Monday, October 25th, 2004
This entry is part of an occasional series of articles written by Nicole, the blonde genius that taught me how to use note cards. She has her own views (some stuck to the back of her car) and I’m presenting them here completely unedited. As always, thanks for reading.
Austin is a pretty liberal, forward thinking place to live, usually. There are, undoubtedly, exceptions to every rule. I have plenty of my own conservative tendencies. For instance, did you know that the children’s series, Harry Potter, is a guide to witchcraft? The books weren’t written by J.K. Rowling, but rather a group of people, whose goal is to spread the satanic craft. Worst of all, are the innocent young readers who are falling victim to its text. They are violating the First Commandment by worshipping the books’ protagonist, Harry Potter, as their true god. All of this has even been substantiated by religious scholars on TBN (The Bible Network).
Alright, I don’t believe a word of what I just wrote, but last week at work something happened that prompted that little story. It started with a simple silver bookmark and a charm with the word “Faith” engraved on it. I was working with a client on assembling Christian friendly gift baskets, for a Christmas luncheon, with thirty of her top customers. I mentioned that I had the same bookmark in my Harry Potter book, only my charm read “Inspire”. She put her hands on me, and in grave seriousness, told me to, “Be very careful.” She explained everything from the first paragraph of this post, and warned me of the large presence of witches in Austin, Texas. She advised me to stop reading before it was too late, and to trade inspiration in for faith.
I smiled tightly and nodded, trying to keep my face from contorting into an expression of complete disbelief. All I could say was, “I had no idea.” But really, I do. I have an idea of why books like The Grapes of Wrath and Catcher in the Rye were ever on a banned books list. I have an idea of the blind fear that faith inspires.
Harry Potter talks about witchcraft but that isn’t what it’s about. The books are delightful. They mesmerize my little brother, Spencer, in the same way that C.S. Lewis’ series The Chronicles of Narnia, did for me. They are enjoyable entertainment. I believe in God. I even believe in the magic of books.
I’ve run into this stuff before, and it never ceases to amaze me. There is a point where ‘faith’ becomes idiocy. Believe in God all that you want to, but don’t imbue human creations with divine opinion just because you don’t understand. What are the chances that woman has even read Harry Potter?
Grundtvig, a contemporary of Kirkegaard, once said that you have to be a good person before you can be a good Christian.
Your Harry Potter woman is neither.
Harry Potter is bottomline, good fiction. It’s engaging, imaginative, witty, descriptive and as you said, delightful. Why delve into the subject matter any deeper than that? I can’t understand someone with the audacity to project an image of witchcraft or indecency, especially when it comes down to Harry Potter.
These “Bible bashing” individuals are the same people that refuse to enjoy Star Wars for its so-called “religious undertones”* or Lord of the Rings for its “homosexual undertones”*. What happened to just enjoying literature or movies without finding hidden meaning (unless it’s implied and obvious)?
* Denoting their opinion, not mine.
It’s amazing to me how people just turn off their brains sometimes, when it comes to religion. They hide behind it, and use it as an excuse to do so many unjust things. You’re absolutely right. I am pretty sure that woman has not read a single Harry Potter. I think that some people believe being Christian and believing in God automatically gives them extra points towards being a good person. I knew someone who lived on my floor, freshman year of college. I went to a Jesuit university so religion did come up time and again. He got into a discussion with a group of us. His theory was that, if you were never exposed to Christianity that you were going to Hell, flat out. I asked him what, of how a person lived their life affected their afterlife. According to him, and he said, the Bible too, they would go to Hell, if they never accepted Christianity as their religion. As far as I am concerned, we have no right as humans to make that determination. Besides, ultimately who am I to say that my set of beliefs is superior to anyone else’s.
The problem comes when people believe in the Bible as the literal truth, and don’t see it as a book written by man.
Excellent point, Clay - and one of my issues with organized religion. People think that they’re reading/reciting the words of God, and that the doctrines contained in the Bible and other religious text flow directly from God.
While I certainly can’t say one way or the other if the text originated from God, it seems clear that they were interpreted and transcribed by man. To think that this process occurred without an attempt to align the text with the group agenda of the authors is naive, in my opinion. On top of that, history has shown us that the Bible has been used as a basis for blatantly evil acts (The Crusades, The Holocaust), and on more than one occassion, the Bible has been used to refute what are now indisputable facts (Heliocentrism, for example). Is it likely that those same forces were not at work when the text was recorded?
“The religious persecution of the ages has been done under what was claimed to be the command of God.”
“I always distrust people who know so much about what God wants them to do to their fellows.”
- Susan B. Anthony
In 21 years of life, I’ve found that there are so many different worlds/views/systems that exist in this single life — both religious and non-religious. Through my own personal history, I’ve been fortunate to be able to relate to a LOT of different people. In being able to relate everyone involved in this post, I can honestly say that we are all the same. We all believe in something and when we speak about it, our views become apparent. And most likely, we don’t keep quiet about what we deem as being true. Even the sarcasm presented in the title of this post presents this idea.
When you believe in something and it becomes the truth to you, your actions and thoughts begin (or should begin) to be influenced by it. That goes for everything. Based on her own beliefs about the book series, she felt obligated to give you a warning. The whole point has nothing to do with her being “Christian” or “religious.” Perhaps we should consider the possibility that she has had a personal experience in which she now believes in witchcraft and she now believes that it is evil.
Has she ever read a Harry Potter book? Probably not. Why would she if she believes the bad reports about it? Have all of us actually read the Bible, of our own inquisitive, non-objective free will? Probably not. Why would we if we believe the bad reports about it?
I can certainly appreciate your point of view, and you make some valid points. However, I don’t think that religion lends itself to the same set of standards. The normal set of controls used in daily life does not seem to apply when it comes to faith. A lot of times motivations are clouded. The same person that is reasonable and intelligent can become irrational. It’s alright to have a set of beliefs, and stick to them, but you shouldn’t just turn off your brain. I’m a Democrat, but that doesn’t mean that I am automatically going to ignore every candidate that doesn’t have a (D) next to their name on the ballot. She is Christian. Why doesn’t she open herself up to everything else that is out there? I read the Bible, and I certainly don’t take everything in it to be literal. She could read Harry Potter and do the same.
Some people like to see the whole world happy and then there are people who hate anyone to be happy by living the life or liking what they really like. They either mix confuse everything with pseudo-religious beliefs and try to force their screwed up minds and think patterns on other people.
Lunatics like this are everywhere. They love to be the ‘dementors’ of real life, sucking people’s happiness away from them. Don’t fall for them! Tell them you feel sorry for them next time. I can quite assure you :) a conspiracy by wizards/witches trying to take over the world and your beliefs does not exist! Moreover, Harry Potter has nothing to do with it. They are great stuff!
I’m a Buddhist and i don’t beleive in god. But i urge you nice people to protect the god within from your self and all these religious fanatics. That’s a sure way of happiness, i can tell you.
Peace!!
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