potter. It is even clearly stated there that no magic can revive the death.

Yes, but in my opinion Christians don’t need to read only books which glorify God. They should read them first to establish their love for god, but then they can read even those which do not contain any mention of religion at all, even those which tell things which directly contradict Christian teaching. For example, reading Mein Kampf can be useful for better understanding what happened in the WWII even though Hitler’s teachings were terrible and they are against Christianity 🙂

I have, actually, but so many years ago I had forgotten it. Thanks for the reminder! While I was commenting on the first book in particular, I stand by my assessment. Harry acts on his own will, while Christ acts on his Father’s will.

Romans says: “very rarely will anyone due for a righteous person, though for a good person a man might even dare to die. But God shows his love for us in this: while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”

If Harry is good, then the friends for whom he dies are equally good (for they follow the same moral guidelines Harry does: the end justifies the means, and good can be defined only in comparison to Voldemort, who is the standard of evil).

Remember, the whole point of Christianity is that morality is not relative. Goodness is defined by God, and evil can be defined as the antithesis of good. God is the standard by which we measure good and evil.

In contrast, in the Potterverse, evil is defined by Voldemort, good is defined as the antithesis of that evil. Voldemirt is the standard by which we measure good and evil.

And Harry is not a Christ, good dying for evil (as defined by God), but an example of the man in Romans who would dare to die for his “good” friends, “good” dying for “good” as defined by the morality of the Potterverse.

That is the entire point of a fantasy story though. Tolkien was creating a make believe world that has very little to do with our own in a realistic sense. There are elves, dwarves, goblins and dragons! He wrote a letter to a friend that is been made a forward to the second edition to his book “the Silmarillion”, a prequel to the Lord of the Rings. Try and look it up. It isn incredibly informative regarding his ideas behind his stories. For example, he states that his use of the word “magic” is simply for lack of any better word in the English language. Same would go for wizard. He calls Gandalf and wizard because that is what the common folk call him because of his ability to do incredible and seemingly mystical things. He is not practicing magic however, but simply makes my use of his abilities inherent in his nature as a sort of lower level angel. And I use the term angel loosely because he isn’t an angel any more than “Eru Illuvator” his “God” character in the story is actually God. Because it is a work of fiction! You cannot equate his work of fiction with reality. Or his make believe “magic” system. In no way does he ever glorify evil, in fact being a Christian in fact and not just in claim (do your research), as well as a war vet, he knew evil first hand and hated it.

Harry Potter though…. I have not read the books, but I have seen the movies. I loved them! Whimsical, fun, enjoyable by all means. But the biggest difference I saw was formerly pointed out here as well. There is an ultimate evil in the story, Voldemort, but no ultimate good, not even Harry himself. It leaves an interesting gap in the ideology considering the sort of story it is. That being said, I’d leave it up to individuals to make the call there. However with Lord of the Rings, there is absolutely no harm at all to any Christian heart in those books!! Please follow up on my suggestion and look far deeper into the background and content of the story. I have read the lord of the rings and the Hobbit AND the Sillmarillion several times as well as other related works. It is good and pure and wonderful. High myth and legend. Epic good vs evil. Please read it and enjoy!! It is not what you think. It is far better than you could hope!!

Say I make brownies. I put some poison in them, just a little. Would you eat those brownies?

What makes you think toying with witchcraft is okay? Who told you witchcraft isn’t real anymore, who told you it was safe? Because they lied to you.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “going to church makes you a Christian as much as being in a garage makes you a car.” Becuase the same applies to people who call themselves Christians. Just because they say it, doesn’t mean they are. Jk studied witchcraft, the occult, and put it in her book. How much more obvious can it get?

Actually, I have read the last book, but had forgotten it when I posted. Thanks for the reminder! 🙂

I stand behind my original point, however.

Romans 5: 7-8: For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Christ died for sinners, who fell vastly short of God’s standards. Christ was able to provide a sacrifice for us because He was not a sinner. That’s the whole point of a Saviour.

