IS THE DEVIL IN HARRY POTTER ?

A remarkable phenomenon has hit the entire world as the result of the writings of an English woman by the name of Janet K. Rowling about a young boy who is a powerful sorcerer. Known as "Potter Mania", bookstores have sold out almost immediately of each new episode of the Harry Potter series. The lust for these books in itself shows the effect that MS Rowling's writings have had on its readers. Much controversy exists over the content of these books, and this article is going to address issues raised by the Harry Potter series that need to be understood. Why should such issues be addressed in the first place? It appears that many people consider these books as a positive influence on their children because the kids are finally reading books instead of watching TV and playing video games. They also claim that they teach the struggle between good and evil in addition to promoting moral values. So much so that millions are convinced that these novels should be incorporated into the public school system because they are good teaching tools. But are they? There are important things to consider. First thing is to consider the author, J.K. Rowling, who is producing all this written material out of her own imagination. She is a self confessed practicing witch; a Wiccan actually, and she does not hide that fact. Many think that the Wiccans are not real witches, or that they are, "white" or good witches whose main concern is about mother earth. A little research in the writings of the Wiccans will reveal that misconception and show that they are pure occultic practicioners. What does God have to say about witches?

Exodus 22:18 - "Thou shalt not suffer (permit) a witch to live."

Why is God so adamant about eliminating witches and the like? A witch, or sorcerer, is a person who has submitted themselves to a power beyond themselves, a supernatural power that operates in the spirit realm. Other than God, the only other power force that operates in the spirit realm is Satan who has set himself in array against God and mankind. Witches and sorcerers draw on Satan's abilities and demonic influences to control or affect their lives and the lives of others.

Exodus 7:11 - "Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments".

Moses, sent by God to deliver Israel from the control of Pharaoh was faced with such witchcraft and sorcery that demonstrates the power that is working behind such practitioners. This is absolute rebellion against God and his authority; trying to operate in the supernatural without God but by employing the power his adversary.

1 Samuel 15:23 - "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft.....".

Here see that witchcraft is SIN; it is treachery against God and many who practice witchcraft are not even aware that Satan is the power behind their potions, divinations, enchantments, spells and rites. They think is the power of nature or "mother earth" that they have tapped into. Yet it is all actually a form of worship of the devil. Such is the position of Wiccan witchcraft. There is no such thing as a "good" witch; and "white" witchcraft is just as corrupt as "black" witchcraft, which the Harry Potter series portends. Why? They are both controlled by the same source - Satan. Satan is actually the Lord over J.K. Rowling, even if she is not aware of it. He is her source of inspiration for her writings. Remember, Satan is subtle and cunning, way beyond man's natural abilities; and he knows how to manipulate his way with mankind. He started in the Garden in Eden thousands of years ago.

Genesis 3:1 - "Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made."

Satan is the master of deception and the father of liars; he even makes his servants appear to be ministers of righteousness:

John 8:44 - "And ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. when he speaketh a lie, he speaking ofhis own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."

2 Corinthians 11:14-15 - And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers (servants) also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness..."

Therefore, anything written by J.K. Rowling has its source and inspiration by her lord and master the devil. This one fact alone is enough to reject reading her works about Harry Potter, the sorcerer. J.K.Rowling is intelligent and is also a thorough researcher who has earned a Masters Degree in Mythology from Exeter University in England. This woman has an extremely well developed and sophisticated knowledge of the occult world, its legends, history, personalities and nuances.i She openly admitted that one-third of her Harry Potter material is based on actual occultism. As such, Rowling incorporates real occult practices, rituals, personalities and organizations into her fictional writings. What is occultism? The occult is a study of things hidden from sight, mysterious things associated with the darkness of the black (forbidden) arts and prefers to cover up or hide such mysteries; things that pertain to alchemy, magic, astrology, divination, incantation, potions or formulas and mysterious powers. The casual reader is most likely unaware of these realities, but they are being subjected to and possibly enticed, subconsciously, into this knowledge and may be encouraged to pursue more out of curiosity. Such is the case with many young readers of Harry Potter who are now delving into Wiccan witchcraft and the occult. It isn't all fantasy; readers are being beguiled and lured into Satan's web of darkness by these books and other occult writings they are easily finding on the internet. The second thing to consider is that we need to recognize the wicked subtly of accepting the Harry Potter series as moral episodes of the battle between good and evil. The battle of good verses evil in itself is the deception of the devil. He used this same deception in the beginning of mankind:

Genesis 2:9 - "And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil."

Genesis 3:1-4 - "Now THE serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made, And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die."

