A Conservative Christian Favorably Considers Harry Potter

A few weeks ago, my wife and I had guests in our home. One of guests has been a longtime friend since the time when she was a member of a church that I pastored in Iowa. While she was with us, she noticed a little note that I had received from my daughter on Father's Day. The note promised me a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when it was published. Our friend looked at the note, laughed, and then, in a serious voice, asked, "You're not really reading Harry Potter, are you?"

Our friend is a strong, conservative Christian, as am I. In response to her question, I said something about enjoying the character development in the books. She replied, "Whose character [is being developed]?" Her point was that she was afraid my character was being adversely affected by the wizard-world of Harry Potter.

For some reason, the topic of conversation changed at that point and the subject of Harry Potter was dropped. However, I've done some thinking since that conversation in an effort to see what I, as a conservative Christian, enjoy about the books.

Background. My wife and I were in Europe in 2000 during the time after the 4th book in the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was published. I remember seeing it in store windows all over London and wondering why people would buy and read something based on what I perceived to be demonism and witchcraft.

A year later, my family and I saw the first movie based on the series, read the books, and became Harry Potter fans, and not because of any perceived demonism or black magic. The plot and the relationships among the characters captivated us. I finished reading the seventh book just a day before I began writing this article.

Important Themes in the Books. While I could emphasize many themes from the Harry Potter books, I've chosen four. First, the struggle between good and evil. This struggle has been a basic theme throughout the history of literature. In modern times, C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia and J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings have graphically portrayed this human and spiritual warfare. In the Potter books, there is no doubt that Voldemort represents the worst kind of evil and Harry and his friends are fighting for good to triumph. God help us if we ever reach the point where everyone believes, as some do now, that there is no good or bad, but that everything is neutral. Some things need to be shown in stark black and white, and J. K. Rowling, in her Potter books, does that.

A second important theme is the mixture of good and evil in all of us. Some Christians are bothered by the fact that both the good people and the evil people in the Harry Potter stories are wizards and witches. For many Christians, there is no such thing as a good witch or wizard; however good or bad they are, they all have a satanic source for their power. If you want to read the characters that way, be sure to apply the same standard to the workers of magic in The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia. Although those stories are considered to be based on Christian imagery because their creators were Christian, the stories, with a few exceptions, are not overtly or obviously Christian. Let's not miss the point that whoever we're looking at and however they're presented, there is good and evil in all of us. Harry, Ron, and Hermione are no different. Pride or self-centeredness can be found in all three of them, and pride, whatever else it is, has always been the source of the worst evils imaginable. Rowling has simply chosen a setting that may reach people who are not attracted to the traditional Christian settings. Keep in mind, too, that she may not have been trying to instruct her readers about the good and evil in them; she may have simply been trying to write a good story!

A third theme is friendship and loyalty. Strangely enough (or perhaps not so strangely) it is the presence of evil in their world that becomes the crucible in which the friendship and loyalty among Harry, Ron, and Hermione have room and a motive to grow. They not only grow to appreciate each other as individuals, but they learn that they need each other. One of the best lines in the series, for me, comes in the first book where Harry is about to risk his life. He and Hermione are talking about each other and who is the better wizard. Harry says he is not as good as she is. She replies, "Me! Books and cleverness! There are more important things--friendship and bravery and--oh Harry--be careful!" (page 287 of the paperback edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone) John Donne's famous line, "No man is an island, entire of itself," applies to the main characters of the Harry Potter books. If young (and old) readers learn nothing else from the series, they will have learned a vital lesson for life.

A fourth theme is seeing life as a risky adventure. Whatever else the Potter books portray, they certainly portray life as an adventure that is often dangerous. Let me say something about overtly religious books and movies: too many of them are pathetically weak and boring! They assume the readers or viewers have some inkling of the basic story line, so they don't bother to present the story in a graphic life and death manner. Most movies, for example, that show Christ being whipped before he's eventually crucified show a few patches of blood on the back of his robe. In reality, that kind of whipping often stripped off the skin to such an extent that bones were revealed and some victims did not survive the whipping. It's hardly necessary to state that the back of the robe would have been shredded. The basic problem with that kind of portrayal is that the reader or viewer is left with the impression that the Christian faith is not really worth dying for and, so, therefore, not really worth living for. The Harry Potter stories leave no doubt that life is an adventure and the quest is worth dying for. Throughout the series, Harry, Ron, and Hermione find themselves in grave danger and are often close to death. Not only that, they are also willing to die for the greater good.

Other Themes: Just in passing, here are some other themes that emerge from the Harry Potter books: (1) Love is more powerful than evil; (2) Our choices matter; (3) The beauty of virtues in one's life; and (4) There is good in everyone. The possibility of even Voldemort repenting is lifted up toward the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Voldemort chooses not to repent, but the offer is made in the belief that he could have done so if he had wanted.

Anyone who reads the books and sees only the surface magical world will miss the wonderful underlying picture of human nature and human relationships. Without the underlying structure, the books would lose much of their beauty and relevance.

The Perceived Danger in the Harry Potter Books. Has my character been shaped by my reading of the Potter series? Let me say that I have never been tempted to cast a curse at someone who has angered me or offended me! The books have, however, illustrated for me the themes I've mentioned above and have shown me some of the many ways in which good and evil play out in today's world. Substitute Joseph Stalin or Adolph Hitler for Voldemort and the stories become amazingly relevant. Will good ultimately triumph over evil as it does in the Harry Potter books? As a Christian, I say "Yes. "If I were a non-believer having nothing but Harry Potter as an example, I would be forced to say, "Yes, good has triumphed for now, but how about tomorrow?" If you're going to read the books, enjoy them for what they are and what they can help you understand, but remember this: at the end of the day, they are fiction.

A Warning. We know some people who have read the Potter books to their children and have ended up with scared children. Be careful how you use the books. That applies not only to the Harry Potter books, but to all books. Even parts of the Bible can be frightening to young people.