P
phil19034
Guest
True… but his site is called “Preaching Friars”
- Status
A
adgloriam
Guest
It was a good humored remark. The poster I was engaging said she had found nothing wrong with the book, so ‘nihil obstat’. [Seems pretty obvious, goes without saying.]
M
mVitus
Guest
In anticipation of the objection, is there a way to verify that an imprimatur has in fact been granted. (For example, would YouTube take action against a video that faked one?)
Imprimatur: In accordance with Canon 827, permission to publish has been granted on August 21, 2012, by the Most Reverend Edward M. Rice, Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of St. Louis. Permission to publish is an indication that nothing contrary to Church teaching is contained in this work. It does not imply any endorsement of the opinions expressed in the publication; nor is any liability assumed by this permission.
(This from the first video’s description)
Imprimatur: In accordance with Canon 827, permission to publish has been granted on August 21, 2012, by the Most Reverend Edward M. Rice, Auxiliary Bishop, Archdiocese of St. Louis. Permission to publish is an indication that nothing contrary to Church teaching is contained in this work. It does not imply any endorsement of the opinions expressed in the publication; nor is any liability assumed by this permission.
(This from the first video’s description)
Last edited:
A
adgloriam
Guest
Well, I made that remark in honesty since I gave the issue some thought and also considered analyses presented in the video. I was left wondering if the protagonist was indeed an ordained religious, and in who’s name he spoke besides his own and to what ends. (The ends do seem sound, which would be to set aside theological speculation surrounding magic and give the subtle analyses that applies to the magic in HP. What does beg the question: Could JKR have walked that tight rope without making a mistake if it wasn’t her explicit intention to play with the legal limits between magic and occult? I’d say not…)
A
adgloriam
Guest
It’s the analyses of the narrator that reveals immorality since it’s the omniscient narrator who normally gives moral tone and comment. And quoting the hero HP would give more than sufficient uncharitable comments (contrary to what some posters here wish to portray as a flawless Christ-like hero.)
A
adgloriam
Guest
Nothing pretentious about it, not even for a moment. I actually enjoy literary critic as much as I enjoy literature and this post of yours was just lovely !!!
C
Catholicwife32
Guest
I’m sorry I came across as personally attacking you. I will refrain from using the word “you” in questions when I’m speaking generally of people. It has been my general experience that those who attack Harry Potter do not understand what the occult is.
And usually a misunderstanding of the occult leads people to indulging in it WHILE outwardly condemning pure fantasy things that are NOT the occult. It is this inability to accurately identify the occult that makes them more likely to indulge in Christian occultism while being preoccupied with innocent fantasy things.
I mean, Ariel in the little mermaid plucks petals off off a flower saying “He loves me. He loves me not.” If a child looks at that and decides to pluck the petals of a flower like that with the belief that it’ll give them real secret knowledge, did the little mermaid teach them the occult? Because it’s really the magical thinking, the superstition, that is what we’re referring to when we talk about the sin of the occult.
Harry Potter is a work of fiction and so long as kids understand it’s fiction, but most important, are cautioned from indulging in magical thinking (If I do this and this random thing happens, it means this. It’ll do this), then things are fine. The important thing is to remind kids that magic isn’t real. But demons CAN take superstitious beliefs and encourage them through performing a few tricks for you. Most of the time, they won’t.
C
Catholicwife32
Guest
Yes, and I still stand that I was misunderstood. I referred to people, not you until the questions. And I was not using “you” in the questions to refer to you on a personal level. They were examples of questions we should ask ourselves to discern if we are indulging in the occult or not.
A
adgloriam
Guest
Ok, still within the realm of literature the hardest thing for me in reading HP was actually the quality of the text. I mean, every page pains my palate, it just hurts, it hurts bad. [BUT!! The narrative is very catchy, like a thriller. The unfolding of the story does grip the attention.]
One of the authors I’ve read a lot, and is radically anti-catholic (I think several catholic circles condemned his work), is nobel laureate José Saramago whom a US critic named “the most gifted novelist alive in the world today”, and as “one of the last titans of an expiring literary genre”. Well, in terms of prose the said author did write at least one master-piece and these days I hardly settle for anything less in terms of quality, for the simple reason: life is to short to lose time with anything but the absolute best.
