Any Harry Potter nerds here?!

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Donkeyfish07

Guest
#41
#41
Tintin said:
Huh. I read The Hobbit around the same age, maybe a little older. I'm mildly dyslexic, so I really struggled with The Lord of the Rings, but I persevered. I love the characters and the story and the world-building, but Tolkien's writing style is rather dry and distant. I'm surprised how you view HP books 6 and 7, but that's okay. I personally don't think anything was rushed with them (but the writing quality could've been tightened from book 4 onwards). Actually, I made a mistake, the epilogue - that seemed rather rushed, or maybe I just found the kid's names mostly super-awkward. Haha! No harm.
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Ha ha, rowling rushing it is just a personal opinion. Shes the only one that knows that for sure. Pehaps im just disappointed at how it ended. Such good story background to that point but i didnt like the horcrux hunting and no real top level wizardry from Harry. I expected him to end up being really powerful in his own right but he never really got there. A little anticlimactic for me. I just had higher expectations after waiting all those years I suppose.

I didnt really mind tolkiens writing style until return of the king but thats just me I guess. I know someone who really loves the black company series....but I literally could not force myself to even finish the first one the writing style was just too hard for me to stomach. To each his own on style I suppose.
 
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MollyConnor

Guest
#42
#42
Tintin said:
I'm not sure if we're talking about the same camping episode. This is where Harry, Ron and Hermione camp out to gather their bearings. The problem is, the story just stops cold for about 50 pages. And Ginny, I've never had a problem with her in the books. In the movies though, she was almost forgotten.
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So you're not talking about when they are hiding from Voldemort and the death eaters in Deathly Hallows? Because that's the part I was thinking of.
 
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shlee23

Guest
#43
#43
The Goblet of Fire was my favorite!
 
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Tintin

Guest
#44
#44
MollyConnor said:
So you're not talking about when they are hiding from Voldemort and the death eaters in Deathly Hallows? Because that's the part I was thinking of.
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I honestly can't remember, Molly. Sorry.
 
seoulsearch

seoulsearch

OutWrite Trouble
#45
May 23, 2009
16,432
5,379
113
#45
RickyZ said:
Sorcerers, magic, potions, and a false Christ figure. Even in fantasy, I'm just not interested.
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It's interesting to me though, because the world of Narnia has ALL of this: false Christ figure (Aslan), sorcery (after all, the story IS called, "The Lion, THE WITCH, and The Wardrobe"), magic (winter all the time... and did I mention... A WITCH? Also, last I know... talking animals, besides a snake and Balaam's donkey, aren't a regular part of unenchanted life... ), and potions (Turkish delight, the drug of Narnia.) I understand Harry Potter having dark themes, but Narnia has a witch who hates and could care less about killing children. Last I knew, that was pretty dark.

I think it's fine to be convicted of something. I myself am convicted by some Disney movies but not others (I felt convicted by "Hercules" because it's a story built on other gods) and I think it's fine to voice an opinion.

But where I think there's a problem is when someone judges or condemns other people based only on their own convictions because they assume EVERYONE should believe as they do. Some people's convictions are just different.

I never got into Harry Potter or Narnia, and I love fantasy. But if you're going to tell me it's evil and that Christians should stay as far away from such things as possible, then don't tell me about why I should go with the rest of the congregation to see Narnia. And as Molly pointed out, if someone is going to preach against one thing (condemning others for watching or reading certain things), then it seems only right that they live what they preach.

I find it absolutely ironic (and hypocritical) that the same Christians who calls others weak in faith or evil for watching Harry Potter will do so while wearing a Superman t-shirt or bragging about owning comic book issue #1 and how it's worth a gaggle of money. Then they go home and watch shows or movies about mediums (hello... witches!!) and seeking out the supernatural, all while giving their 5-year-old daughter or granddaughter an "Elsa" doll for her birthday (I hate to be the one to point this out, but nothing in the story says that Elsa got her ice-freezing powers from God.)

All I'm saying is, if someone lives by their own convictions, great! That's how it's supposed to be. But if they start pushing THEIR convictions on other people, they need to either have a logical, consistent reason/filter for EVERYTHING or at the very least, show consistency in the way they live, because otherwise, this is a good example of why so many people think of Christians as hypocrites.
 
BruceWayne

BruceWayne

Senior Member
#46
Aug 7, 2013
3,694
357
83
Gotham City
#46
MollyConnor said:
Which book is the best in you all's opinion?
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I read a couple of the books in middle school and I've seen I think 3 of the movies(I don't know which lol). Whichever one had the Olympics or whatever it was with the kids from other schools, was the best imo. That's probably just because I like sports/competition though. lol
 
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Donkeyfish07

Guest
#48
#48
seoulsearch said:
All I'm saying is, if someone lives by their own convictions, great! That's how it's supposed to be. But if they start pushing THEIR convictions on other people, they need to either have a logical, consistent reason/filter for EVERYTHING or at the very least, show consistency in the way they live, because otherwise, this is a good example of why so many people think of Christians as hypocrites.
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Amen to that sister. However, we are all hyprocrites at some point or another. I caught myself reeeeeal good one time. For example. Early in my Christianity, I finally grasped the concept of judge not lest ye be judged. Though in local Church circles, I noticed how judgemental other Christians were to each other over the silliest things (wearing blue jeans to church, not being able to tithe, etc.). I was so revolted by that type of thing that I found myself looking down on the people doing it, they shouldnt be doing that....etc...

