GOD, THE DEVIL, AND HARRY POTTER: A Minister's Defense of the Boy Wizard

Some Christians find fault with Harry Potter's magical world of witches and wizards. Presbyterian minister Killinger comes to the aid of "the boy who lived," arguing that he is an "often unwitting Christ figure" whose story draws on Christian themes and teaches useful lessons. Killinger finds many parallels in the history of Christian storytelling, both inside and outside of the Bible, to J.K. Rowling's grab bag of characters, motifs and creatures. But his interpretations are strained, often well beyond the breaking point. One can imagine that Rowling is alluding to the philosophical concept of "quiddity" with the name "Quidditch"—though why exactly that should matter Killinger never makes clear. But when he suggests that the lightning-bolt-shaped scar on Harry's forehead recalls a few Old Testament scholars' belief that the divine name YHWH originally meant "lightning," he is simply indulging in etymological conspiracy theories. Potter fanatics will be alarmed that Killinger gets the composition of Voldemort 's wand wrong (it is made of yew, not oak), but most everyone else will have stopped reading by then anyway. Killinger's fellow mainline Protestants are not troubled by Harry Potter, and conservative Christians will hardly be reassured by Killinger's fondness for Jungian archetypes and parapsychology. Francis Bridger's A Charmed Life has already covered this territory, with far greater success. (Jan.)