It's just a book. People blow it waaaaay out of proportion. I think most of us can realize that it's only a work of fiction, and when people get together in big groups to burn the book...well, it's all a bit silly, really.

I'm catholic and Harry Potter is my favorite book... People who blow it out of proportion are just too close minded to see that it's just a fictional (awesome) series of book... but it's their loss!

I agree TOTALLY with all three of you guys. So many people who are refusing to affiliate themselves with the series are seriously missing out on some FANTASTIC literature <3 HP

Ditto.

I often think people only see the Christians who are uptight and don't allow any fun or excitement in their lives, and they don't see the Christians who read Harry Potter and watch (heaven forbid) the Simpsons.

Harry Potter is just a book (and a movie). No one's forcing it down your throat. You don't have to read it. Just, a word to those "uptight" Christians...

i know! thank you guys so much! i feel exactly as you do. my grandmother will sell them or burn them or something if i don't take them with me when i go to college...

what i don't get is, like, you maybeastarbucks, is how people can say "Harry Potter is the devil" (which someone coincidentally said that just today in my psych class) and then go home and say f*** every other sentence, watch soap operas full of witches and countless other obscenities, and things like that. i mean, you can't pick and choose. i think the Christians that read HP know how to keep it within the right point of view in their heads, and people who criticize it have never cracked the spine and think it's a handbook to how to be a witch or something. (at least none of my family who shoot it down have every opene one and wouldn't if you paid them). so you can imagine what they say, according to them, im pretty much damned for reading it. ~shrugs~ like you said, Priscilita, their loss!

She'd burn them. (I'm Gracie's sister). If she'd even touch them to do that!

I love Harry Potter! I've been reading them since I was in 4th greade and I really don't see how people can take them out of proportion! Those books are probably the only reason I even read now!

I don't think it's offensive, evil or witch-craft-encouraging. There is nothing wrong with stories which involve magic.

Even though I think Harry Potter is a bit boring :P

Posting again :D
Can someone please explain to me what those uptight people see in Harry Potter that reminds them of "the devil"????

I actually don't understand, because clearly these people have never read one sentence from the books and are judging it but what they heard about it? (Which is, in my opinion, a horrible quality to have - judging something without knowing it).

Harry Potter is the "classic" fight between good and evil, and where GOOD wins in the end. What's so evil about that? I would say the opposite, in fact they encourage you to FIGHT AGAINST evil.
I'm actually not understanding where "offensive" and "witch craft encouraging" come into play in the story.

I don't either. People who've read it don't think that, if you've noticed. My family lectures me on it and none of them have ever even touched them, much less read them.

~shrug~ Search me. I don't understand it either.

My mum is really against it but I don't get why!
I mean, our Rector has admitted himself that his favourite book is The Goblet of Fire. With most things on TV she says that it's fine just as long as you don't believe any of it, and it's not like i'm gonna go around trying to turn people into frogs or get involved in some witchcraft cult, so I don't see why I'm not allowed to read or watch the films...
but my dad's ok with it =]

Haha...I wasn't allowed to watch The Smurfs, or Rainbow Brite, or My Little Pony, or He-Man or She-Ra because those cartoons had magic in them and magic "is of the devil". I guess people who want to censor books, movies, and tv shows with magic or witches in them believe people can't think for themselves and distinguish fantasy from reality, when, in all actuality, taking something away from a kid isn't going to stop them from watching or reading if they really want to. All it did was make my parents look like bigots.

I like watching the movies and reading the books, but I'm Catholic. It's something called fiction. If people want to burn such books, that's fine with me, but I don't boom things out that much.

harry potter is very christian. lots of chirsmas and in the end harry pulls aa jesus (dies and then comes back)

I've never read them 'nor will I ever, but I'm still a fun person. I watch bad things sometimes myself, like Family Guy, and I don't think I'm missing out. There are millions of books to read. Why read the ones everybody else is reading when you can learn of a story not many people know of, and tell them all about it?

I've seen the first couple movies. I liked it. It's pretty good. Nothing to be obsessed over though.

I personally don't feel comfortable with Harry Potter. I'm not so extreme that I think it's "the spawn of Satan", but anything that makes the occult and witchcraft look cool is something to be wary of in my book (which happens to be called the "Bible". Cough).

And no, don't slap the "uptight Christian" label on me, please. I happen to adore other great fantasy books, namely Lord of the Rings and Narnia - because magic is used in them with great care and caution and there are many themes in them that echo what I know and love as a Christian (especially in Narnia).

These are simply my convictions and I'm not trying to force them down anyone's throat; so if you'll all be so kind as to keep the labels in check, I'll restrain myself from banging you over the head with a Bible, lol. :p

'Every burned book illuminates the world' - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The magic of the Harry Potter universe is unique to that universe. It has nothing to do with the "occult."

If you actually READ Harry Potter, you would know that along with the "witchcraft" it also talks about extreme friendship and caring. I don't think the devil gives a rat's hat about that!!!!
(Dearheart, I LOVE how you made your belief known, but didn't offend all of us who do not believe that way!!!!)

I'm sorry but there's a reason Harry Potter is called FANTASY and FICTION

Fantasy: imagination, esp. when extravagant and unrestrained
Fiction: the class of literature comprising works of imaginative narration, esp. in prose form

Key word there: IMAGINATION.

If people have a problem with this genre then they are just insecure. I mean nobody is saying that Harry Potter is real, it's called fantasy. But we enjoy it because it's FICTION. It's not encouraging ANYTHING, it's just telling a story. I think saying that it makes "witchcraft look cool" is a bit ignorant of the world of fiction. It's not making anything look cool or not. It's telling a story of a boy who when he was 11 found out he was a wizard. It's a fictional story. I mean, fantasy is just that - something we imagine. And what is people's problem with wizards from Harry Potter? What's the problem with their magic? I'm catholic and I even practice my religion, but I think this is absurd. I mean Harry Potter world is a totally different world, there is no comparison. It doesnt promote anything, its not trying to make anything look cool, it's not trying to go against any religion... It's simply that, a STORY.