So I was judging people for judging people, when the whole point was not to judge to begin with. Hypocrisy can sneak in on you easy if you don't watch yourself. I also had a somewhat regular cycle of pretty severe backsliding (a couple of them since Ive been on CC even) that took me a long time to break. So the best thing Ive found is really all you can do is pray for people most of the time when they are locked into some kind of cycle they cant see. If they are so illogical you can't stand it, its best to just try to avoid them after you have tried to see if you can deal with them two or three times. It will save you a loooooot of stress.
 
seoulsearch

seoulsearch

OutWrite Trouble
#49
May 23, 2009
16,432
5,379
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#49
Now, to pull a 180 and go off into a completely different direction (from my previous posts)--I've never read or seen any of Harry Potter, but I have to tell you that I gave the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure 2 big thumbs up!!!

I was completely blown away by the immense detail of the castle and "village" (and yes, I went on every ride there, even though I didn't understand them.) Unfortunately, I missed Diagon Alley (in Universal's other theme park), as it wasn't built yet.

But I totally loved this imaginative place, especially the "snow owl." And, I also had a Butterbeer. (Before someone hollers, as I'm sure somebody out there is bound to at the name "beer", this drink is completely nonalcoholic and tastes like butterscotch soda with marshmallow topping.)

December 2013 255.jpg

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Lynx

Lynx

Folksy yet erudite
#50
Aug 13, 2014
27,241
9,301
113
#50
I wonder how much that butterbeer person gets paid to wear that costume...

I've never watched or read any of the Harry Potter series... or any of the Lion, Witch and Wardrobe series... or for that matter LOTR. I'm more science fiction than fantasy. But I've heard enough people arguing about all of those to feel as though I HAVE watched them. :p
 
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skylove7

Guest
#51
#51
Lynx said:
I wonder how much that butterbeer person gets paid to wear that costume...

I've never watched or read any of the Harry Potter series... or any of the Lion, Witch and Wardrobe series... or for that matter LOTR. I'm more science fiction than fantasy. But I've heard enough people arguing about all of those to feel as though I HAVE watched them. :p
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Lol...Lynx you need chocolate! :p
 
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fourleaf

Guest
#52
#52
Nope i'm not but my bestfriend is. I remember buying her harry potter collectibles as a gift when we were in highschool. I remember how thrilled she gets after seeing them. ;) But I've seen some harry potter movies and my favorite was the first movie.
 
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Tintin

Guest
#53
#53
I think half of the hulabaloo in Christian circles wouldn't have even existed if more Christians recognised and appreciated satire (hello, The Onion articles!) and if the US publishers had decided to stick with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and not Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Philosophers and Sorcerers are not one and the same).

I can see why some object to HP and not Narnia though (although I don't think it's balanced of them). Harry Potter is darker, more detailed, more focused on the magic side of things. There are witches and wizards. That said, you can't learn to be one, you have to be born one. There could be an argument made for good magic (which doesn't exist), but dark arts are certainly forbidden. There's even a class called Defense Against the Dark Arts (which is basically spiritual warfare) and anything remotely resembling the real occult world is seen for what it is - dark, disturbing and evil. Not to be tampered with.

As for Harry being a false Christ, I don't see it. A Christ-type, yes, but not a false Christ. Most stories borrow to some degree from His Story, but not all do it so overtly. And not all recognise that they're doing it. But J.K. Rowling did. And so did C.S. Lewis (whom she borrowed from heavily, along with Roald Dahl, Tolkien, Ursula Le Guin and a few others).
 
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shlee23

Guest
#55
#55
BruceWayne said:
I read a couple of the books in middle school and I've seen I think 3 of the movies(I don't know which lol). Whichever one had the Olympics or whatever it was with the kids from other schools, was the best imo. That's probably just because I like sports/competition though. lol
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Goblet of Fire!! Good choice!
 
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Tintin

Guest
#56
#56
No doubt about it, Fawkes is pretty much Holy Spirit.
I really enjoyed Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire book (the movie was a mess). There's mountains of padding, but it's super interesting and really develops the characters (if not the story). Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince could be pretty much summed up as teenage snogging and an in-depth look into Voldemort's past. It's very good.
 
