The Tragedy of Harry Hating: One Unintentended Consequence of Christian Potter Bashing?

March 1, 2008 by 22 Comments

Here is a letter I received last month with a follow-up note from another friend after my thank you:

Dear Mr. Granger,

We met a few months ago. I am the chimney sweep that came to your house. I hope you have been enjoying your fireplace. I am contacting you to thank you for the gift of your book “Looking for God in Harry Potter.” It has taken me a long time to finish it. I think it has taken me so long for a reason though. Since I met you I began converting to Catholicism. In that time I have studied a lot and taken my faith far more seriously than I ever had. I tell you this only because I feel I had to go through that process to really appreciate and understand your book.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Hog Pro Notes

Tim O’Shea Interviews the Hogwarts Professor

February 26, 2008 by 6 Comments

‘Talking with Tim,’ with the thoughtful Tim O’Shea at the helm, is a website that features interviews with authors and Subject Matter Experts on Pop Culture. The interview Mr. O’Shea did with me a few weeks ago went up this morning and, if you’ve ever wondered about what I think of homeschoolers, when my books are coming out, or how I became the “alchemy guy” about Harry Potter, it’s all in there. I enjoyed my time with Mr. O’Shea tremendously and am pleased with the resulting interview (a real rarity). Your thoughts are coveted, as always!

Filed Under: Hog Pro Notes

Are You An Addict? PotterPhiles Show Signs

February 25, 2008 by 10 Comments

According to research done at nearby Muhlenberg College (I was not surveyed), up to 10% of serious Harry Potter readers post Deathly Hallows are showing signs of addiction to the series and of withdrawal now that the series is complete. I urge you to read the whole thing, but here are a few of the meatier parts with some Hogwarts Professor comments: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Hog Pro Notes

Ayatollah Condemns Harry Potter?

February 24, 2008 by 5 Comments

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has hit the streets of Tehran and one newspaper at least finds this a very disturbing event. From The Memri Blog:

Iranian Daily: Harry Potter, Billion-Dollar Zionist Project

In an article, the Iranian daily Kayhan, which is identified with Iranian Supreme Leader ‘Ali Khamenei, criticized Iran’s Culture and Islamic Guidance Ministry for approving the distribution of the new book in the “Harry Potter” series.

The paper said that “Harry Potter” was a Zionist project in which billions of dollars had been invested in order to disrupt the minds of young people.

Source: Kayhan, Iran, July 26, 2007

Now this is an entirely different brand of Harry Hating, no? A billion dollar Zionist project? Or is it just a different wrapping for the same package? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Hog Pro Notes, Postmodern Polly

The Relationship of Alchemy and Christianity

February 22, 2008 by 10 Comments

A very good friend sent me a note two days ago from a Christian who had misgivings about what I have written online and in my books about alchemy and its relationship with Christianity. The note said:

“Does it bother you that Granger sees alchemy as totally congruent with Christianity? It strikes me as the reverse. To seek immortal life on earth by restoring the soul to its pre-Adamic state of innocency is to seek salvation apart from Christ and to endeavor to overcome the effects of original sin by means of nature rather than grace. And to create a stone that produces unlimited quantities of gold is to succumb to the vice of greed and would wreck the world’s economy. Right? That’s why I’m troubled that Dumbledore is famous for his work on alchemy with Flamel.”

This is an important relationship to get right so I put down my work updating Unlocking Harry Potter (the alchemy chapters!) to put together a response. Here it is: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Literary Alchemy