Can a Christian like Harry Potter?

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My daughter and I like Harry Potter. We find these books and movies to be wonderful fantasy tales. I didn’t let my daughter watch any of the movies or read any of the books until after she was 13. Then we watched the movie together and read the books together. It gave us a fun activity to do together and she was old enough to discuss what she was seeing. One of the things we enjoy is talking about the things that are in the books that aren’t in the movies. My daughter hates reading but will pick up a 600 – 800 page Harry Potter book and read it voluntarily. She simple doesn’t read much of anything that she isn’t forced to read. So, I love that she will read these books.

I know a lot of Christians will not read Harry Potter or go to the movies. These books present a clear picture of the battle between good and evil. However, they support the use of magic and that is very controversial in the Christian community. I think you can read Harry Potter for the fictional story. I don’t think that reading Harry Potter will lead me to attempt to practice witchcraft. The Christian position on that is quite clear. A Christian should never participate in such things. Reading Harry Potter is not the same thing as practicing witchcraft and it is not promoting the practice of witchcraft to others.

There are lots of things you can use from the Harry Potter books/movies as conversation starters with your children or friends.

Remember when Harry Potter looked into the Mirror of Erised and saw his parents. Then Ron looked into the mirror and he saw himself as a Quidditch captain. The mirror revealed the deepest desires of their hearts. What would you see if you looked into the mirror?

As I read the Harry Potter books, I saw a young boy in need of love and encouragement. His parents had died and the Aunt and Uncle that raised him, neglected him. They certainly didn’t show him any love. Have there been times in your life when the people you depended on failed you? Times when you needed love and encouragement and you couldn’t find any?

Harry finally finds someone he can trust. That person is Dumbledore. Dumbledore is trustworthy, good, smart, and loving. He serves as a mentor to Harry. Are there any “Harrys” in your life that need mentoring? Look around and reach out to someone. Make a difference in their lives – the way Dumbledore did for Harry.

I encourage everyone to obey God’s Word and it clearly states that we are not to practice witchcraft, divination, and sorcery. In matters like reading a Harry Potter book, I feel that is a personal decision. There are lots of discussions on whether this is OK but the truth of the matter is that the Bible does not say that we cannot read a fictional story about magic. This simply remains a matter of personal discretion.

That's my opinion - I welcome yours.
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