News, How Christian is J K Rowling’s “Christian Inspiration” for the series of Harry Potter books? (zealous, bible)

[BergenCountyJohnny]

Originally Posted by Bluefly

Glad you read the man's ideas before coming to your own conclusion about his work. I don't agree with anything he believes, but found the book to be very thought provoking.

The intellectual enlightenment of the masses continues to inspire me. Truly a gift to us all.

I have no need to read his work if he is claiming to have found God (or Christianity) in the Hurry Potter crap. As I said, people claim to find Jesus on potato chips, but it doesn't mean that potato chips are anything more than greasy slivers of potato with little nutritional value and overloaded with fat and salt, and ultimately more harm than good to the person who eats it. If some idiot writes about Hurry Potter being a place to find God then I know that idiot falls in the same category as those who find the image of the virgin Mary on a sweaty T-shirt. It's stupidity based on other stupidity.

[Bluefly]

Why does it bother you so much that people enjoyed a series of books?

You're really vitriolic about this and it makes no sense. Far more important issues to worry about than books that get kids excited and teach them strong lessons on morality and ethics.

[roneb]

Originally Posted by BergenCountyJohnny

How are the classics listed not "enjoyable"??? I, and many others, enjoyed reading them, as children.

The point is to give them something of quality that they will enjoy. Many children will not enjoy all the books I listed; each book is different, contains different themes and settings and characters, and will appeal to different children. But they are classics which will provide not only enjoyment for the child but also an instruction, whether they realize it or not, in great literature.

It's like food, again. Many kids "enjoy" McDonald's, candy, and other junk food while turning their noses up to broccoli, salads, lean meat, and other nutritional food. So should a parent give his child only potato chips and chocolate bars for their meals, so that the child is not "turned off" to eating altogether? Indeed, many irresponsible parents DO feed their children McDonald's and other JUNK when the child refuses to eat real, good food. But that doesn't make it right. It's wrong. It's indulging the child to eat crap and not helping the child but hurting the child. Furthermore, giving a child a diet of chicken mcnuggets and shakes will not get them to ever enjoy REAL food; likewise, indulging a child with crappy Harry Potter will not lead them to enjoy classic literature and to become intelligent readers and writers, but will rather get them used to subpar garbage literature.

So, if you want to feed kids the literary equivalent of a diet of McDonald's and chocolate bars, that's fine, but don't mistake that for any kind of quality reading which will benefit a child. All that does is indulge a child's impulse, and it doesn't enhance the child's mind at all.

What hogwash. That's like saying McDonald's has made eating vegetables enjoyable for a lot of children who otherwise wouldn't eat vegetables because they put onions and pickles on their crappy burgers. Or like saying that Britney Spears has made music enjoyable for a lot of kids who would otherwise never listen to music, so Britney Spears must be better than Beethoven or Prokofiev. Ridiculous.

How do you know they're "not the kind of stories [you were] interested in reading" if you never read any of them???

If you are interested in reading Hurry Potter because it's about magic and witches and fantasy, then the Narnia series would fit that description as well. I think that the reason you or others are interested in reading Hurry Potter is because they are identified in pop culture as the hot item. It's no different than being interested in Cable Larry's "Git 'R Done" movies or Paris Hilton's latest TV show or whatever else the media tells you is "good" (so they can sell it to you). As I said earlier, yes, it's popular, yes, a lot of people want to read it, yes, a lot of kids will want to read it because it's popular and "in" and because ignorant adults are pushing it on them at this point; however, it is literary junk with the intention of making money and nothing more. It's the Hostess cupcakes of children's literature - they love it and eat it up and can't get enough of it but it's harming them and providing no nutrition whatsoever.

No, you please curb your bravado in recommending to children and their parents that the kids read garbage simply because it's popular and you, in your most unprofessional opinion, think it's good for them to read that tripe merely because you THINK they will find it "enjoyable" and will not find any classics "enjoyable". That's one of the most ignorant things I've heard in a long time.

