Vasili,

I hope your tongue is as firmly planted in your cheek as a reference to any article in The Onion deserves.

Just in case anyone is not aware, The Onion is a satirical magazine, often rather profane, and almost always very funny in its devastatingly on-target spoofs of current news stories and cultural flaps. Bless me, Father, but I read it almost weekly. (I also read and enjoyed all 4 currently released Harry Potter books - once I could wrestle them away from my husband and daughter long enought. Looking forward to #5)


Cheers,


Sharon


Sharon Mech, SFO
Cantor, sinner and muggle
sharon@cmhc.com

The Harry Potter series is among the best fantasy works I have ever read, suitable for both adults and children, and enjoyable by both on manifold levels. Among other things, they are morally serious works. They take good and evil seriously, they ascribe to free will, and make people responsible for their choices and their actions.

Many people are getting too hung up on the magical aspects, forgetting for a moment that such classic Christian fantasy as Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia are permeated throughout with magic. Magic has no occult overtones in Harry Potter; it would be better to think about it as an alternative technology, one which is accessible to those who have the apptitude for it. Like all technology, therefore, it is morally neutral: it can be used for good or for evil, and thus the critical aspect is the choice for good or evil made by those who use it.

It is also noteworthy that none of the protagonists is a cardboard saint. All of the students, professors and others have their moral flaws. Converesely, many of the villains have residual sparks of goodness within them. As for Voldemort, it remains to be seen whether he is utterly corrupted, but it is again significant that Voldemort became what he is by his own free choice, thus echoing Tolkien: "Nothing is made evil. Not even Sauron was so, in the beginning". Rowling also echoes Tolkien in the observation that while the good are intimately aware of evil, and their own potential for it, evil cannot comprehend the good, particularly the notion of kenotic, self-sacrificial love. In both Tolkien and Rowling, the evil are brought down by the humble because they cannot conceive a course of action that is not dictated by self-interest and the quest for dominion.

As a final word, those who doubt which side these books are on need look no further than the speech delivered by Professor Dumbledore (Gandalf redivivus!) at the End of Term Banquet at the conclusion of Goblet of Fire.

Sister Sharon and SK,


Actually...uh...I didn't know that this is satire! I'm a "Bible-Thumper" and live far from the center of modern American culture;way out on the margines where this information is neither available nor solicited. So...I'm a bit redfaced over my faux pas. But, I am glad you were on standby to clarify the issue for me. I was preparing to forward the article to my list and you have saved me further embarrassment.


However, I do have a problem with magic as metaphor, especially in our post-Christian New-Age culture where "magic" can be so easily misinterpreted and become the gateway for dabbling (or worse!) with the powers of Darkness.

Sincerely,

Red-Faced Thumper

[This message has been edited by Vasili (edited 10-26-2000).]

Vasili,

You are far from the first to mistake The Onion's terribly professional looking stuff for the Real Thing. (Current issue at http://www.theonion.com has an account of Henry Kissinger's night at a wild party in the U.S. News & World Report Mansion. It's an absolute scream, and not at all spiritually beneficial...)

One of the Internet's sharpest two-edged swords is the ability to disseminate information very quickly to an awful lot of people. As with any other "gossip" the trick is to determine: a.)Is it true? and b.)Even if it is true, is it something I should pass along? There's a great deal of stuff floating around in cyber-space which doesn't get past "a." How d'ya find out? Sometimes you can't, and you just have to go with your gut. Sometimes you can, though. I HIGHLY recommend checking out any "pass it on," warnings of upcoming government action, virus alerts (human or computer) or requests for prayer, cards or whatever for sick kids you do not know personally at the San Fernando Valley Folklore Society's Urban Legends page, http://www.snopes.com
or some site like it before passing it along.

I'm not sure about "magic as metaphor" either, but I do remember (I think it was) Arthur C. Clarke's Law, which states that "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

BTW, I've never understood this business about thumping the Bible. I tried it once, and just hurt my hand. I think I'll stick with reading it.


Best,


Sharon

Sharon Mech, SFO
Cantor & sinner
sharon@cmhc.com

[This message has been edited by Sharon Mech (edited 10-26-2000).]

The axiom is: "If y'all can't read..by gum...thump!" Which has nothing to do with the following. Our messianic congregation (which in now about 80% non-Jewish and associated with the Lutheran Church) experienced exponential growth "being personal and pastoral" with souls from churches where they were essentially just anonymous faces. I believe over 50% of our "converts" are precious souls with a Roman Catholic background; souls who just needed some extra special care, care their former parishes couldn't or wouldn't provide.


