Has anyone mentioned to their friends that the Harry Potter books were an evil influence and unsuitable for children? I wonder, did you find that few believed you and instead, presented a defensive argument for them.
Over the past years there has been extensive publicity for the films, alongside massive popularity and acclaim. Every literate child seemed to have read the books as well as many adults. Voices against this tidal wave have sadly been so small and few, but the dark side of this subject must be aired, and if the small voices speak up people will have to think about the corruption that is taking place.
Firstly this onslaught of publicity is really a massive advertisement for witchcraft. People will deny this, but witches, wands, spells and magic are aspects of witchcraft that are presented in these fantasy stories aimed at children between 8 and 14. Although it is just a story, it is still feeding the impressionable with thoughts and ideas on an area of life that is totally unspiritual. It seems that people in general have almost completely lost awareness of things that are not just inappropriate for children, but actively dangerous. Now because of Harry Potter, witchcraft has suddenly been given a more acceptable face, but few see it this way.
People frequently scoff if you decry Harry Potter, 'as if my child is going to suddenly become a witch,' they retort. Because their children aren't flying home from school on broomsticks, they cannot see any danger. This whimsical view of witches takes the sting out of something corrupting and paves the way for something worse. Members of covens within our society do not travel like this either, but they do practice ritual sacrifices. Because a child does not want Harry Potter toys, may not be proof that they are unaffected by having read the books. Links between environment and behaviour have long been understood and at the very least, I would think that a nation of children will no longer see witchcraft as such a bad thing.
The massive interest in Harry Potter does make you wonder whether this was just a result of the skilful advertising, as strangely there are even many adults very taken by these children's books. We cannot see how this evil has affected thinking, only in that many are very interested, captivated or even spell bound by the Harry Potter phenomenon. The subtle changes in children are not being considered. Have people wondered why their child's interest in reading greatly increased with these books? Did they notice the fascination with the films? Do their children want to sleep on the Harry Potter pillowcases, show any interest in booklets about little spells now available for children, or express a desire to own Snowy Owls (some having been returned after parents complained that their children were attacked by them.)
No doubt sales of Harry Potter paraphernalia will rocket this Christmas, with games involving toy wands, casting stones and spells, showing the sneaky way that witchcraft has been made acceptable in the eyes of the public. No doubt there will be children who will want to know more about witchcraft. This is just the surface, the real damage can't be seen, and it is this unknown fire that is not being thought about.
More than this, people will even insist that the stories are very moral too, such as the Dean of Gloucester who allowed parts of one film to be shot at his cathedral, brushing aside the views of some of the worshippers who felt that it was sacrilegious to portray the building as a school for witches and wizards. He argued that the books are splendid and that children should be encouraged to read them. "They emphasise that truth is better than lies, good overcomes evil and the use of gifts should be responsible."!
Because the books have some moral input, is it right to use this word to describe them, without also reminding the public what witchcraft stands for. Do these morals justify all the incidental evil being advertised? Centuries ago people knew witchcraft was wrong, so why is it being introduced to children today? Surely parents can pass on values to their children without also having to introduce them to the dark world of witchcraft. Can't they teach them about truth, without it being alongside spells and wands. But now the books are in fashion people feel that they can't deny their child what has become normality. We tell them not to talk to strangers and at the same time let any old author feed dark seeds into their heads without any question of what is really being taught. Will these seeds take root, and what will they grow into?
In our strange times a blurred system of values is constantly being sold to children, and examples abound on TV and in shops, such as the cute, but mean eyed Power Puff range of girls dolls, or the Pokemon cartoons, using mini wars to win through.
In the children's film Matilda, this mixing of good and evil was very subtle. Here was this sad down trodden waif Matilda, supremely intelligent but totally neglected by her dumb parents. In her loneliness she discovers that her anger produces magic and she can blow up the TV with the powers of her mind. She refines this skill and uses it to seek revenge on a wicked head mistress, who eventually is so spooked that she runs off, terrified, and Matilda lives happily ever after. But because Matilda is portrayed as innocent and vulnerable and the magical scenes funny, and exciting the viewer,( the child,) fails to notice that the good winning over evil story line has been achieved in a negative way. This isn't a truthful message to give children, especially as dabbling with magic doesn't leave the practitioner unscarred, but instead can cause great harm, and damage them spiritually.
Similarly, Harry Potter is a poor ill treated orphan, ( and we all feel for the underdog) a wizard by birth who has natural powers. His parents are killed by an evil wizard Voldemort, who seeks eternal revenge on Harry for nearly destroying him. Harry is fostered by a horrid family, but eventually goes to a witch school that gives lessons in developing witchcraft. He makes friends, is taught by witchy teachers and comes up against greater evil.
Because the story line is again good winning over evil, the viewer forgets that Harry Potter is dabbling with evil in the first place, and that the use of magic is portrayed as justifiable if you're the underdog. It is this clever storyline which has allowed the public to let their children idolise a hero who dabbles with the occult.
It is also worth thinking about the climate in which Harry Potter has arrived. Children have for years now been fed a diet heavy with fantasy, peppered with negative content. They have also grown up in a society that has become increasingly violent and debased. Many parents struggle to control their children, and newspapers report stories of teachers kicked and battered by pupils.
Perhaps in comparison to the horror available, Harry Potter looks innocuous, although the author has warned that subsequent novels would be darker and of course, who will be able to deny their children these after having allowed them to read the first books? How far will these books go into black magic before people realise what is happening? There will inevitably be copy-cat novelists, and as the demand for this type of literature expands, young people may be drawn towards other authors of books on witchcraft or the occult. It seems like J.K Rowling is leading us all down her garden path.
People may laugh when you say that Harry Potter is evil, as if you are really losing your grip on reality. But the reality is that our children's minds are being manipulated, and they need spiritual teaching at the moment, not lessons in witchcraft.
Copyright 2005 Pippa Ball, The Erasmus Foundation.
The Erasmus Foundation, Moat House, Banyards Green, Laxfield, Suffolk. IP13 8ER. Tel: 01986 798682.