What's total nonsense is some pop culture victim like you making recommendations to parents and kids to read garbage because you, with your lack of education and exposure to classics, bigotedly dismiss the classics out of hand (without having read them yourself). What other brilliant suggestions do you have for parents? "Oh, he won't eat peas? Try giving McDonald's Fries! Your little girl doesn't like ballet? Oh, just show her a few Britney Spears videos, then she'll love dance! Your son doesn't want to go play baseball with his friends? Just buy him a PS3 with MLB '09, it's better than playing the real game, he can't get hurt playing a video game!"

As for my mangling of Hurry Potter's name, yes, it was meant to be an insult to the whole Hairy Potter series of crap as well as to JoKe Rowling, who is a wealthy, stupid woman much like any pop icon.

My, my, but someone has an awefully high horse to climb up on! As an educated (MS) parent of "above average children" (apologies for the Prairie Home Companion reference - but their grades and test scores back the statement up), I find your attitude entirely snobbish and insulting. All of us have enjoyed the series. And my family doesn't frequent fast food joints! People can form their own judgements on what is good or bad. If left to the "expert critics" of the time, we wouldn't have much of what is considered genre defining classic rock today. In fact, we wouldn't have some of our classical music or art either!

The fact is the series is entirely enjoyable and better written than many of the books available to kids today. Are they on a par with Tolkien or CS Lewis? I'd say no. But they certainly aren't "crap" either.

And just to make sure I'm on topic: The Harry Potter series focuses on good overcoming evil and is wholly positive in that regard. It is a theme quite similar to Lord of the Rings and Narnia - both written by devotedly Christian men. The Christian theme is the Narnia series is quite obvious even for a child to pick out. Arguments painting any of these books as evil or "un-Christian" are utterly ridiculous

[Bluefly]

Originally Posted by BergenCountyJohnny

I have no need to read his work if he is claiming to have found God (or Christianity) in the Hurry Potter crap. As I said, people claim to find Jesus on potato chips, but it doesn't mean that potato chips are anything more than greasy slivers of potato with little nutritional value and overloaded with fat and salt, and ultimately more harm than good to the person who eats it. If some idiot writes about Hurry Potter being a place to find God then I know that idiot falls in the same category as those who find the image of the virgin Mary on a sweaty T-shirt. It's stupidity based on other stupidity.

You have issues.

[BergenCountyJohnny]

Originally Posted by Bluefly

You have issues.

I would expect nothing more than an ad hom attack from someone with such an untenable position as yours.

[Ceece]

Originally Posted by BergenCountyJohnny

That's fine. I enjoy McDonald's and potato chips and chocolate cake and other junk food every once in a while also, but I would never recommend these things as quality, nutritious food to anyone. Likewise, it's fine with me if people want to read Harry Potter, but don't try to tell me or others that it is any kind of quality literature, because it's not. It's just childrens' pop literature, not very well written and not very creative. I'm more amazed that so many adults read it, considering it is designed for immature minds. Then again, a lot of adults do have immature minds...

It's called "imagination". Some people have it, some don't. In fact, many fear it for some reason.

[jennaflorrie]

Does any one actually believe JK Rowlings statement?!!! The Harry Potter books glamorise witchcraft and have only helped to make the occultic seem trivial/fun/appealing.

[Ceece]

Originally Posted by jennaflorrie

Does any one actually believe JK Rowlings statement?!!! The Harry Potter books glamorise witchcraft and have only helped to make the occultic seem trivial/fun/appealing.

you poor thing.

[BergenCountyJohnny]

Originally Posted by Ceece

It's called "imagination". Some people have it, some don't. In fact, many fear it for some reason.

Surely, you're not talking about Harry Potter, because it's hardly imaginative. It's contrived and hacked, and poorly written. CS Lewis was imaginitive, as was Tolkien. Hurry Potter isn't even in the same category. Then again, some people think McDonald's is "imaginative" for making Big Macs...

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

I believe her statement and I don't beleive what is protrayed in the fictional series has anything to do with the devil. Its called Fantasy. Magic doesn't equal a connection to the devil.

I'm sure there are those out there who have or think they should burn books like this. Does this remind anyone of Hitler because it does me. The church I grew up in would not allow us to read any fiction, this included literature. They even held a record burning one sabbath. How insane.