Inklings

You're welcome.

Yes, like the next two Hobbit films. We had to wait 10 years for the Hobbit movies. Here's hoping we won't have to wait that long for more Narnia films.

Yep. Maybe you were still thinking about the comments in the thread Pope and the Bible/Non-Catholic Religions. I'm grateful for your opinions--after 20 years on RCIA and SCC teams, I come here to share my Faith, and hopefully to grow, refresh, and strengthen it, but not to debate or argue.

I've been fascinated how CS Lewis links Faith to Joy (remembering Jesus' words about Joy at the Last Supper) in ways that seem eerily (is there a better word) similar to our Pope's linking of Faith and Hope in Spe Salvi. I think the third Grace and Theological Virtue of Love is the essential linkage of all Virtues, and wonder at St Paul's saying it was the greatest of the three.

I keep expecting to find in Lewis, or somewhere, a statement to the effect that "Beatitude is communion with God--Love, Faith, Hope, Joy, Peace, and every Goodness--in Heaven of course, but also in brief intervals here in His Kingdom on earth."

Tryumphguy,
Would you take a look at this thread http://forums.catholic.com/showthrea...hesterton+fans
to see if you would care to comment on the question?

Annie

Thanks. I'm trying to see it his way.

Dear irishOntarian,

Cordial greetings and a very good day.

Your remarks above are bang on target and echo my sentiments entirely. Mr. O' Brien's book needs to be read and marked carefully for its cogent arguments are both unanswered and unanswerable. He has done the Church a great service in writing this splendid volume and, hopefully, it will enlighten men as to the fundamental problems of the Potter series, which, as you correctly state, is not merely the issue of magic.

It is almost next to certain, dear friend, that Messers. Tolkein and Lewis would not have been favourably impressed with Rowling's inferior Potter tales. Whilst it is true that they do employ magical elements, they do so in a distinctly Christian manner, as opposed to Rowling who presents magic in a very neo-pagan fashion.

Moreover, both Tolkein and Lewis warn about the danger of magic throughout their novels. Indeed, Mr. Tolkein is especially clear on this, for in his great epic, The Lord of the Rings, he shows that powers that do not rightly belong to man always have a corrupting influence upon him. Only higher ranks of creatures in his imaginary world exercise supernatural powers, and then only as a gift from God. It should also be observed that the 'magic' in Tolkein's subcreation has no parallel to actual magical practices in the real world. In fact he makes an effort to explain this in his collected letters, where he expresses some concern that his intention might be misinterpreted by his readers. Thus, dear friend, it admits of no doubt that he would have found Rowling's material deeply worrisome from a Christian standpoint.

With regards to Mr. Lewis, in his fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia, and in his cosmic trilogy for adults, he likewise repeatedly demonstrates the seductiveness of powers that are not rightly man's, especially when they are seized as a kind of Gnostic quest for power.

Moreover, both of these eminent Christian authors firmly underline the fact that the defeat of radical evil is contingent upon humility, courage, love, self-sacrifice - in short, upon natural human virtues.

In the world of Potter magic is portrayed as a morally neutral power, which in the hands of charismatic and 'cool' characters serves the good, and in the hands of negative characters serves the evil. In complete contrast, Tolkein's central character, Frodo, defeats evil by fidelity to the truth, by rejecting unlawful power and perservering in a state of weakness. Rowling's central character, defeats evil by amassing enough power to surmount his archenemy, yet his power is the very same as his opponent.

Moreover, in the Potter-world, unlike the works of Tolkein and Lewis, the characters are engaged in activities which in real life corrupt a man, weaken his will, and pull him down into spiritual bondage. Rowling's hero's and heroines go ever deeper into that world without displaying any negative side effects, only an increase in character. This is a lie if ever there was, dear friend.

Whilst there is 'magic' in the world of Harry Potter and Mr. Tolkein's Middle-earth, there any similarity ends. Unlike Potter's powers, Gandalf's powers are bestowed upon him as a gift of IIuvatar, "the Father of All", which Tolkein's mythical representation of God. This is a crucial point so frequently ignored by the Christian pro-Potterites/supporters, that is to say, dear friend, the fundamental distinction between Middle-earth and Potter-world. Moroever, Gandalf is a sort of moral guardian, notwithstanding that he is called a 'wizard', similar to the guardian angels. His task is primarily to advise, instruct and arouse to resistance those who are threatened by Sauron, the Dark Lord. However, he does not do the work for them and they must use their natural gifts to resist evil and do good. Gandalf's gifts are in point of fact used jolly sparingly and then only insofar as they help the other creatures in the exercise of their free will and moral choices. Even a blind man on a galloping horse can see that this is just poles apart from what we meet with in the Potter tales, dear friend.

Potter is basicly neo-pagan fantasy literature and so it is hardly surprising that the magic is used to overwhelm, deceive and defile. Thus Potter uses his powers to overwhelm, deceive and defile his human enemies. He resists Voldemort with the very powers that the Dark Lord himself uses. Indeed, Potter-world exalts the very state of mind an spiritual corruption that Mr. Tolkein warns against via his portrait of Sauron.

It is frequently remarked by those straining to find redeeming qualities in the profoundly disordered Potter series, that some of the characters exhit courage and love. However, it must be remembered that courage and love can be found in all peoples - even among those who practice the worst forms of paganism. Thus this means nothing and in any case the presence of such virtues could never automatically justify an error-filled work of fiction.

Given all this, Messers Tolkein and Lewis would, I think, have been most unhappy with the Potter tales and would have probably thought that they were even anti-Christian and neo-pagan.

Rowling is undoubtedly a talented novelist, but she has also used the style and technique of modern TV and cinema, which seizes the imagination by pummelling it, bombarding it with powerful stimuli in rapid pace. That and a generous measure of emotional rewards. This, indeed, is why her series is so popular with the youth and why they are so mesmerized by it. Nevertheless, they are still inferior and neo-pagan and as such are not even in the same league as the great literary works of Messers Tolkein and Lewis.


God bless.


Warmest good wishes,



Portrait



Pax

I just finished the last book.

I nearly had a lump in my throat - I was quite emotional and the kids were quite sad when I finished.

I'm really glad I read the whole thing to them. It feels like an accomplishment for all of us.

I really like George Macdonald's stories, though he's not entirely orthodox. Has anyone else read him. I know he was Lewis' greatest inspiration.

GKC seemed to have no interest in fantasy/mythology. He saw the fantastic in a blade of grass, so I suppose he didn't need elves or wizards to give him that sense of the sublime oddity of life that is the spiritual understanding of it. Mysteries appealed to his way of seeing the world as a divine puzzle, which is, I believe why he was so fond of employing paradoxes.

I've never heard of the Lutheran Satire show, so I have no frame of reference, I'm afraid. I don't know if you'll get many responses from Catholics on this topic.

As to the quote from MC, Lewis was fighting an uphill battle with his definition, trying to remind his readers of the origins of the word, as the origin of the word "Christian". I think today's equivolent would be trying to explain the word "catholic" as equal to the word "Christian" to many Protestants who have no idea what the word "catholic" means nor that it is the word for the Christian Church established by Christ. They'd be as surprised and perhaps as resistant to the definition as man of Lewis' readers were to his attempt at explaining a definition from the original source.

I can get this book through the local library -- not that it's actually there, but I can order it. Haven't actually done so yet; I'm going to first read a review or two, to make sure I want to read it.