Question:
Dear Rich,
What is your take on Harry Potter? I've read most of the series and find it fun and entertaining. I believe that if children are read the Harry Potters' books from the perspective that they should be taken -- as fiction -- there is little harm in it.
T_______
My Answer:
Dear T_____,
Unfortunately, many evangelicals have little patience for flights of fancy and exercises in imagination and creativity. They not only neglect modern works of popular fiction, but also neglect the great works of fiction in the name of piety.
It is interesting that the major genre of literature in the Bible is narrative. God has chosen to reveal Himself to us primarily through stories full of passion, courage, action, conflict, climax, and resolution. The stories of the Bible are full of violence (bloody wars, swords through the belly exposing inner organs, tent pegs plunged through skulls, women falling from towers and being consumed by dogs, mothers eating their own young to survive, a bloodied and battered man pinned like an insect on a Roman torture stake on the dung heap outside Jerusalem, etc.) and sex (between father and daughter, man and prostitute, brother and sister, etc.).
In the world of the Bible, a violent cosmic conflict ensues. In the midst of it, the God of glory reveals His mercy and justice, His salvation and condemnation, His love and His wrath. With this said, I am surprised that more Evangelicals aren't petitioning against the Bible! (This, however, is done silently -- when was the last time you heard a message on Ezekiel 16!)
My point is that narrative is a great way to communicate truth. The stories of the Bible are historically true. Fiction, by nature, is made up in the mind of the author. Yet that does not take away from its narrative quality. Just as historical narrative can communicate truth, so can fictional narrative communicate truth. The opposite of truth is not fiction, but falsehood. Great truths can be proclaimed through fiction. We must never forget this.
The best stories are stories of great conflict. From what I understand, the Harry Potter stories involve great conflict between a clearly good character and clearly delineated evil characters. Although the world of Harry Potter may not be conducive to a Biblical worldview in all its details, there is one thing that is clearly Biblical in his books -- a clearly defined conflict between good and evil. In this world, Harry Potter is undeniably on the side of light fighting the dark powers that threaten goodness.
This is not the first time that magic, dragons, witches, wizards and other mythical elements have been used to communicate the battle between good and evil. J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy and Chronicles of Narnia are a few great examples of literature the presents an epic battle between good and evil set in a fantasy world of the author's imagination.
The January 10, 2000 issue of Christianity Today has two short articles on the Potter phenomenon (page 23 and 36). The articles state that cult-watcher Bob Waldrep (Alabama director of Watchman Fellowship), Prison Fellowship's founder and president Charles Colson, and Alan Jacobs (literature professor at Wheaton College) all enjoy and defend the Potter series.
The ability to understand and learn from fiction is vital to a healthy imagination and a balanced life. Douglas Jones, editor of Credenda Agenda, recently responded to someone who criticized his love of fiction and use of fiction in his children's lives with this:
"I agree that very serious issues are at stake here, and I do indeed think that a healthy imagination is essential to spiritual maturity. But I worry about your assumption that truth is opposed to fiction. Scripture itself repeatedly teaches truth by means of the "fictions" of metaphors and parables. When Psalm 72:3 teaches "The mountains will bring peace to the people," that is a grand fiction revealing a great truth. Mt. McKinley and Mt. Everest can't really bring peace to God's people. Christ alone does. But God repeatedly sees fit to speak to us as a poet and not an engineer. And if we aren't well-exercised in poetic, fictional thinking, then we'll regularly misunderstand Scripture and life. Weak imaginations have always fallen before Scripture's chief enemies: legalists, rationalists, and libertines. Orthodoxy demands imagination, and so we are just asking for serious spiritual problems if we deny the imaginative life to our children." (Letters to the Editor, Credenda Agenda, Volume 11, Number 2)
I heartily agree with Jones' comments. In short, read the books. Enjoy them and delight in this great fact: The battle between good and evil that the Potter books draw attention to is more real and more profound than anything we can imagine. The good news is that we are victors through Christ over the powers of evil, because He entered into violent conflict for our sakes. In love, He bore the full force of the powers of hell for our sake, that we might proclaim Him Lord and Champion over all!
Your brother in Christ,
Rich
© Richard J. Vincent, January 5, 2000
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