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The Bible says: "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)
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This is interesting as this is exactly what
does happen in the Harry Potter books, many times over; selflessness and friendship are great themes in the books. Mithalwen's list covers many other of those reasons why the Harry potter series is not
quite so sinister as it may seem at face value to some.
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Originally Posted by Encaitare
I'm wondering what you mean by this, and what you mean by "the real deal," lindil. The only thing that sounds like something resembling the magic(k) you said you know exists is the high degree of concentration necessary for the spell to work.
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Real world Paganism is much more varied and complex than many would think. The spell casting portrayed in Harry Potter is almost comic in comparison. Instead it actually makes great use of techniques used in all other faiths such as meditation/prayer, the focussing nature of ritual and the power of thoughts and symbols. It is also broadly benevolent, just as other faiths are. Yes, there are some more damaging aspects, but then there are disturbing aspects to some sectors of other religions too! Yet you do not get many Pagans advising people not to read CS Lewis lest it make them become a suicide bomber or join a cult like that run by Rev Jim Jones!
I wish that many people with fundamental beliefs could see past the word 'witchcraft' as it is nothing to be feared in itself, it poses no more threat to the person strong in their faith than does any other faith. It is simply a different faith. The stirring up of suspicion about witchcraft (sadly a hugely emotive word) has been in the news lately with a child suffering torment at the hands of her fundamentalist family due to them thinking the child was a 'witch'; I think that this only serves to illustrate how vital it is that children are all educated about all faiths in an attempt to promote understanding and tolerance.
I think the danger in banning a book is at its most serious when it is banned by a state or public institution, as then it is in effect denied to people. When a family chooses not to allow a book to be read then this is their choice, and parents are indeed free to guide their children as they see fit. Indeed, they are free to make no such decisions and allow their children total free reign, including ignoring age restrictions on products or TV, which is a whole other ball game. It is how and why such decisions are made that concerns me. The best such decisions are made because the parent/school knows their child and can see that they are not yet mature enough to deal with the concepts in a book.
Nobody should exclusively read books endorsed by their faith. Aside from the fact that they will not learn other points of view, they are also denying themselves the chance of a lot of pleasure and enlightenmnent. Anyone who is afraid to read a book because it might 'turn' them against their faith might want to question whether their faith is strong enough. If a parent/school considers denying a child the opportunity to learn something because it may weaken their faith, then instead they might want to consider why the child ought to read that book and follow this up with learning about the issues involved.