“Harry Potter and the Bible?” 
2 Timothy 3:10-16 and Mark 10: 13-16  

               A Scottish Proverb says “Open Confession is good for the soul” – so here goes! No, it’s not going to be one of those Oprah type confessions. Rather I am simply confessing to a love affair with the Harry Potter books. Not only have I read them all at least once but also I have listened to them read by Jim Dale, the Tony award winning actor, who uses a different voice for each character.

I am, of course, keenly aware of the so-called “Christian critics” of the Potter series. These critics see in the books the glorification of witchcraft and pagan idolatry. Typical of their criticism are these words from a website called ChristianAnswers.net “The problem [with the Potter books] is, witchcraft is not fantasy; it is a sinful reality in our world.” To be frank I simply do not share these or any of their other concerns or criticisms.

First of all, any books that entice us -- young and old alike -- to read are a good thing. But I am also not troubled by the fantasy in these books. If fantasy and witchcraft are taboo then what of Shakespeare’s play “A Mid Summer’s Night Dream”, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm? Our library collections would certainly be limited and our lives barren if we ignored the joys of fantasy and imagination.

            Five years ago while on an overnight shift as a Chaplin intern I walked down the hall of a ward at the Beverly Hospital. It was after 10 PM and virtually every room was dark as the patients tried to get a little rest. But one light was on. I walked past that room thinking the light would go out soon and I didn’t want to bother the person in that bed. But when I returned a while later the light was still on. I thought perhaps someone was having a hard time sleeping and might want to talk. So I went in and introduced myself as a chaplain intern. It was pretty clear -- having heard who I was -- that he did not want to talk with me. But before I left, I causally asked him what he was reading and he said “the latest Harry Potter book.” To which I responded how much I liked it. He said, “Really, you’ve read it – I would not have expected you to have read it or liked it.” His expectation it turned out came from the fact that my chaplain intern colleagues who had visited him earlier that day were from a very conservative seminary and viewed the Harry Potter books with grave misgivings. The patient had assumed I shared these reservations about the books.

Well, we began to talk about the Potter books and before you knew it we were talking about those important things on his mind -- the meaning of life, human nature, faith, and suffering. J.K. Rowling’s books served as a wonderful vehicle to open up our discussion. Neither of us for a moment thought Rowling’s wonderfully clever stories were real but we did recognize their perceptiveness and, indeed, the truth to be found in them.

C.S. Lewis the author of the Chronicles of Narnia, another wonderful fantasy book series, talks about his books dealing with what he calls “sub Christian values”. I think what he means by that term are those foundational values and principles that help to make up our faith -- values and principles that are reflected in the stories, poems and histories in the bible.  

We like Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger because they are clever, funny and brave. They can do really cool stuff – like ride flying brooms, play quidditch, cast spells, dis-apparate, be in two places at once, and many other amazing things. They are people we would like to know and hang out with.  But even more we admire them because of their character and their values – the things that are important to them. They care deeply for and about each other. In all the books I can’t remember them really ever caring about having things – though Harry was pleased certainly by the unexpected gift of a special flying broom called a Nimbus 2000. On the other hand how many times does one of these three risk his or her life to protect another? Ron and Hermione choose without hesitation to drop out of Hogwarts school and join Harry on his dangerous final journey to find the Deadly Hallows. Aren’t they a vivid example of true friendship, showing us what it means to love our neighbor as ourselves?  And think about how Harry treats his enemies. Time again he simply stuns an enemy rather than hurt him or her.  Much as Harry dislikes Draco Malfoy, he never really tries to hurt him and even saves his life at the end. When we read about these three friends we see that forgiveness is more important than getting even.

Harry’s world is one in which evil and good vie for dominance – as Voldamort seeks to create a new order.  And the evil in Harry’s world – mistreating those who are different (squibs -- those witches and wizards born without magical powers, house elves and muggles (people not part of the wizard world)) – is much like the evil in the bible and in our own world. Too often others are mistreated or shunned because they are different -- sometimes because they are of another nationality or religion, or because they are poor or socially unacceptable or because they have different color skin. But that is not how Harry, Hermione and Ron act.   Remember Hermione’s efforts to obtain better rights for the house elves and Harry’s profound sadness when Dobby the house elf, who helps Harry so many time, dies saving Harry. These imaginary but profoundly real characters -- Harry, Ron, Hermione, Hagrid, and Dumbledore -- serve to remind us that our neighbors come in an endless variety of forms and shapes. 

In this magical world we see that we should not judge people too hastily or based on superficial appearance. Luna Lovegood appears initially simply to be a strange weird girl disconnected from reality – the nerdiest of the nerds. Yet by the end she is revealed to be a wonderfully sensitive young woman, who understand Harry’s painful feelings about the loss of his parents as no one else.  And she is endowed with great courage to pursue justice and good against overwhelming odds. These are truly wonderful and inspiring books and also happen to be great fun.

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Moments ago we gave our 4^th graders their own bibles. Most people here -- somewhere have their own bible – some even have the one they received years ago on a Sunday like this. It is a book worth reading. The bible, I submit, has all the elements of the Harry Potter books. It has great stories and wonderful characters – Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Goliath, Rebecca, Leah, Ruth, Job, Joshua, Joseph, Peter, Paul and of course Jesus.  In it are stories of great deeds, marches across the desert, of human kindness, of  struggles against evil, and of feats of amazing courage. It contains not only wonderful stories but histories of Kings and queens and of saints and sinners. It contains laws, poems, and songs too.

It is everything that the Potter series is and much more. The Potter books are the product of the wonderfully creative imagination of J. K. Rowling. The bible is the product of hundreds of people attempting to write about God’s presence and love for us and all creation. While some of it is myth and imagination, unlike Harry Potter it springs from real events. The Israelites were a real people. David was a real person and a King. Peter and Paul were real disciples and there was a real man named Jesus. The Bible is not a history per se but it is not make believe. It has as no other book changed the world and people’s lives. We will love the Potter stories and we will reread them often but they will not change history. The power of the Bible is that the faith it reports on is alive. It is in this church. Thousands of years after much of it was written the Bible still changes lives because it contains and reflects -- albeit through the voices of human being -- the word, if not the actual words, of God.

One final word. Books like the Harry Potter series, The Chronicles of Narnia and other great literature have a real place in our exploration of faith. Unlike my friends on the more conservative end of the religious spectrum I am not afraid of what such books can do but delighted by how they can focus us on important aspects of faith. Let me give you one illustration. I like the Harry Potter books because they remind me why we are told in scripture to receive the Kingdom of God like a child. Who are the heroes of the Harry Potter stories? It is the young people. Oh to be sure Dumbledore, McGonagall, Hagrid, Lupin and many other adults are decent and admirable. But the key characters are the young people. They are the ones who see with the most clarity what is important and needs to be done. They are not persuaded, as the adults are, that the good can’t be achieved -- that the odds are too great against them. They are not bogged down by an endless   list of “buts” and “what ifs”.

Harry, Ron and Hermione do not over intellectualize and endlessly weigh and analyze. Likewise, they are not jaded and cynical from past trials and tribulations.  And so I thank   J. K Rowling for this illustration– perhaps not knowingly -- of what it means to receive faith like a child.  Aren’t we challenged to embrace faith, accept it and use it? It is in the end a matter of belief and trust, not proof and analysis. Of course the Harry Potter series is not a sacred text. But along with much of good literature, it has an important role, as an aid in our lives, as we seek to embrace and live in faith. But don’t forget the Bible. It too is a great a read and even more a profound guide. Open it up again -- you might be surprised at how much there is to find there—inspiration, comfort, joy, adventure and laughter.  Amen