Harry died for his friends, who followed the same morality he did. They were all good, in comparison to Voldemort.
So Harry is the one in Romans who will dare to die for a good person, while Christ is the sinless one who died for sinners.
The Christian worldview is based on God’s standard of morality. He decides what is good and what is evil. So God is good, and whatever is opposed to Him is evil.
The Potterverse is based on Voldemort’s standard of morality. Voldemort is evil, and whatever is opposed to Him is good.
So the Potterverse, where anyone who opposes Voldemort is good, and therefore has no need of a Saviour.
In real life, anyone who opposes God is evil, and that includes all of us, so we are all in need of a Saviour.
Harry Potter is a good kid, a nice guy, brave and self-sacrificing. He sacrifices himself in order to save others who are nice, good people, others who are opposed to Voldemort’s standard of evil. But He is no Christ.

I don’t think you do. (I don’t mean that rudely at all, but simply as a factual statement)

If you did, you’d agree, or at least have considered the possibility of truth.

Here is why I am steadfast in my hatred of Harry Potter:

Galatians 5: 19-20 (NIV)

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions

Deuteronomy 18:10-11 (Emphasis on engaging in witchcraft, engage defined as attraction, occupying or involving, so anything where witchcraft attracts, occupies, or involves you… IE: HP)

10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.

And if that is not enough, I do have these:
http://www.pacinst.com/witch.htm

http://harrypotterpower.com/

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False%20Religions/Wicca%20&%20Witchcraft/former_witch_exposes_harry_potter.htm

http://www.michaeljournal.org/potter.htm

By my eye, these make a clear statement: Firstly, Harry Potter has witchcraft in it. Secondly, witchcraft is in direct conflict with God.

Hopefully you will understand now why I take such a strong stance, I truly don’t mean to come across as judgmental or unforgiving, but this is a very, very important issue at hand.

Making it short-
I think Harry Potter is fine, as long as it doesn’t occupy your mind more than God does.
That, I think, is where idolism starts; thinking of something else more often than you think of God.

I’m sorry but I find this whole thing a little silly. I have nothing against Christians and I think what they believe is mostly very good and right. However, denying anyone the right to read I do not think is right. If you do not want to read the books for your own reasons, that’s fine, but your missing out on a pretty epic and important series. As I mentioned before, the thing that really annoys me is when other people stop people from reading books. If you want to read those books, READ THEM, they are FABULOUS! Don’t let anyone stop you. I don’t think God would mind you reading.

You guys do know that JK Rowling (the author of Harry Potter) quoted the Bible in Harry Potter and has said that Harry was baptized and does regularly go to church right? The whole Harry Potter is Occult garbage started from the Onion and you guys fell for it. http://www.mtv.com/news/1572107/harry-potter-author-jk-rowling-opens-up-about-books-christian-imagery/

You guys do know that JK Rowling (the author of Harry Potter) quoted the Bible in Harry Potter and has said that Harry was baptized and does regularly go to church right? The whole Harry Potter is Occult garbage started from the Onion and you guys fell for it. http://www.mtv.com/news/1572107/harry-potter-author-jk-rowling-opens-up-about-books-christian-imagery/

There has never been one case of a spell actually working. Witchcraft is not real. What is called witchcraft today is a new religion that is only a few decades old. The witchcraft the Bible mentions doesn’t exist anymore. JK Rowling is A CHRISTIAN. BTW the people who went to see Jesus on his birth? Magi the word Magi is where the word MAGIC came from and they were ASTROLOGERS. Joseph did DREAM INTERPRETATIONS–a form of divination or WITCHCRAFT! The apostles used Witchcraft (throwing lots) to determine who would replace Judas! In Harry Potter Astrology and divination are treated like they are a joke the Bible is more pro witchcraft than Harry Potter is!

http://www.mtv.com/news/1572107/harry-potter-author-jk-rowling-opens-up-about-books-christian-imagery/

There is a HUGE distinction between good and evil in Harry Potter. JK Rowling also intended the books to be a Christian allegory.

