I’ve Got A Question…

Is Harry Potter OK For My Kids?

During this summer we have been doing a series of discussions centered on questions you have presented.  We’ve looked at some pretty weighty subjects, and some controversial issues, like eternal security, the nature and importance of baptism, the eternal state of babies or young children who die, and how to effectively share the gospel with family and friends.  My son John made the observation a couple of weeks ago that in many of these discussions, we haven’t actually answered anything, but presented the various outlooks on them, and then a personal opinion…and he is right!  I suppose that comes with the territory, doesn’t it?  If the answers to these questions were ironclad, obvious, and clear, they would no longer be questions, would they?  The fact that they are, indeed, uncertain; that there are a variety of opinions within Christian circles about them, makes them the kind of issues that we have lingering questions and different interpretations about.

Today is, in many respects, no different.  The question that comes before us today is, “Is Harry Potter OK for my kids?”  The Harry Potter series of books, written by and English woman named JK Rowling, and films those books have spawned, have been a phenomenon since the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, was released in 1997.  It won virtually every children’s book award possible that year and in the years to follow, and was made into a film in 2001.  The series is now projected to include seven-volumes, and the films of each one are in the works even before the last book’s title has been revealed.

The books center around young Harry Potter, who was born to parents who were wizards. A rival, evil wizard killed both parents and tried to kill Harry. Some good wizards took baby Harry to live with his Aunt & Uncle, who were non-magical people, or “muggles.” They mistreat Harry and make him live in a tiny room under the stairs for eleven years until he is old enough to enter Hogwarts School of Wizardry (which is run by the same good wizards--though as with everything in life, some evil does slip in). Each book in the series will tell the story of one year of training at Hogwarts, laced with encounters with evil wizards along the way.

The world loves it!  The Harry Potter books have developed a whole new generation of young children who actually read.  The Potter books are large, involved novels – something that most experts predicted would never appeal to the video game/DVD/iPod culture of our children.  But children, young children, are snapping up these 300- to 700-page books and reading them in a matter of a few days!  School teachers are thrilled that their students are reading – schools have developed curriculum that includes the books.  Parents love it that their kids will actually put down the game controller, and the remote and read a book.  It seems a great move in a positive direction in so many ways. 

In my research on this topic, I have come across articles and even sermons that join in the “praise of Potter” – encouraging Christians to find ways to bridge the stories into life lessons for children – to use the popularity of the books, and the conflict of good and evil within them, as an opening to engage the culture in a discussion of Spiritual matters.  My daughter, at Bible College, had the first book as required reading in one of her classes for that very reason. 

That point of view has some validity, and some Scriptural basis, as we will see in a moment.

On the other hand, I have found some scathing articles, sermons and other resources warning of the danger of these books.  These authors tell of the glorification of sorcery, the growth in the occult religion of Wicca across England, Europe and in the United States since the books and films were released.  In England, for example, the Pagan Federation has been barraged by inquiries about Wicca, mostly from teenage girls.  The group has appointed a “youth officer” whose primary responsibility will be to respond to Harry Potter fans who want to know how to be become witches. They point out that with shows like Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the youth of today are seeking out more information to satisfy their curiosity about the occult. And many are turning to witchcraft in hopes of better controlling their lives and futures.  Whenever the topic of a new Harry Potter book is in the news, local talk shows receive calls from conservative Christians warning of the evil content, and the desire of Satan to steal away the souls of our youth.

Obviously there is a degree of valid concern regarding this matter, and Scriptural guidelines to follow. 

I don’t present both sides of the issue because I am indecisive myself, or afraid to take a stand – but because I want you to wrestle with the issues in your own heart.  It is far more important that each of us has seen the Scriptural guidelines and reached a decision than that we conformed to some standards set arbitrarily by a pastor or church leader.  Each of us needs to dig in and grapple with the issues involved – because the underlying issue here is vitally important to you – even if you never have the opportunity to raise a child.  As I see it, the decision to expose a child to Harry Potter is not isolated.  It is based on far deeper convictions that affect many areas of life including parenting, education, lifestyle and personal boundaries, and as such, the Scriptures have plenty to say about it.

Let’s deal with the concerns about the occult content first.  The Bible clearly and repeatedly states that God detests witchcraft and sorcery. Fortune telling and witchcraft, which were common among the pagan nations, were expressly forbidden among God’s people.

