Harry Potter books????

[lil_lady]

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about the Harry Potter books. A lot of kids like the books and the movies a lot, as i used to. ( i liked the books but not the movies because i never watched any of them.) But then i began hearing stories and reading articles about how it dealt a lot with the occult. I never noticed it, but i have very little knowledge of the occult. Are these books bad and sinful to read or are they just innocent children books? Thanks

 

[Pro-Life_Teen]

In my opinion, it’s a story. A fantasy.

Yeah, Rowling used Latin in the spells and she looked up mythologies, but it’s a story. People in the occult don’t have school and they don’t have wands with unicorn hairs in them.

I don’t find anything wrong in the books, save maybe the divination class.

 

[Monarchy]

What? Ten hours on a post about HP and only one response? I’m Shocked. Harry Potter is a story, pure and simple. J.K. Rowling is not a witch herself, nor is she trying to convert anyone. She has stated herself (I’m paraphrasing here) that out of all the fans she has met, she has yet to have someone come up and tell her that they have become a witch. The spells in harry potter are just latin, generaly to describe what they do. Ergo, Crucio is latin means to torture, etc. and in HP the spell causes extreme pain (and the use of such in the books is a one way ticket to prison). The spell Lumos (which causes light to come out of the wand) is from the Latin meaning for light or bright,etc…

 

[Brain]

fiction is fiction, reality is reality. if parents do their job, the kids can tell the difference. HP is fiction and nothing more.

 

[tee_eff_em]

Monarchy:

The spells in harry potter are just latin, generaly to describe what they do. Ergo, Crucio is latin means to torture, etc. and in HP the spell causes extreme pain (and the use of such in the books is a one way ticket to prison).

And to bring in a little more Catholic content: Note that *crucio,cruciare * “to torture” is derived from crux,crucis * “cross”, the Roman instrument of torture. Even today when we complain of “excruciating” pain we are likening our pain to that “as if from the cross”.

(* To make fun of another book: Dan Brown makes this derivation backwards in The Da Vinci Code, as if the word for cross comes from the word for torture – I laughed out loud when I read that )

tee

 

[puzzleannie]

there are several other threads on this topic, on which many of us have already given an opinion, try a search for more info

 

[JMJ_Pinoy]

I love the HP books and movies. The USCCB has given Harry Potter the thumbs up, as do I.

 

[preyoflove]

lil_lady:

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about the Harry Potter books. A lot of kids like the books and the movies a lot, as i used to. ( i liked the books but not the movies because i never watched any of them.) But then i began hearing stories and reading articles about how it dealt a lot with the occult. I never noticed it, but i have very little knowledge of the occult. Are these books bad and sinful to read or are they just innocent children books? Thanks

Peace be to you!

After reading the others’ posts here, could I interest you into listening to Programs No. 33 and 34 of the “The Abundant Life” show in the Audio Library of the EWTN official website. Click here: ewtn.com/vondemand/audio/seriessearchprog.asp?pgnu=2&SeriesID=842371927

Program 33 is “Frightening Fantasies: The Battle for Our Children’s Minds, Part I” and Program 34 is “Frightening Fantasies: The Battle for Our Children’s Minds, Part II”. Listen carefully to how hostess Johnnette Benkovic and her guest Steve Wood, Michael O’Brien and Vivian Dudro view Harry Potter books and movies.

Then, read this article from Catholic Answers: catholic.com/thisrock/2001/0107fea1sb.asp

God love you.

 

[jimmy]

lil_lady:

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about the Harry Potter books. A lot of kids like the books and the movies a lot, as i used to. ( i liked the books but not the movies because i never watched any of them.) But then i began hearing stories and reading articles about how it dealt a lot with the occult. I never noticed it, but i have very little knowledge of the occult. Are these books bad and sinful to read or are they just innocent children books? Thanks

You will get mixed answers on this forum. I have read each of the books so far and I have seen the movies. I liked them and I will probably read the last 2. I think that it is just a fictional story, and consequently not a sin to read.