Harry
Potter
and the Problem of Good and Evil
Marian
Therese Horvat, Ph.D.
columnist,
California; from “The Remnant”, 2539 Morisson Ave. St Paul, Minnesota
55117
One of the greatest
problems of the Harry Potter craze, as I see it, is the tremendous confusion
between good and evil it is bound to generate among the youth, especially
in the already-relativized ambience of our days. Children not only need
absolutes, but seek them. When I was young, I had a vivid image of the
devil in my mind, taken from the illustrations of the Wupsey story in
the Catholic Treasure Box magazine (see illustration). Wupsey was
the guardian angel of little Sunny at the mission of Mantuga. The devil
was clearly evil with his red spots, forked tail, flaming tongues of hair
and cloud of sulphuric smoke that trailed him like a shadow. The crafty
demon was always plotting some evil against Sunny or tempting him to try
some forbidden fruit, but it was the power of the good angel that always
triumphed.
This type of image
made the demon very real for me – and even terrifying at times. Further,
it instilled a healthy fear of anything associated with Satan or his work
– including witches, wizards, spells, charms and séances. At the same
time, I had the firm confidence that my guardian angel was much more powerful
and that, if I had recourse to him in my fears in the dark night, he would
always defeat the wiles of Satan. A simplistic vision, perhaps, but a
very healthful one.
It is this innocent
and sound vision of the world that was threatened with the entrance of
fictitious “good” witches and “good” magic -- first Samantha, then the
popular Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Buffy the Dragon Slayer. It seemed
possible – at least in the minds of many impressionable youth, even Catholics
-- to be both good and a witch.
And now, lest white
magic be accused of favoring the weaker sex, we have Harry Potter, the
hero of the best-seller series by English author Janet Rowling. Harry
Potter, an 11-year-old orphan raised by abusive relatives, just happens
to be a wizard. A good wizard, mind you. He is kind, generous, shares
and stands up for what is right, his official Website proclaims. There
are some problems like foul language and youthful disrespect, but nothing
too strong for our street-smart modern children, certainly. Quite surprisingly,
even a Catholic “conservative” magazine such as Crisis, edited
by Fr. John Neuhaus, has given a seal of approval to the “reading revolution”
the Harry Potter series has generated among the youth. A vicar in the
Church of England held a special “Harry Potter family service,” complete
with wizards, pointy hats, and broomsticks. Apparently, today’s children
are too sophisticated to become confused by the use of symbols associated
with evil. They can distinguish good wizards from bad ones.
However, according
to Catholic teaching, good wizards do not exist. There are no good spirits
other than angels; there are no evil spirits except demons. The popular
claim today is the practice of “white magic.” In current terminology,
“white magic” means to take away spells and use the “powers of darkness”
for good (an oxymoron if there ever was one), while “black magic” is to
cast spells for the sake of evil. This notion is quite widespread. However,
in reality “white magic” is all kinds of enchantments made without a direct
appeal to the devil, and “black magic” is when the dependence upon Satan
is explicit. It is not difficult to see. As Fr. Gabriele Amorth clearly
states in his best-selling book An Exorcist Tells his Story (Ignatius
Press, 1990), there is no essential difference between “white” and “black”
magic. Every form of sorcery is practiced with indirect or direct recourse
to Satan.
It is a well-known
maxim that where religion regresses, superstition progresses. Today we
are seeing a proliferation of the occult, spiritism and witchcraft, a
surge of interest among youth in dangerous occult links and the dark side
of “witch-power.” The association of rock music with the occult and Satanism
is well-documented (see Michael Matt’s new book, Gods of Wasteland).
We are witnesses of horrific crimes with satanic hues committed by teen-agers
and even 11-year-olds. At the same time, there are many people – including
Catholic priests and theologians – who discount not only the extent of
Satan’s influence upon human affairs, but Satan himself. If there is no
Satan, then surely, there’s no harm in a little magic or sorcery. “Those
modern theologians who identify Satan with the abstract idea of evil are
completely mistaken,” says Fr. Amorth, one of the world's best-known exorcists,
who knows from experience that the devil really exists. “That is true
heresy; that is, it is openly in contrast with the Bible, the Fathers
and the Magisterium of the Church.” And, he adds, it is obvious that this
belief facilitates the work of the rebellious angels.
This attitude --
which makes light of sorcery, charms and spells -- permeates the Harry
Potter novels. Father Amorth, however, makes it quite clear that in this
realm even the apparently most indifferent things are bad. There is a
universal allure to have hidden power over things and persons– be it the
ability to tongue-tie an English teacher or concoct a love potion. However,
what starts as fun and jokes can end in a horrendous reality. Fr. Amorth
seriously notes that the most common way a person can suffer blamelessly
from powers of evil is through sorcery. Sorcery also is the most frequent
cause in those who are struck by possession or other evil influences.