I think this goes way beyond any religion, I think there's a problem with people not really knowing the difference between fiction and reality. Not knowing what a FANTASY STORY is. And most importantly, not even taking the time to read some of the book. I mean, it seriously does not promote anything.

Agreed and well said Dearheart! People that are fans of Harry Potter are not bound to hell for it. Some Christians need to understand this and back off. For myself personaly, I feel uncomfortable about the series but I don't go around judging people that do read and enjoy it.

My friend told me that pope Benedict aproved that book because it's talking about love. However, i will still read it, there is nothing wrong about it

Yeah, the pope said that Harry Potter has a good message.

The book itself is like a representation of God, Jesus, and Satan (Dumbledore, Harry, and Voldemort). It teaches you about love, loyalty, and friendship and nowhere in it does it put down or take a poke at christianity or religion. I agree that as long as you're not out there trying to be a witch or cast spells reading the book for literary and imaginative enjoyment is fine.

I have a friend who grew up with restricted access to stuff like Harry Potter because her grandmmother believed it was magic and wrong. She wasnt even allowed to watch Arthur or Rugrats because she was afraid my friend would start acting like Muffy or Angelica. And now she is uninterested completely in HP and it makes me so sad :(

Gracie, I totally agree with you! I think a child that reads it can more likely take a good message from this book, and a real Christian can clearly see what the story really is about. I've also heard that thing about pope's good opinion of HP.
HP is my favourite book and in my opinion it's the amazing story about power of friendship, love, courage and innocence <3

I love the Harry Potter books and so do my mom, my brother, and my aunt, and all four of us are born-again Christians. The Harry Potters have really good messages and teach lessons about friendship, love, and courage. Also too, J.K. Rowling said herself she doesn't believe in magic and that she is a Christian.

I'm fine with reading them, I'm also fine with people who don't like them. I realize many people have issues with it, and I respect that. I have things I don't watch/read/listen to either.

I think, after reading through the entire series countless times, that the central theme of Harry Potter is how a mother's selfless act of sacrifice in front of mortal danger protected her son from harm by the evil forces for seven years, and enabling said son to vanquish the embodiement of evil in the bittersweet end...
So I would hazard to think - and apologise for it at the same time - that the people thinking that the Harry Potter series is the spawn of Satan are missing the point...
I also apologise sincerely for any intrusion felt when I commented due to my atheism. :)

And really, I don't think it's Harry Potter that us Christians should worry about. Now Twilight, quite a bit, due to it's Mormon themes.

Seriously it is just a book and pure fantasy. I personally find it borring but I don't find people who read it bad or sinful- well we're all sinful.......but you get my point.

Unfortunatley, witchcraft is "of the Devil" but READING ABOUT IT WILL NOT GET YOU A ONE WAY TICKET TO HADES PLACE!

I'm a huge Harry Potter fan, & obviously a Christian. I don't think there's anything wrong with it, honestly. Me & a lot of my friends, who are Christians like me, are HP fans. I don't think it's "evil" or anything. It's just a story. I don't think it goes aginst my faith in any way. As long as you don't plan on going on killing sprees like voldemort, I think it's fine XD. But seriously, if your parents or Preacher are against it, I guess you should stay away. But with things like this, it really depends on your personal beliefs.

Honestly, I've never been interested in the series. Never identifies good from evil.

my mom won't let me read it but I think you can read it aslong as you know that is not real one time I ask my aunt(who is a storng

Christine and a fan of Harry potter) that is she end up in harry potter would she talk to Harry about God she said yes LOL

i like Harry Potter a lot....but there are somethings that were not really needed (mostly in the movie!!)

I never hated it, but I was never a fan either. I really didn't even pay any attention to it. Than one day, I got this book called "The truth for Youth" It's the new testament and it has comics in the front. The comics are to make it appealing to teenagers and they deal with things that teenagers go through. They have comics that talk about the truth of safe sex, porn, homosexuality, abortion, etc and the comic that talks about the truth of witchcraft was like a Harry Potter parody and after reading that comic, I understood how Harry Potter could be evil in some way. In how it glorifies witchcraft and not God. It gives people the idea that witchcraft is fun and cool and okay, when it's not. I'm definitely not a fan of Harry Potter now. I understand that it's just a book, but it's not something that I'm into because I think it sends the wrong message. Witchcraft is the devil's game. Please no negative comments on my thoughts and opinions. I know this is a Christian spot, but I just don't want to get attacked for what I think.

^^ Could you explain more about why Harry Potter "glorifies" witchcraft, particularly when the "spells" used in the novel are etymologically unique and represent no "real" black magic?

Also - If Harry Potter is evil for "glorifying witchcraft", then so is Beauty and the Beast, The Wizard of Oz, The Legend of King Arthur, and any other story that references good witches/wizards. Even the Chronicles of Narnia, a classic Christian allegory.

In fact, the case can be (link) made in favor of Harry Potter actually supporting Christian values and ideas. PLEASE click on the link, it's a very enlightening read and you'll learn a lot.

I am just asking a few questions. If you feel that I am coming on too strong, or "attacking" you, then I withdraw them with respect.

For more on my opinion on this matter, please see the best answer to link.

If you don't want to read Harry Potter, or don't like it, fine. But don't do it for specious reasons like claiming its anti-Christian. I just figured, if a comic could sway you one way, a well-reasoned argument might sway you back. ;o)