1..Harry Potter novels quote the Bible. JK Rowling intended the books to be Christian allegories.

2. You are lying no one has ever gone into witchcraft from Harry Potter. Not one legitimate spell is used in Harry Potter. As a former student of witchcraft I can tell you that witch spells are all done in the native tongue of the practitioner, not Latin which is what they do in Harry Potter (it’s not even REAL Latin but a bastardized version)

3. There is a huge distinction between good and evil in Harry Potter. Obviously you know nothing about them.

4. Modern Wicca is not the witchcraft that the Bible condemns. it is a new religion that is only about a century old that CLAIMS to be old. It IS against Christianity, but no one has ever cast a spell with Wicca. It’s not possible to make anything happen with it. It’s all BS. They tell you you can control the weather, but you might as well say “rain today” and you’ll have as much chance of it working.

Please don’t misunderstand me. I have read them since I posted last and enjoyed them and find nothing wrong with them personally. However, I would hesitate to tell someone that they are perfectly alright to read. The later books aren’t for small children. If it violates their conscience, people shouldn’t read them. So here I am- having read Harry Potter- and still not holding strongly to either the do read or don’t read side of the argument. I honestly can’t recall Biblical quotes and would like to know how you know that Harry was baptized. I think that we have blown this subject way out of proportion. I can read Harry Potter and don’t believe that it will affect my salvation, but I choose not to advertise this fact because I don’t want to be a stumbling block like so many people were to me when I was unsure about the series. If you believe that it is wrong to read Harry Potter, I totally understand why you would try to persuade as many people as possible. BUT, when you are OK with reading it, I don’t think it is right to force your opinion on others because you could cause others to stumble. Do you want to have to answer to Christ on judgement day if on your advice someone violated their conscience?
I don’t wish to get into an internet shouting match, but felt that I needed to reply as well as update my comments.

You have no proof she didn’t. She could say anything she wanted to you.

Let me also say, going to church makes you a Christian like being in a garage makes you a car. It doesn’t.

And so what? Many people who are not Christians use scripture. They use it becuase they think it sounds cool, or they’ll get the right attention. (And a multitude of other reasons)

I understand you enjoy these books, but I beseech you, please reconsider, please read scripture please pray about it! I only do this because I honestly care about your well being.

I am aware that this discussion is old, but I just have to say something.

I LOVE Lord of the Rings, the Silmarillion, anything Middle-earth, okay? And my parents are totally fine with this. BUT, I’m not allowed to read Harry Potter. This is probably because my parents have heard a lot about the whole “witchcraft” thing—as far as I know, they haven’t personally looked into it much. I’m chill with this, because I’ll decide for myself whether to read it or not when I’m older.

But here’s the thing. A lot of people in these comments are seemingly at two extremes: either witchcraft is condemned in the Bible and Harry Potter is of the devil, or J.K. Rowling is a born-again Christian and Harry Potter is full of Christian allegory.

To the first group: Magic in fiction is different from magic in the Bible BECAUSE THERE ARE NO DEMONS INVOLVED. Witchcraft is forbidden in the Bible because it involves getting demons to actively fulfill your commands. As far as I know, whatever other flaws Harry Potter may have, the kids are NOT using demons. The magic is an unexplained power they inherited.

To the second group: I wouldn’t personally call J.K. Rowling a good Christian. She’s a nominal Catholic… and she said Dumbledore was gay. There may still be Christian allegory, but I don’t think she’s “born-again.”

Anyway, that’s all. Thanks for reading.

I love the fact that you had to use an Mtv article to authenticate Christianity.

I’m a big Harry Potter fan but I still believe in God I’m not a Christian I’m a righteous person who loves God and Jesus very much