In light of Severus Snape's atrocious treatment of Harry Potter, not to mention the fact that he killed Albus Dumbledore, many fans wonder why Dumbledore trusted him and why Snape protected Harry, a boy he clearly hates, for the past six years.

I can't remember where I read this theory, but someone surmised that Snape may have made an Unbreakable Vow to protect Harry, which is why Dumbledore was certain of his loyalty and the reason he protected the boy wizard.

We know that in Book 6, Snape made an Unbreakable Vow with dark witch Narcissa Malfoy. Apparently, Snape vowed to kill Dumbledore and protect her teenaged son Draco if he were unable to do it. Because of the vow, he was forced to kill a man he obviously cared about and protect a rotten kid like Draco. The same could be said of Snape's protection of young Harry. I haven't fleshed this out yet; I just wanted to get these thoughts down.

Also floating around is the idea that Snape made a "general" Unbreakable Vow of loyalty to Dumbledore, but not specifically to protect Harry. Interesting…

Update: Here's another, way-better-than-mine review of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe over at Biblical Christianity.

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It was excellent! Better than Goblet of Fire.

I've just returned from seeing The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and I loved it from the opening scene to the closing.

The movie added a few scenes that weren't in the book, but it was still enjoyable for a purist like me. In fact, I think the WWII blitzkrieg opening, though not in the book, was very effective in establishing the characters and subsequent action.

All the young actors were good, especially the boy who played Edmund. He was appropriately naughty and heroic. Tilda Swinton as the White Witch gave me chills, and her seduction of and cruelty to Edmund were compelling. The musical score was hauntingly beautiful.

Is anyone here old enough to remember the movie Candleshoe? I think that was the first "English manor" kids movie I ever watched. British children's movies have a certain charm that American movies don't. The English accents, an air of formality, cavernous mansions, and dark and dreary scenery remind me of Agatha Christie’s “cozy” mysteries, some of my favorite books.

The Christian imagery is even more obvious on screen. In fact, you'd have to be completely ignorant of the Bible to miss it.

I give “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” a thumbs-up, and I can’t wait for the inevitable movie adaptations of the rest of C.S. Lewis’s Narnia books.

Related posts:

• Temptation, Disobedience, Forgiveness, and Redemption in Narnia
• ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ Premieres on Friday
• Christian Imagery in Narnia

(Disney image)

Addendum: Now this is a review!

Soundtrack review at Infuze Magazine's Narnia Blog.

I love theorizing about Harry Potter, and I'll blog about my "Who is R.A.B." theory later this week. Today I want to blog about an article I read in the Scotsman titled, "Will Harry meet his maker in final chapter?"

IT APPEARS that JK Rowling has dropped the biggest hint yet that the final Harry Potter book will spell the end for her boy wizard hero….

She said: "I contemplate the task with mixed feelings of excitement and dread, because I can't wait to get started, to tell the final part of the story and, at last, to answer all the questions."

Bloggers do it. Fans do it. Even newspaper journalists do it. We love to parse and dissect anything J.K. Rowling says about her books. Rowling's remarks give no indication to me that she plans to kill off Harry Potter, but just as Jim Dale's opinion fueled speculation, so has Rowling's hints.

The real focus of this post is the title of the story. We know that "meeting your maker" is a euphemism for death, but I think it's curious how the mention of "Harry's maker" hasn't sparked a discussion among Christian fans. In fact, I often wonder why Christians don't talk about the many references to God found in the books. Characters have been known to use words like "Lord" and "heaven," though there isn't any mention of religion per se.

What do you think about this? Have you ever discussed whether wizards and witches in Harry Potter believe in God?

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn….

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2)

Merry Christmas!

Update: Christmas at Hogwarts!

It's finally up. Part II of "Harry Potter and the Charmed Christians":

Scholars have debated the literary merits of J.K. Rowling’s books, but whether high- or low-brow literature, one thing is certain: Harry Potter is a cultural phenomenon that cannot be dismissed. For Christians concerned about the so-called occult aspects of the books, the Christian themes and symbols cannot be ignored.

As a former skeptic who has read the books, I can attest to the powerful Christian-themed elements. From characters’ names to plot formula, the series is replete with references to the salvation and redemption narratives and the unavoidable choice between what is right and what is wrong.

Read the rest.

The miracle of the Harry Potter series is that it keeps getting better. The genius of Ms. Rowling was her decision (probably never even seriously considered at the time) to follow Harry through his schooling. As a result, Harry's fans have never left him behind. The question is whether Ms. Rowling will be bound to him for life, as Arthur Conan Doyle was bound to Sherlock Holmes.

— Stephen King's 10 favorite books of 2005

Poor J.K. Rowling (in a figurative sense). She's always getting sideswiped by literary critics who think she's a bad writer or by Christians who think she's a witch.

A Reverend Mike Turner adds a new idea: J.K. Rowling is an inferior writer to C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien because "she has no understanding of holiness." He writes:

Holiness is a hard concept to grasp, especially in our secular world. Rudolph Otto, in his classical book on the subject, "The Idea of the Holy," said that behind all religious experience is the sense of awe and majesty that he called the numinous. This sense isn't an ordinary feeling that's simply intensified; rather, it's something that stands alone and is experienced only when we encounter the divine. We realize we're in the presence of something larger than ourselves.

That sense of the holy permeates both Narnia and Middle Earth and is the source of the wonder and delight we feel when visiting both places. In Narnia, Aslan is obviously holy as a Christ figure and, because of that holiness, stands out as the central figure in the story. The other figures in Narnia respond to that holiness either in reverence or in fear. (Source)

I agree that Aslan is represented as a Christ figure, and although we may not feel a sense of "awe" about him, so does Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter books. I really liked Richard Harris's portrayal of Dumbledore. Harris was obviously frail at that point in his life and probably knew the end was near. This gave his character a certain otherworldliness and quiet dignity. Dumbledore is a Christ-like figure, and Harris brought out that quality much more than Michael Gambon does.

Turner adds that Rowling's good characters are flat while the evil ones are much more interesting. For a children's book, he insists, this is disturbing. Well, he may have a point about the good characters.

But I'll put a different spin on it. No doubt evil itself can be intriguing. Knowing what I know of God, as revealed in Scripture and in my own life, he is awesome (to understate the matter), and we would do well to fear him in that sense. Knowing that there will be an accounting when Christ comes and that every man will be judged for everything he's ever said and done, I'm astounded that wretched man continues to live in rebellion against his Creator.

The Bible teaches that one day, everyone will know that Christ is the Son of God. What will the unrepentant feel at that moment? It will be too late for repentance. Will they be sorry? Will they make excuses? Will they remain defiant? They will suffer in damnation forever, apart from God. Yet while they're still living, they continually reject God in spite of the suffering to come. To me, such a person is foolishly interesting. I pray for them, but at the same time, I'm left speechless by their nerve. It's like slowing down to watch a horrible accident with blood and limbs strewn about. I can't bear to watch it, yet, I can't turn away.

Turner points out that Lewis and Tolkien were "devout Christians" who understand that "the world is a fundamentally moral place where the presence of the divine can be experienced," and he implies that Rowling isn't a "devout" Christian.

There's much to be said about that statement, but I'll save it for a different post. I'd like to say, though, that Rowling is a member of the Church of Scotland, but she's never talked about her faith. John Granger posits that she hasn't done so yet because learning details about her faith may give away the plots in her books.