Yet sorcery is presented in Harry Potter books in a lighthearted and ingenuous
way. Parents who believe their children will never be tempted to dabble
in the black arts that make Harry so successful and popular seem as naive
as the churchmen who refuse to believe in sorcery.
Curses are another
reality presented without the necessary distinctions that Catholics always
learned. Actually, there are curses that are holy. These come from God
for instance, God's curse upon the Serpent in the Garden of Paradise.
But it is quite clear that the curses in the Harry Potter books are not
of this type. On the Harry Potter website, one can find a list of spells
used in the series, some that seem indifferent enough: the Alohomora—the
door-unlocking spell, or the Tarantallegra—the dancing spell. But
then there is the Avada Kedavra—the killing curse (an Unforgivable
Curse), and the Crucio!—a painful curse. Or the Imperio—a
curse of total control. These kinds of curses have a very simple definition
for Catholics: to harm others through demonic intervention. Scripture
forbids these practices, because they are a rejection of God and a turning
toward Satan: “There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his
son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination, a
soothsayer or an augur, or a sorcerer, or a charmer, or a medium, or a
wizard, or a necromancer. For whoever does these things is an abomination
to the Lord.” (Dt. 18: 10-12) I could cite many other verses. What I fear
the young reader of Harry Potter novels will not realize is that such
curses invoke evil—and the origin of all evil is demonic. Further, Fr.
Amorth reminds us, “When curses are spoken with true perfidy, especially
if there is a blood relationship between the one who casts them and the
accursed, the outcome can be terrible.” He gives many frightening examples.
Spell (also known
as malefice or hex) comes from the Latin male facere – to
do evil. Spells can be cast, for example, by mixing something into a victim’s
food or drink. They are real, Fr. Amorth insists, he has done many exorcisms
to free people from just such spells. Their evil efficacy lies not so
much in the material used itself as in the will to harm through demonic
intervention. Yet it is this demonic intervention that the Harry Potter
novels nefariously ignore. Magic is presented as a funny thing, a game.
Spells are “cool.” Books are being published on the subject, such as Spells
of Teenage Witches, described by its author as “a self-help book for
young people.” A witch and officer of the Pagan Federation wrote The
Young Witches Handbook, which includes spells for passing school exams
or attracting a partner. Apparently there is no reason for concern. No
one talks about the fact that what starts as silly spells can lead to
spiritual and psychological damage, and even demonic obsession or possession.
What is most dangerous
about the Harry Potter novels? It is precisely this: they don’t appear
dangerous. Harry Potter and his friends cast spells, read crystal balls,
and everything is fine. The author takes very serious matters that the
Catholic Church has always condemned and cautioned her children to stay
far away from – magic, charms, spells, sorcery, palm-reading, Ouija boards,
etc. – and treats them in a trivial, and even jesting fashion. In today’s
climate, charged with invitations to experiment with the occult, it is
too much to open the door even an inch to the Prince of Darkness, “who
prowls about the world seeking the ruin of souls.” Books that make sorcery
and spells and charms seem so amusing and harmless are deceitful. At best,
they certainly encourage children to take a smilingly tolerant New Age
view of witchcraft. In my view, already that is too much.
Non
liceat Christianis to even dabble in magic or
sorcery, says St. Thomas Aquinas: "Man has not been entrusted with
power over the demons to employ them to whatsoever purpose he will. On
the contrary, it is appointed that he should wage war against the demons.
Hence in no way is it lawful for man to make use of the demons' help
by compacts—either tacit or express." (II-II; Q 96 Art. 3) I find
it lamentable that the exorcism was taken out of the Baptismal ritual,
and almost criminal that the St. Michael the Archangel prayer, which
used to be recited after every Mass, has been eliminated after Novus Ordo
Masses. And I think there will be many mea culpas to be made by
those sophisticated parents who find critiques like this of the Harry
Potter series “just too serious,” even when the author herself is warning
them that her works will become increasingly dark and potentially disturbing.
It is necessary to consider that even the innocent souls of children,
under the influence of this kind of darkness, without habitual recourse
to the Faith and the assistance of grace, can lead in the near or distant
future to serious disorders and horrendous crimes. As I consider the series
of adventures of Harry Potter, which presents sorcery and all kinds of
spells and divinations as normal, I am reminded of the condemnation made
by the prophet Isaiah: "Woe to those who call evil good and good
evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness." (5:20)
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