On another thread, Anthony does some soul searching about the future of the Byzantine Catholic Church (which is part of the Body of Christ and has received the missionary mandate). Your parishes are typically small and you have the potential to be more personal and you have the ability to be more adaptable than the Orthodox in both your outreach and pastoral care. Why not do what we did so successfully? Reach out to those with special needs (Must I define "special needs?). Reach out to those who are sick of anonymity and the typical frigidity of so many RC parishes. Even here in tropical Florida, we have plenty of "frigid" parishes and the problem is compounded by the fact that so many people here are newcomers or even refugees, without a sense of "rootedness" and sans their families, friends, etc. I remember the close feelings of comradeship which were a huge part of our whole Byzantine Catholic ethos, which was warm and personal. Well, that is how I remember it. But, you have the gift of the Gospel to share (as a personal gift) with people who just want what you (hopefully!) already have. Shucks...even us Bile..OOPS!...BIble Thumpers "cipher" that! So....what are y'all waiting for? Just do it!


Thank ya, kindly!

Former Byzantine Catholic/Jew boy turned swamp-gas preacher!

More on Harry. It isn't warm and fuzzy.
http://www.family.org/pplace/schoolkid/a0009678.cfm

As this is Halloween time for us in the US, this thread fits. AFAIK Harry Potter is like folklore — good fantasy literature as Stuart points out. The hoo-hah over Halloween is understandable but an overreaction too. Halloween is paganism turned into folklore, a good thing, and is actually connected to Catholicism in a way (All Souls’ Day two days later.) I loved it when I was a kid, regret not being able to serve trick-or-treaters now as I live in an attic apartment and just might put a string of orange lights around a window this week. I love The Onion too, read it online weekly and have a link to it on my site!

Funny how the aftermath of the late ’60s destruction has led baby-boomers to be even more censorious than their elders ever were about a lot of things, pushing for restrictive measures like uniforms for public schools (not American custom) and even banning Halloween there.

Old World Rus’

To All:

I wonder about the great interest in wizardry and witches these days. Ask any Catholic to give an account of a saint, you will probably be looked at strangely. Let's face it: Butler's Lives of the Saints went out the door with the advent of witch, wizard and magic fanaticism. Disney is great with these themes. Ever witness a Disney story about religion, especially Christianity, where a cleric or nun is portrayed as normal? How many times I saw how magic is the answer.

This fascination goes hand-in-hand with our Bunny Rabbit fetishes and Santa Claus myths. Christians are basically suckers and push-overs when it comes to exchanging the glory of God for the glory of foreign gods and stories of fertility divines. Yeah, yeah, we tell our children that we don't worship such things, but we still push it more than the reason for the seasons.

The content and the example of Christian virtue and teaching isn't there as it was in the past. We have greater access to bizzare tales that tickle our ears. We can't afford spiritual or prayer books, but we can find the correct amount of change to buy up all the latest editions of Potter.

We need to repent and change our lives. We need a Bob Seiger in the Church to sing "I like that old time ..." in regards to religion. Dump the bizarreness of the disco-fake religions.


Elias, not the Monk

Rusnak, `

There is no doubt about it, you certainly are in the majority. I am certain that the vast majority of Catholics and Protestants and Orthodox agree with you about Halloween and Harry Potter. But, you are ONLY a majority, if you catch my tongue-in-cheek curve ball.


It is amazing how comfortable American Christians are with American popular culture! Despite the gross contradictions that exist between American culture and Apostolic Christianity, just look at the seductive synergy that exists between American culture and American Christians. Not just my generation of baby boomers has swallowed the hook, but the (ever utilitarian) X'ers unquestionably adore it! But, heh, I give you credit. You are in the majority....ONLY the majority! BTW...ever heard of the Weimar Republic? Oh, never mind.

[This message has been edited by Vasili (edited 10-26-2000).]

[This message has been edited by Vasili (edited 10-27-2000).]

Halloween from a Serbian Orthodox perspective.
http://www.sv-luka.org/articles/haloween.htm

Halloween from the prospective of someone in the trenches....

My kids met a bunch of really sweet old people tonight, some of whom are probably lonely without a lot of contact with little ones or anyone else outside of their medical doctors. We introduced ourselves to neighbors (we're new to this street) we probably wouldn't have met otherwise or at least not for a very long time. We walked up to a door and helped a group of people sing "Happy Birthday" to the fella inside. We had fun. We felt like we made some connections. People smiled and waved. It didn't feel Satanic or evil.

The sad truth is, in this day and age, tonight is a night when people will open their doors to one another in friendship. We tried to make the most of this rare opportunity.

Barbara

>>>More on Harry. It isn't warm and fuzzy.
http://www.family.org/pplace/schoolkid/a0009678.cfm <<<

Well, I read what the site had to say, and in my opinion, having read all four of the Potter books several times, is that the article in question is half-baked and ill-informed, written by somebody who is (a) far too literal minded to understand fantasy writing; and (b) who is upset that J.K. Rowling is not C.S. Lewis. In fact, from the article, I got the impression that the author had given the Potter books only a cursory glance, and relied heavily on what OTHERS said the books were about.