One of the authors I’ve read a lot, and is radically anti-catholic (I think several catholic circles condemned his work), is nobel laureate José Saramago whom a US critic named “the most gifted novelist alive in the world today”, and as “one of the last titans of an expiring literary genre”. Well, in terms of prose the said author did write at least one master-piece and these days I hardly settle for anything less in terms of quality, for the simple reason: life is to short to lose time with anything but the absolute best.
Last edited:
A
adgloriam
Guest
And I think your writing is just lovely.
C
Catholicwife32
Guest
Magic isn’t real per se. Demons are real though and can prey upon our superstitions. The occult is dangerous regardless of whether a demon decides to be involved or not.
W
Wesrock
Guest
You mean a villain is depicted as doing a vile thing? How abominable!runningdude:
The HP book I’m reading starts with a multiple homicide, quite the bit of children’s literature - some may deem that as immoral.
M
Melissa
Guest
It is not just “a character” in the story expressing the sentiment in question, it is the villain who did so. The villain in a story will often express sentiments which are, to be blunt, horrible and evil. Not that the author is in agreement with those sentiments, or holding up the villain as a positive example to be followed. It’s rather like a conversation that I had once with someone who was trying to argue that D&D is evil because there were “all those ugly and evil creatures” in the Monstrous Manual. But her argument deflated when I pointed out that the evil creatures were there to present a challenge to the players’ characters.
It can also be quoted from one of the books, and with more honesty to what the author is holding up as an ideal to be:
Those quotes were placed in the mouth of another character, Dumbledore, who–though imperfect–was on the side opposing evil.
And again, from the mouth of another character:
And those words, of course, were put into the mouth of the hero of the tale–Harry Potter, who spoke to the villain who was trying to murder him and trying to show a way to redemption (even though this was rejected by the villain, who continued on with his murderous intent but was felled by his own evil).
A
angel12
Guest
Fighting and defeating evil doesn’t sound Christian to you?
That is downright bizarre.
A
angel12
Guest
And for those who can’t tell the difference, I’d be far more concerned about them reading the rash of serial-killer books out there, than reading Harry Potter.
X
Xanthippe_Voorhees
Guest
Yep. Works like Darkly Dreaming Dexter have quite the following.LumineDiei:
And for those who can’t tell the difference, I’d be far more concerned about them reading the rash of serial-killer books out there, than reading Harry Potter.
R
Roguish
Guest
No, madam, the “sin of the occult” is not merely superstition. Please look at CCC 2117 if you’re interested in what the Church says about it. (It’s a 5-line paragraph, so I’m not asking much of you.) Superstition is a rather harmless thing, like not walking under ladders, or knocking on wood. Do the characters in HP limit themselves to that? Obviously not. The occult involves invoking real supernatural forces for your own aims. You claim that people who criticize HP don’t know what the occult is, but from your post I get the impression that you don’t know it.
Last edited:
S
Start
Guest
Christianity isn’t a fighting religion. If there is opposition it is in a more passive way.
L
Lee1
Guest
Thank you for your apology. I too apologise since I should have realised you’d made a mistake. Peace.
To the point then. I don’t have to know what the occult is to know that it promotes thoughts about the use of magic. This is un Catholic.
My doctor doesn’t have to have caught TB to treat it.
Catholics need to uphold their faith. How is a Catholic different from a humanist if he or she doesn’t live the gospel so to speak? These books are the thin end of the wedge, and wedges are used to open up gaps as powerful levers.
L
Lee1
Guest
You can’t be serious.
Since when has a Catholic been frightened by considering “what would Our Lord think?”
The only reason to be frightened by such a consideration is if you actually fear that you’re doing wrong!
Is yours a Catholic viewpoint?
Did God say to Moses when He gave him the Ten Commandments , “you’re not going to like these but you can take em or leave em.”
We are warned by Our Lord to be scared of the one who can kill the soul. If you practise fidelity to your Catholic faith you should have no reason to fear.
Since when has a Catholic been frightened by considering “what would Our Lord think?”
The only reason to be frightened by such a consideration is if you actually fear that you’re doing wrong!
Is yours a Catholic viewpoint?
Did God say to Moses when He gave him the Ten Commandments , “you’re not going to like these but you can take em or leave em.”
We are warned by Our Lord to be scared of the one who can kill the soul. If you practise fidelity to your Catholic faith you should have no reason to fear.
- Status