THE EDITOR, Sir:
BEFORE JAMAICANS get excited about reading Harry Potter books or watching the movies, they should stop to think about the philosophy behind this seemingly entertaining work. The material is about a boy sorcerer who in a fictitious world uses his magical powers to cause good to triumph over evil. He is quite a hero in a world of fiction, seemingly a character to be modelled by young and old alike.
But in the real world there are only two powers at work, God and the devil. Sorcery and witchcraft are of the devil and those who get involved with them play on the side of evil. There is only one good and that is God. His power is greater than that of the devil. Yes ultimately good will triumph over evil, right over wrong and truth over deception, but it won't be Harry Potter's style. The devil is a deceiver and those who align themselves with him ultimately find themselves woven in a web of evil.
As we face the challenge of dealing with the supernatural in the real world, let us align ourselves with the real super-power who protects his children from evil and the evil one. It is God who demonstrated to us through Christ how to live a powerful life of love, self-sacrifice, truthfulness and compassion.
We should be careful what we expose our minds to and especially the minds of our children who may not so easily differentiate between what is fiction and what is real. Especially when knowing the difference between fiction and non-fiction could be a matter of real life or real death.
I am, etc.,
PATRICK RUTHERFORD (Pastor)
CEO, Andrews Memorial Hospital
Hope Road
Kingston