I would suggest you read for yourself, and then decide.

>>>I wonder about the great interest in wizardry and witches these days. Ask any Catholic to give an account of a saint, you
will probably be looked at strangely. Let's face it: Butler's Lives of the Saints went out the door with the advent of witch,
wizard and magic fanaticism. Disney is great with these themes. Ever witness a Disney story about religion, especially
Christianity, where a cleric or nun is portrayed as normal? How many times I saw how magic is the answer.<<<

By any chance, Elias, did you ever read "Lord of the Ring"? Magic up the wazoo, wizards, demons, goblins, the works. No explicit mention of religion whatsoever. No explicit Christian allegory, as in Narnia. Yet it is the single greatest work of Christian fantasy ever written (and possibly the most important book of the 20th century), a work which turns thousands towards God ever year, written by an extremely devout Roman Catholic. Go figure.

Rusyn Girl,

"F-e-e-l-i-n-g-s..oh..oh..oh..f-e-e-l-i-n-g-s!"

Dear Barbara,

Never mind the sniping. Your story was beautiful and reminded me of one of the reasons I loved Halloween as a kid. It was a chance to socialize, and after dark at that, like grownups do.

I got one treat yesterday, a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup I’ve yet to eat. S prazdnikom!

Old World Rus’


[This message has been edited by Rusnak (edited 11-01-2000).]

I am not participating in any of these discussions for the duration of the Nativity Fast, but I found this material and can't resist posting it. God have mercy on me, a sinner!

I found the following in "The Illuminating Icon", a book by Anthony Ugolnik, an American of Russian decent in the Orthodox Church of America:

>>>For [Russian theologian Vladimir] Solovyov, Christ embodies the perfection of beauty, because Christ is at once material, spiritual and immortal. Unlike Hegel and his school, Solovyov sees immortality or permanence a a necessary quality of perfect beauty. In his thought, then, beauty contains a real, objective element.It is grounded in concrete fact when, through its attraction, it draws us together into common life so complete that Solovyov
borrows a Greek word, syzygia, to convey its intensity:

Not to submit to one's social environment, but not to dominate it, but to be in loving interaction with it, to service it as an active fertilizing principle of movement, and to find in it the fullness of vital conditions and possibilities--that is the relation of the true human personality not only to its immediate social environment and its nation, but to humanity as a whole.

Solovyov conveys a mistrust of "fact" that is somewhat alien to the American temper. One kind of American believer tends to integrate religious perception into the world of fact: Scripture becomes part of that "world", and its claims are literally--that is, factually, verifiably--true. But in this light, even the miracles of the Gospel can lose their definitive elements of wonder. Miracles are miracles, after all, because they violate the rule.
The Russian religious impulse is to regard the world of fact itself as "conditional, transitory, and not normal".

Russian believer are suffused with a sense of the miraculous. They commonly make pilgrimmages to certain shrines and pray before certain icons, and those place and images then "break through" the natural world of fact for them. J.R.R. Tolkien is a Western writer who also recognized the limitations of pure rationalism. He called it "the tyranny of fact", a tyranny that has seized hold of modernity. According to Tolkien, the artist has
the power, in effect, to cooperate with the gospel in breaking this tyranny. Through the power of fantasy, or through what the Orthodox thinker might call the creation of beauty, the artist can allow us to look beneath the transitory nature of this world and see the stirring truth which underlies it.

Tolkien's trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, now published in Russian, enjoys a vigorous popularity in the USSR [this book was published in 1989--SLK]. Christian readers, of course, find within it the Christian artist acting out his redemption of the world. "That's precisely it!" said a friend of mine with enthusiasm after completing the work. "Frodo is engaged in the Christian quest--not
only to save Christians but also the whole of Middle Earth. This is synergia--our cooperation with God to save the world. We are all part of a great fellowship". The popularity of fantasy in the USSR, fantastika, bespeaks a natural human hunger to penetrate the veil of "fact", to perceive a beauty where none is immediately apparent. As Tolkien observed, "Fantasy remains a human right: we make it in our measure and in our derivative
mode, because we are made: and not only made, but made in the image and likeness of a Maker" ["On Fairy Stories"].

Tolkien helps the Western Christian to clarify the tremendous salvific power that the Russian [Orthodox] Christian sees in beauty. For beauty binds together those who submit, collectively, to its attraction. And it will not submit completely to the "tyranny of fact", the process of rational analysis by which we understand only parts of the world. It submits us "to the whole", to a wholeness in which we participate. Russian [Orthodox]
thinkers then do not see aesthetics as the passive, "individualizing" light it can become in Western idealism. Christian idealism in Russia does not separate the arts from involvement in the world in a version of the "art for art's sake" perspective. Submission to beauty means not an estrangement from our society, but a deeper involvement in it.<<<