The reality of witchcraft and mediums is never questioned in the Bible. Sorcery or witchcraft is forbidden in the Law of Moses (Ex 22:18; Deut 18:10). Sorcery was apparently practiced by the worst of the kings of Israel and Judah (2 Kings 9:22; 2 Chron 33:6).  Perhaps most widely known is the story from I Sam 28:3-9, which describes the witch at En Dor whom King Saul engaged to conduct a séance and bring up the spirit of Samuel.  In two places the prophet Isaiah hinted that consulting mediums might be a kind of ventriloquism (8:19; 29:4) - Satan speaking through his evil servants. All the Major Prophets condemned witchcraft and sorcery (Isa 44:25; Jer 27:9; 29:8; Ezek 13:9).

The Bible also talks about “Conjuring Spells.” This phrase, also translated as “charm,” appears in Deut 18:11, once in the Psalms (58:5), and twice in Isaiah (47:9,12).  In the Deuteronomy passage, it is listed among “the abominations of those nations” that the people of Israel were to destroy.  Verse 12 of that chapter reads, “For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord drives them out from before you.”  It was because these nations were involved in the occult that God had the nation of Israel destroy them.

Obviously, we’re dealing with far more than just a child’s fantasy – witchcraft, magic, spells and sorcery are real, powerful forces in our world.  Frank Caliendo is a comedian who says in one of his bits that Bill Clinton would stand right in front of you and say, “I am not here!”  Well, I don’t know about Clinton, but I do know that Satan tries to do that very thing.   He is a real and very powerful enemy, and his greatest deception it to convince us that he is not here at all. But the reality is that he is here, prowling around like a lion, looking for those he can devour.  To dismiss him, and to trivialize his power is to ignore the dangerous truth.  If we claim to be children of God, disciples of Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit, then we just can’t allow him free access into our lives our homes or the lives of our children.

His efforts are not limited to Harry Potter, however.  To simply rush home, and take your kids Harry Potter books or videos and burn them, is not the answer.  Your kids are surrounded by Satan’s efforts to lure them into his deception.  Have you sat down with your kids lately and watched cartoons?  They’ve come a long way from The Road Runner and Willey Coyote!  Most of the animation of afternoon or Saturday morning television is centered on Buddhist or Hindu theology – primarily Buddhism.  And it’s not hidden – it’s blatant and obvious!  Calling on ancestors for guidance and assistance, quoting Buddhist teachings – these programs are nothing short of introduction and indoctrination classes.  I’d love to see how long a children’s program that was as aggressively Christian would last on any network – you could calculate it with an egg timer!

But this issue goes beyond the television – many of the games that are developed for Nintendo, Xbox and other systems are steeped in mystical dogma.  Major motion pictures are often thinly veiled propaganda tools to promote new age ideals, and display an amazing contempt for Christians and Christian values.

And it goes beyond the realm of entertainment.  Efforts to deceive our kids are a part of the curriculum in most school districts, where revisionist history and political correctness have led to what can only be called a “Christian apartheid.”  Anything is admissible except Christianity.  References to our Christian heritage are erased from textbooks, and the right to express opinions is limited only to those who do not express Christian thoughts.  The Board of Regents at UW Madison will defend the right of a professor to claim that our own government staged the attacks of September 11, 2001, because he has “free speech rights,” but a girl making a commencement address at her high school had the microphone turned off when she wanted to give thanks to “her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!”

So what do we do?  Do we pull our kids from the schools, unplug our televisions, move to the outback somewhere, and remove ourselves from the threat?  Some have done just that.  But in doing so, they ignore the teaching of Jesus.  He told us that we are to be “salt” and “light” in the world.  Salt has no effect if it is not taken out of the saltshaker and integrated into the other ingredients.  Light has the ability to spread itself around a room without being weekend in the process.  Jesus told us that we are to be “in the world, but not of the world.”  We are challenged by His words and His example to find the delicate balance between loving and engaging the world, while not being corrupted by it. 

In I Corinthians chapters 8 through ten, Paul deals with the issue of spiritual liberty.  The issue being dealt with there centered primarily on food that had been offered to idols.  Some Christians, realizing that idols are nothing more than images made by men, and that there is only one God, felt completely at liberty to purchase the meat at the temples, which was less expensive that then meat at the markets.  They also saw no problem with eating meat with non-Christian friends who served this sacrificial meat.  Other Christians, who had perhaps at one time been involved in that very idol worship, were offended by this contact with the world, and felt it was wrong.  It’s really not all that unlike the issue today of alcohol, or which movies to attend, or what books to allow our children to read.  Some are offended by any contact with the world, others do not see the offense.  So Paul addressed the issue to prevent a split in the church, and in so doing he gives us guidelines to use. 