So we see that there were two specific trees in the garden that had very significant meaning for mankind in the plan of God. One was forbidden, that being the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We need to understand that the "good" of this tree was just as wicked and deadly as the evil of the same tree. Partaking of this tree meant that man was setting himself up as the universal judge - he would have to decide what was good and what was evil. He took upon himself a task that he was not meant to have and certainly was and still is unqualified for. That act of rebellion was a deadly one; stepping out from under God's judgment and control to become independent of God and to take on such responsibilities and powers for himself - or, as scripture said, "ye shall become as gods"; just as the devil himself tried to do: Genesis 3:5 - "For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

The account given in Genesis shows the subtle trickery of the devil by mixing truth with error resulting in a very cleaver deception. What J. K. Rowling has done with the Harry Potter series is to mix fiction and humorous circumstances with real historical and factual occult practices in order to make the occult acceptable to a society that is generally leery of the occult - and it has worked based on the wide-spread acceptance of the Harry Potter books and movies. This acceptance by society is actually a promotion of the occult into the minds of people who otherwise would not entertain such ideas. It just goes to show that if you take something dark, evil and horrible and make it funny and entertaining, people will laugh at it and accept it. The same goes for much of the garbage that pours out into our homes through television. Oh the craft and subtly of the enemy! Those who practice the occult, the Wiccans, etc., are praising the Harry Potter series for the "coming of age" of the occult. Let's take a moment to define a couple key terms that are presented in the Potter books. Each definition comes from Websters new College Dictionary; some words are found in the Bible and will also include the word as defined by the Holy Bible:

Occult: hidden from sight; obscure; pertaining to, concerned with alchemy, magic, astrology and other arts and practices involving the use of divination, incantations, magical formulas (potions); beyond the scope of understanding; mysterious.

Witch: One who practices the black art, or magic; one regarded as in possession of supernatural or magical power by compact with an evil spirit, especially the Devil; a sorcerer or sorceress. Holy Bible - To whisper, to enchant, to practice magic, a spell; a magician; a sorcerer.

Witchcraft: The practices or art of witches; black magic; sorcery; intercourse with evil spirits; power more than natural; irresistible influence or charm; To work a spell, especially an evil spell, upon by sorcery. Holy Bible - divination, oracle for a fee; practice of a witch.

Sorcerer: One who practices sorcery; a wizard. Holy Bible - magician; one who will cause a spell by potion; one who employs poison or drugs. Sorcery: The use of power gained from assistance or control of evil spirits, especially for divining; necromancy; witchcraft. Holy Bible - the employment of medications, drugs, poisons, magic potions. Magic: The art which claims or is believed to produce effects by the assistance of supernatural beings or by mystery of secret forces in nature; the power brought into play by magic; hence, any seemingly occult power.

Potion: A dose of liquid medicine or poison; as used in witchcraft: a dose of liquid to bring about a desired effect or behavior upon the victim as a means of gaining control over them by the practitioner.

Spell: A spoken word or form of words supposed to have magic power; an incantation; a charm; spellbinding influence; to put under control, or as under a spell; bewitch; charm.

Supernatural: Of, or proceeding from, an order of existence beyond nature, or the visible and observable universe. Ascribed to agencies above or beyond nature; miraculous. (Beyond what is natural to human sight and understanding.)

Why do people not take the contents of the Harry Potter books seriously; because they don't believe in the supernatural, in evil spirits or even in the devil; and this includes many Christians. How can this be when the Bible clearly shows us the reality of these; and Jesus, himself had to contend with evil spirits (demons). People today think that they are too civilized and too educated to accept the supernatural or to believe the Holy Bible. Yet everything about God is supernatural. Witchcraft, sorcery and the occult is not fiction; neither is Satan fiction; both are real and Satan is the master of all who seek occult powers, dark mysteries, witchcraft and power to manipulate and control others through unnatural means. Witchcraft and sorcery are so dangerous to mankind that God had to give a warning as follows:

Deuteronomy 18:9 to 12 - "When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. there shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times (astorology), or an enchanter (sorcerer), or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar (evil) spirits, or a wizard, or a nacromancer, for all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from among thee."

So you can see that God sees the occult as very serious behavior that is totally contrary to Him and His will for His people. When people, instead of seeking God and His Word, submitted to a witch for divination, it is rebellion against God and sin as king Saul eventually found out when he consulted with the witch of Endor, (1 Samuel 28).

1 Samuel 15:23 - "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also reject thee from being King."

2 Chronicles 33:6 - (Speaking of evil King Manasseh) ".... also he observed times (astorology), and used enchantments (witchcraft), and dealt with a familiar spirit (a medium and nacromancy), and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger."

2 Kings 9:22 - "...Is it peace, Jehu? and he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?"

Micah 5:12 - (God, executing judgment said) "And I will cut off witchcraft out of thine hand; and thou shalt have no more soothsayers."

Nahum 3:4 & 5 - "Because of the multitude of the whoredoms of the well-favoured harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts, that selleth nations through her whoredoms, and families through her witchcrafts. Behold I am against thee, saith the Lord of Hosts...".

Galatians 5:19 to 21 excerpted - "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: Adultary, fornication, uncleaness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, ...... and such the like: of which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

In view of such warnings, why are people so caught up with Harry Potter? It satisfies the lusts of the flesh. Our youth are full of lusts just like adults; however, in children, their lusts are mostly confined to their thought life - their imaginations and fantasies. This is exactly what the Harry Potter series appeals to - their imaginations and fantasies. In addition, there is the power of Satan himself that creates an enticement with that which is fascinating, supernatural, fantastic; to be someone or something special. All of which are means of taking the hearts and minds of young people captive into the darkness of Satan's evil realm and control. Like it or not, this is spiritual warfare:

Ephesians 6:10 to 12 - "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

2 Corinthians 10: - "(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of (Satan's) strongholds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ...".

