Monday, July 9: Did you know that Steve Vander Ark, creator of the popular Harry Potter Lexicon, was a Christian? I didn't until I read this:

The family attends Hillside Christian Reformed Church, which leads to the question a lot of people have asked him.

How can you support this Harry Potter stuff? It's evil! … Vander Ark sighs. No, he says. It isn't evil.

"I'm a Christian school librarian," he says. "I've taken books off shelves that I don't think are appropriate for kids. That's what librarians do. That's what parents do.

"There are some things that shouldn't be in kids' hands," he says. "But Harry Potter isn't one of them. Here's a kid who fights against evil at the risk of his own life. That's more Christian than playing Monopoly, where you try to slaughter the other players and leave them destitute.

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Angela Montefinise, a New York Post reporter, Quibbler blogger, and Harry Potter fan, interviewed me for her Potter fan profile series. The pictures I took of myself with my Harry Potter stuff are a little corny, but I had fun posing.

Angela did a great job with the profile, but I want to make a few things clear. Although I'm a bit critical of Christians who condemn the books, I do understand their concerns. I certainly don't want to alienate fellow believers.

I started this blog because I wanted to encourage other Christian HP fans to discuss the books. I was delighted when I found other Christian HP writers and bloggers, like John Granger, Travis Prinzi, and the guys at Muggle Matters. I didn't know such people existed, given the media's coverage of Christians opposed to the books.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the profile. An excerpt:

Continue reading Potter Profile: Confessions of a Former Harry Hater

So Much Stuff!

The amount of Harry Potter-related news and commentary is overwhelming. As we move closer to D-Day — July 21 — expect a lot more.

With “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” hitting theaters next week and Book 7 theories here, there, and everywhere, there’s plenty to satisfy even the most hardcore Harry fan and the most ardent Harry hater.

By the way, set your DVRs and TiVos for A&E's Harry Potter: The Hidden Secrets to see interviews with John Granger, Janet Batchler, and the Lexicon's Steve Vander Ark. The first airing is Sunday, July 8 at 10 p.m. EDT. And HP blogger and podcaster Travis Prinzi of Sword of Gryffindor will present papers at Prophecy 2007 in Toronto, Canada, on August 2-5.

Christian Symbolism

What’s been amazing to me throughout the Harry Potter hype is the way Christians have come out of the closet to openly discuss the series’ Christian themes. You’d have to be willfully obtuse to miss the Dumbledore-as-God, Harry-as-savior, and Voldemort-as-Satan symbolism. Or that Gryffindor House’s (Harry’s house) mascot is a Griffin, a mythical half-lion, half-eagle creature considered a symbol of Christ in medieval days. Slytherin, the house of Voldemort and Harry’s enemy Draco Malfoy, is symbolized by a snake, which symbolizes evil generally and Satan specifically.

And what about the place where Harry Potter’s parents lived and died, Godric’s Holllow, where Harry will return (or must return?) in Book 7, and Hogwarts co-founder’s name, Godric Gryffindor?

That's not even the tip of the iceberg. (See Harry Potter and the Charmed Christians Part I and Part II) The symbolism is deep and rich, and the series will keep fans and even haters busy for decades.

John Granger of HogwartsProfessor.com addressed the unicorn symbolism in Book 1. A Voldemort-possessed Professor Quirrell killed unicorns and drank their blood to sustain his master. Granger says that in medieval literature, the unicorn was a symbol of Christ. So is this the image of “Satan” Voldemort drinking the blood of “Christ” in communion?

More profound are overarching “Christian” themes that reverberate through every human alive, whether or not they’re Christ followers: salvation and redemption (to buy back or pay off). What’s been building across seven books is the culmination of sacrificial love, a love that conquers death. Harry will have to harness that power within himself if he’s to defeat Voldemort. We’ve gotten enough hints throughout the series that love will be Harry’s advantage over the Dark Lord, not expert spellcasting. How will that play out?

(Also see "Christian" Elements in Narnia)

Continue reading Harry Potter: Plenty of Stuff for Fans and Haters