We’re not going to go through the whole of Paul’s logic – but if you are interested, I encourage you to read I Corinthians 8-10 this week.  In a nutshell, Paul explains that as a Christian, we have been freed from the power of Satan’s deception.  In fact, Paul makes a remarkable statement.  Turn with me to it – I Corinthians 10:23.  He says, several times, “Everything is permissible!”  We have complete freedom in Christ!  Our standing before God is not linked to following a set of rules.  My standing before Christ is not determined by the absence of beer in my refrigerator or R rated movies on my shelf – I am a child of God because Jesus paid the price for my sins on the cross!  I don’t have to worry about some man-made rules any longer!  It was, in fact, that very attitude that got Jesus into trouble with the religious leaders of His day wasn’t it?  They had rules about washing hands, and touching unclean people, and eating with “sinners.”  They had “standards” that they lived up to, and expected other “godly” people to meet as well.  Jesus was free from those rules – and so are you and I if we are His disciples.

But Paul points out that along with that freedom comes responsibility.  Paul follows up that statement that “Everything is permissible,” with qualifying statements: 

“Everything is permissible” - but not everything is beneficial.  “Everything is permissible” - but not everything is constructive.  Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

Over in chapter 8, Paul tells the Corinthian believers that they can eat whatever they want, “But,” he says in verse 9, “be careful that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.”  We do have freedom in Christ, but we a greater responsibility to behave in a responsible manner.  Is a believer permitted to have alcohol?  Yes, as long as the alcohol is not an issue of control with him, and it would be wrong to serve alcohol to a believer who is a recovering alcoholic.  Can a Christian go to movies, read secular novels, listen to contemporary music?  Yes they can – but that freedom must pass through the filter of our responsibility before God to live lives that please Him, and our responsibility to others to draw them to Christ, and to encourage their growth in Him.  Paul makes it very clear that his own behavior was not driven by some set of rules –but by the needs of the people around him.  His primary goal was to influence people toward Jesus Christ. 

In a setting of Gentiles, he would eat like a Gentile; in a Jewish setting, strictly kosher foods – was he being a hypocrite?  No – he was being responsible.  He didn’t want to do anything to prevent someone from coming to Christ or growing in their faith.  To a Jewish audience, Paul would draw on the Old Testament writings for his sermons.  In Athens, before the leading thinkers of his day, Paul quoted Greek poets, philosophers and religious leaders to lead people to Christ. 

In our discussion today, these same principles apply.  Will my actions cause a weaker brother to stumble in their faith?  Will my actions prevent someone from drawing nearer to Christ?  When dealing with our own children, we need to make those decisions carefully.  Some of us will decide that it is necessary to send our children to Christian schools, or home school them, while others will determine that they want their kids to grow up facing the challenges and learning to defend the faith in the battlefield.  Some will determine to protect their children from the influences of the cartoons and games we talked about – others will want to point out the subtleties of the enemy and make their kids aware of the truth.  I don’t believe there is one right answer – but I do know that there are plenty of wrong answers – like ignorance, neglect and denial. 

You may choose to let your kids read Harry Potter – but can’t abdicate your responsibility to make them aware of the realities of Spiritual Warfare.  You may choose to send your kids to public school, but you cannot choose to neglect their spiritual education (even if you send them to a Christian school – it’s still your job first!)  You may choose to have no television in your home at all, or strictly limit the content that is watched, but you cannot bury your head in the sand about the fact that your child is going to be exposed to challenges to their faith and values along life’s journey.  We have a responsibility to our children and to our world to be, in Jesus’ words, “as shrewd as snakes, and as innocent as doves” – aware of the world and its pollution, alert to its schemes, but unspoiled by it. 

Personally, I think there are alternatives that are every bit as engaging as Potter – like CS Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, or JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series, or Gilbert Morris’ Seven Sleepers.  They present the battle of good and evil without blurring the lines between the two as Potter does, and from a Christian point of view.  Our kids have read all of those and more. 

Certainly maturity has a lot to do with your decision.  An 8 year old is going to be affected by what he reads differently than a 10 year old, or 12 year old.  Each parent must make these decisions based on the physical, emotional and spiritual maturity of their children, and they must make their decision, as Paul says repeatedly in I Corinthians 8-10, with a clear conscience.