God commands his people to fight against the forces of darkness; against the devil and his means of employing witchcraft, sorcery and all that has been previously mentioned. God has given his people power, authority and all the equipment needed to win this battle. But those who deny such things haven't a clue or a chance. Such are the ones who ignorantly embrace the subtlety of the enemy, as did Eve in the garden. The use of occult means is the enemy's overt work against mankind. On top of this God's people must also deal with Satan's covert operations in which he makes his servants appear ministers of righteousness - (2 Corinthians 11:14-15); but that is another article. Many parents endorse the Harry Potter books based merely on the fact that the kids are reading instead of being glued to television screens or playing video games. However, like TC, what children read does have conscious and sub-conscious impact on them. King David knew that impact of what you focused your attention on:

Psalm 101:3 - "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes..."

Why would King David say such a thing? He knew that the eye is the doorway (access point) to the soul, Luke 11:34-35. What enters through the eye illuminates and is transfixed on the mind (brain). Reading books written by a witch subjects the reader to the beliefs, convictions, characterizations, morals and passions of the author. If the author is under the influence of Satan, as is Rowling, then what she writes is going to reflect the will, purpose and subtle objectives of enemy.

The idea that the Harry Potter books are simply fiction is even more justification to avoid them. It seems that mankind is more attracted to fiction than truth. What is fiction? ... it is untruth; deceptions; fantasy; a lie; a falsehood. What should mankind seek to enhance himself in life? ..... TRUTH! Anything less than truth is absolutely unprofitable; especially when considering eternal values. Fiction is merely entertainment, at least on the surface; and like movies, TV shows and novels, all are based on UNTRUTH! It appears that in the last days, before the Lord's return, men fail to seek after truth, preferring fiction - DECEPTION. Jesus said one of the signs of the last days would be deception - (see Matthew 24:4-5, 11 & 24). What we don't need before our eyes and inflaming our minds is fiction - lies deception and untruth! Consider the words of Jesus:

John 8:33 - And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

The corollary of what Jesus said is then, lies, deception and fiction will take you captive and keep you in the bondage of its darkness. Reading the Harry Potter books conditions young readers to see that those who have magical powers are the enlightened of this world. People who lack or reject witchcraft and the dark magical powers are to be looked down on as the ignorant and unenlightened, or lesser humans than these witches and sorcerers. What a theme to subject young minds to! Consider what happened in Germany in the 1930's; Hitler spoke his lies over and over until people accepted them as truth. His lies and propaganda changed an entire society, convincing them that they were a super race and all others were inferior and to be conquered or eliminated. Harry Potter seems to be on the same quest, book after book, proclaiming the same type of theme using different circumstances. Many support the Rowlings writings saying that they teach positive values, good verses evil; right verses wrong, etc. but this is ridiculous when, in fact, the series reverses truth. Witches and sorcerers are good, the hero's of society, and non-witches are wrong, and the problem with society. Isn't that exactly what Satan wants to promote? "Millions are convinced that these novels should be incorporated into the United States public school system. The idea is: They're great teaching tools to instill values into mixed-up young people. Yet once again this very argument proves that people recognize that the Harry Potter books do teach things to kids. The Harry Potter books teach much more than what appears on the surface, such as the value of being a good witch and the importance of occult practitioners sticking together with those who are like-minded".ii Just what kind of values and morals are taught in the Potter books? The morals and values presented to young readers in these books include: breaking rules; disrespect for parents; temper tantrums (selfishness or getting things my way); drinking alcohol; smoking; lying; hatred; revenge; cursing and swearing; gambling; hiding forbidden practices from parents; crude or dirty language - all of which are presented to young readers, and much of which is practiced by the hero, Harry Potter himself. And this is a character young readers will try to emulate. Another thing to consider, Harry Potter is portrayed as existing in two worlds at the same time; the world of the un-enlightened and the world of the witches and wizards - the spirit world of which he prefers because he is in control of things. What a paradox Satan is teaching in these books; it contrasts with the word of God which says that believers in Christ are citizens of heaven even though they are living here on earth. Satan seems to have a counterfeit for reversing what God provides for us, and he employs great skill and craft to convince the world of these counterfeits. Remember, he is the father of liars and the master of deception. Do you want your children and grand children reading these kind of books or watching these kind of movies?.... millions do! A recent issue of Harry Potter sold out 20 million copies in just two days. What does that tell you? Please do not let your children or family members fall pry to the wiles of the devil in his efforts to subjugate them into darkness of his snare; it could be an eternal life or death decision for them. Yes, the devil IS in Harry Potter! i HOUR OF THE WITCH by Steve Wohlberg, Destiny Image ii ibid - page 56 & 57