The "Not-So-Wonderful" World of Harry Potter
Student Research Paper by Annabelle Means
“Wingardium Leviosa!” These classic words from the Harry Potter series are enough to turn the heads of fans all around the globe. Harry Potter, through the years of his childhood at Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft And Wizardry, learns various spells and incantations, eventually confronting the villain, Lord Voldemort. Although this series is growing increasingly popular as the years wear on, the question for Christians remains: should they have anything to do with this witchcraft-oriented story and movies? Though Christian fans of the series often claim Harry Potter promotes good morals, this series goes against God’s commands, endorses witchcraft outside the books, and encourages inclusivity toward witches and LGBTQ people, instead of calling attention to their behavior.
The Harry Potter books dominated the New York Times Bestsellers list for years with over 100 million sales. The series was pegged by Warner Bros and brought to life on movie screens worldwide, becoming one of the most famous film franchises in history. Not only do non-Christians enjoy the series, but Christians as well. Christian publication WORLD magazine, May 29, 1999 issue states Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s stone was “a delight… with a surprising bit of depth.” Alan Jacobs, Wheaton College professor, determines that the Harry Potter stories endorse “…a struggle between good and evil… There is in books like this the possibility for serious moral reflection.”
However, although many Christians endorse and enjoy it, Harry Potter supports witchcraft, and it does so blatantly, directly defying God’s commandments in multiple passages of the Bible. Perhaps the most apparent and well known is Deuteronomy 18:10-12. “There shall be not be found among you anyone who makes his son or daughter pass through fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.” At different times in these books, the characters “pass through fire,” and take classes called “Divination” and “Charms”. This series is a straight denial of God’s commands, prompting the question: Would He really want His people to be involved with it? Nor is this the only Bible passage prohibiting witchcraft. In Galatians 5:20-21, those who practice sorcery are promised they will not enter the kingdom of God and in Revelation 21:8 sorcerers are said to have their place in Hell. Is it a good idea for Christians to read and condone things God hates?
Not only do these books challenge written Scripture in fiction but they encourage witchcraft in real life. Emma Watson, actress of the girl witch Hermione in the Harry Potter movies, made a statement on her Instagram account, April 15, 2023. “Thank you to the witches in my coven who were so pivotal in helping me arrive at who and where I am now”. She went on to name said witches and encourage them. “You are my Avengers…It takes a village, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise,” she affirmed. Nor is this the first time she’s given a public commendation to witches: “I’m here for all witches,” she averred at the 2022 BAFTA awards, giving a rather jaundiced jab at J.K. Rowling’s conviction that trans-gender women aren’t the same as biological women. The question is, could growing up playing a witch in the Harry Potter movies have given her a positive inclination toward witches to the point of calling them her Avengers? “Making that connection doesn’t seem like a huge leap to me,” Adam Holz of Focus on the Family suggests.
This isn’t the only instance of the books’ influence, but one of many. “I wish I could do magic! If I could I would be… a necromancer,” thirteen year old Gloria says. “I dream about being a witch so I could get revenge on a few people,” Rebecca, twelve years old, declares. These books have abolished the time when little girls wanted to be fairy-tale princesses and they have ushered in a time of necromancy and witchcraft. Even J.K. Rowling, author of the series, admits the sway her books cause is not altogether good. In a Newsweek interview, she admits as much. “I get letters from children addressed to Professor Dumbledore and it’s not a joke, begging to be let into Hogwarts.” Great Britain’s Pagan Federation is pleased. “Although it refuses to admit members under eighteen years of age, it deals with an average of one hundred inquiries a month from youngsters” (Kjos) Andy Norfolk, the Federation’s media officer, informs us, “Every time an article on witchcraft or paganism appears, we have a huge surge in calls, mostly from young girls.” How many of these girls were influenced by the glorification of the dark arts by Harry Potter?
Some say the books encourage reading, which is a good thing in this age of iPads and tablet time. Children need to read for brain growth and general knowledge. However, does this mean the quality of what they read goes out the window? What children read has a huge effect on their brains and the way they form opinions. And perhaps more importantly, it affects how they think of themselves. One group of researchers studying Harry Potter and Twilight, a popular series about teenage vampires, found that readers, “psychologically become part of a group described within the narrative”. (Braincraft 3:30-3:55) This could be a good thing in some cases, but surely not when it comes to children imagining themselves practicing the dark arts or drinking the blood of others - or even when it comes to children looking more sympathetically on those who do.