Pemican

Pemican

Senior Member
#57
Sep 27, 2014
957
238
43
#57
I enjoy watching fantasy and superhero movies for entertainment, but I quickly forget them. Most of them have nothing to do with real life. We don't solve our problems in life with magic or super powers. So for this reason I think they can be a bad influence on children, (and adults who never grow up), sending them off into a fantasy world instead of learning real ways of solving problems. I actually know an older person who spent most of his life reading fantasy books. Whenever he faced a problem that scared him, he escaped into fantasy. He always let other people do the work of actually solving the hard problems of life, while he went off into dream world. Now that those people are no longer around, he has no clue how to deal with life. I'm not trying to ruin everyone's fun, but there are dangers, and wrong messages in this kind of thing.
 
RickyZ

RickyZ

Senior Member
#58
Sep 20, 2012
9,635
787
113
#58
seoulsearch said:
It's interesting to me though, because the world of Narnia has ALL of this: false Christ figure (Aslan), sorcery (after all, the story IS called, "The Lion, THE WITCH, and The Wardrobe"), magic (winter all the time... and did I mention... A WITCH? Also, last I know... talking animals, besides a snake and Balaam's donkey, aren't a regular part of unenchanted life... ), and potions (Turkish delight, the drug of Narnia.) I understand Harry Potter having dark themes, but Narnia has a witch who hates and could care less about killing children. Last I knew, that was pretty dark.

I think it's fine to be convicted of something. I myself am convicted by some Disney movies but not others (I felt convicted by "Hercules" because it's a story built on other gods) and I think it's fine to voice an opinion.

But where I think there's a problem is when someone judges or condemns other people based only on their own convictions because they assume EVERYONE should believe as they do. Some people's convictions are just different.

I never got into Harry Potter or Narnia, and I love fantasy. But if you're going to tell me it's evil and that Christians should stay as far away from such things as possible, then don't tell me about why I should go with the rest of the congregation to see Narnia. And as Molly pointed out, if someone is going to preach against one thing (condemning others for watching or reading certain things), then it seems only right that they live what they preach.

I find it absolutely ironic (and hypocritical) that the same Christians who calls others weak in faith or evil for watching Harry Potter will do so while wearing a Superman t-shirt or bragging about owning comic book issue #1 and how it's worth a gaggle of money. Then they go home and watch shows or movies about mediums (hello... witches!!) and seeking out the supernatural, all while giving their 5-year-old daughter or granddaughter an "Elsa" doll for her birthday (I hate to be the one to point this out, but nothing in the story says that Elsa got her ice-freezing powers from God.)

All I'm saying is, if someone lives by their own convictions, great! That's how it's supposed to be. But if they start pushing THEIR convictions on other people, they need to either have a logical, consistent reason/filter for EVERYTHING or at the very least, show consistency in the way they live, because otherwise, this is a good example of why so many people think of Christians as hypocrites.
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Absolutely. That's why I'm not a fan of the Narnia series either. I honestly can't understand why so many in the Body support this series. Or anything that challenges the word of God about divination and false idols. A false idol is a false idol, whether it be a cute lion or an ugly dragon.

And I didn't really tell anyone not to watch it, I just said you won't catch me watching it.
 
seoulsearch

seoulsearch

OutWrite Trouble
#59
May 23, 2009
16,432
5,379
113
#59
RickyZ said:
Absolutely. That's why I'm not a fan of the Narnia series either. I honestly can't understand why so many in the Body support this series. Or anything that challenges the word of God about divination and false idols. A false idol is a false idol, whether it be a cute lion or an ugly dragon.

And I didn't really tell anyone not to watch it, I just said you won't catch me watching it.
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I had actually meant to emphasize that in my post, Ricky, but ran out of time before the editing limitation.

I agree that you stated your own personal preference--and meant to point this out.

Over the years, there have been lots of threads regarding Harry, and after watching the discussions go round and round for years, I now always try to take the opportunity to discern between "Christian fantasy" and "evil fantasy", because I'm interested in why (and how) some people (not all, but some) manage to see a difference.
 
seoulsearch

seoulsearch

OutWrite Trouble
#60
May 23, 2009
16,432
5,379
113
#60
Here's a few more pictures if anyone is interested:

December 2013 251.jpg

This picture is tipped... Lean to the right to see the portraits facing up and you'll get an idea of the hallway. Some of the portraits of the main characters would "suddenly come to life" and start talking.

December 2013 254.jpg

Holograms of the 3 main characters appeared on this balcony and explained the premise of the adventure you were about to go on ("Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey".)

December 2013 282.jpg

I'm not familiar with this but many of you, I'm sure, will recognize this train! :)

November 2013 1062.jpg

The Three Broomsticks Restaurant. (I didn't eat there but... I think this is the one that had... a "Leaky Cauldron"?) In some of the shops, the "flying brooms" (they were animatronic, so they moved) were on "leashes" so that they couldn't "fly away".

The detail Universal put into all this is simply amazing.

I need to find someone to watch all the movies with so next time, this muggle (is that right?) will know what's going on! :p
 
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