Why Young Catholics Are Not Advised To Watch Harry Potter Movies Or Books
We need to look into modern day films and see if they’re still inline with our Catholic faith and what influences they bring to the youth. Harry Potter movies are just some of the most popular flicks that has captivated young people. But even this seemingly harmless show may have negative spiritual impacts to its audience.
Harry Potter books and movies present wizards and witches as a position of power. Where ordinary boys and girls can have super powers through training by other esteemed wizards. Witchcraft is presented as something good and can be used to defeat evil. Curses, spells, alchemy, and necromancy are represented as good skills that can be acquired by the “heroes” of the plot. We need to realize that these kinds of stories can have a diabolic impact to spiritual well-being of its spectators, especially its younger viewers.
Many verses in the bible warns us strongly against the practice of witchcraft and the consultation of mediums and spirit-talkers:
Leviticus 19:31(NABRE) "Do not turn to ghosts or consult spirits, by which you will be defiled. I, the LORD, am your God." Deuteronomy 18:10-13 (NABRE) "Let there not be found among you anyone who causes their son or daughter to pass through the fire, or practices divination, or is a soothsayer, augur, or sorcerer, or who casts spells, consults ghosts and spirits, or seeks oracles from the dead. Anyone who does such things is an abomination to the LORD, and because of such abominations the LORD, your God, is dispossessing them before you. You must be altogether sincere with the LORD, your God."
Sadly, books like these that are contrary to the faith can easily be found in public school libraries and can even be seen in the children’s sections of major bookstores.
Parents are advised to proceed with caution when showing films that has something to do with abnormal spirituality to their children. You don’t even need to watch the shows or read the books to see that you are being lured into the occult, reading the titles of these should be enough. Titles like “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” should be sufficient for us to realize that elements of the occult are being glorified for the viewer’s curiosity. The audience’s mind is being tickled with a fallible lesson that these practices, which have been declared sinful by the church, can still be used to do good. And when young and impressionable children watch shows like this, it can lead their creative thoughts into supernatural fantasies.
As responsible Catholic parents, one must keep guard of what products and shows are meant to appeal towards younger consumers. This article is not meant to scare parents, but rather to promote rational care and spiritual guidance towards the youth.