After the last Harry Potter movie came out, real witches and wizards began to speak out in public, saying the series has worked to make the general population more accepting toward them. “I have seen a definite change in attitudes towards magic and being a witch,” Jade, a witch and mom who was once criticized for letting her kids dress up as witches and wizards for school, now affirms with pleasure.
Harry Potter has been scientifically proven to lead to more accepting behavior toward LGBTQ+ participants. According to a study done by the Crane Center For Early Childhood Research And Policy, researchers found, along with improved attitudes toward immigrants and refugees, there was also“A significant association between reading Harry Potter novels and having more positive attitudes toward gay and lesbian individuals, but only for students who identified with Harry Potter.”
PBS gave a five minute documentary, stating why we should read Harry Potter. The main reason it gives is that Harry Potter, through the main characters showing empathy to different kinds of people, “improves attitudes toward stigmatized groups, including immigrants and LGBTQ people.” Later it explains a test that concluded “Those who read the most Harry Potter books and related to Harry were more open towards LGBTQ people.”
In 1st Corinthians 5, Paul speaks of a man committing a heinous sin. Instead of showing the man he was sinning, the Corinthians grew proud and puffed up that they were so tolerant of the sin. Paul says in 1st Corinthians 5:2 “And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from you.” Christians are not supposed to be tolerant of sin, but rather are supposed to put it away from them. “Your glorying is no good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?” (1st Corinthians 5:6) A little sin can encourage the whole church to go down that road. Intolerance of sin is not only for the good of the church, but for the sinner as well. If he isn’t shown he’s sinning, he won’t be pushed to change his ways. The Harry Potter series would see them accepted in this life, only to die forever in the next. While love for thy neighbor is always commanded, Christians exhibiting inclusive behavior toward LGBTQ lifestyles is harmful for all parties.
In the end, Harry Potter flies in the face of God and ignores His commands in passages of scripture like Deuteronomy 18:10-12 and Revelation 21:8. It endorses witchcraft by glorifying it in the eyes of children under the guise of innocent literature. It encourages including LGBTQ people and witches through the constant use of “empathetic behavior” by Harry and his friends. Although this series may seem innocent enough, it is a wolf in sheep’s clothing and the negative changes it is wreaking on society are already visible.
The only way these trends can be reversed is if the Harry Potter books cease to be read and supported. Future generations may be saved from the dangers of witchcraft if people stop reading the books now. Christians are called to stand up against influences like Harry Potter that drag children down into witchcraft and all that it entails.
Works Cited
Holz, Adam. "“The Rise of Witchcraft and Popular Culture: Is There a Connection?”. Focus on the Family, 10 Oct. 2024, www.focusonthefamily.com/parenting/the-rise-of-witchcraft-popular-culture-is-there-a-connection/.
Hux, Clete. "Against Heresies: Harry Potter and Witchcraft." Apologetics Research Center, 29 Jan. 2024, arcapologetics.org/against-heresies-harry-potter-and-witchcraft/.
Kjos, Berit. "Harry Potter Lures Kids to Witchcraft (With Praise from Christian Leaders). Koinonia House, 1 Oct. 2001, www.khouse.org/personal_update/articles/2000/harry-potter-lures-kids-witchcraft-praise-christian-leaders.
The Bible. NKJV, Thomas Nelson, 1982.
McDade-Montez, Elizabeth . "Supporting Diversity & Inclusion: Harry Potter’S Greatest Spell." Crane Center, 14 Nov. 2018, crane.osu.edu/our-work/supporting-diversity-inclusion-harry-potters-greatest-spell/.
"Why Everyone Should Read Harry Potter." Www.PBS.Org, uploaded by PBS Braincraft, 27 Jun. 2018, www.pbs.org/video/why-everybody-should-read-harry-potter-gyc4ro/.
Vezzali, Loris, et al “the greatest magic of Harry Potter: Reducing Prejudice” Journal of Applied Social Psychology 2015, pp 110, google scholar,
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