In case you missed this bit of news ( no not Steve)

[IChing]

Pope's top exorcist says Harry Potter is 'king of darkness'

Last Updated Sun, 03 Sep 2006 14:16:40 EDT
CBC Arts

Pope Benedict XVI's chief exorcist, Rev. Gabriele Amorth, has called fictional wizard-in-training Harry Potter the "king of darkness, the devil."

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth installment of the series, racked up 10 million in sales on the first day of its release in 2005.
Amorth made the statement about the star of the best-selling children's series by British author J. K. Rowling during an interview with Vatican Radio during the week.

"Magic is always a turn to the devil," said the Roman Catholic priest, according to Britain's Daily Mail newspaper. Amorth, who is also the president of the International Association of Exorcists, said the series contains many positive references to "the satanic art" of magic and makes no distinction between black and white magic.>>>snip

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2006/09/03/harrypotter-exorcist-pope.html
:) :evilgrin: :banghead: :rofl:

[Anita Garcia]

1. Are they running scared, or what?

LOVE Harry Potter stories, a fun read.

[cspanlovr]

5. Oh, they must be! Just who do they think they're talking to?

[niyad]

2. didn't anyone tell him that the Onion article was satire? honestly, one

would think these people had more important things to do.

[acmavm]

3. This is illustrative as to why the church has not credibility. They've

regressed back to the Dark Ages.

[SlavesandBulldozers]

26. regressed?

you give them far too much credit.

[mbee]

4. What a crock! Meanwhile his friend up at the White House is

destroying everthing around us. All he can think to do is deny John Kerry communion and talk about fairy tales.

[IChing]

7. I think that if you believe in exorcism he needs to start there

I used Harry Potter to help kids develop a love of books, I must of been an agent of satan.

[spanone]

6. So, Pope guy, their fairytale is more popular than yours?

Is that what you're getting at????

[Eurobabe]

8. Der Papst KOMMT!!! Popemobil was in Munich yesterday

You'd think it was the second coming of Christ here. Pope 24/7.

We're getting the frig out of Munich for the weekend, it's going to be a zoo.

[orpupilofnature57]

9. Harry Potter is a great kid ,like so many kids born dis advantaged

in one way or another, they're more in tune with the important things and many Rise above and beyond the rest of us ,and Harry is one of them.

[karlrschneider]

10. And turning water into wine or sticks into snakes is different from magic

...how, exactly?
:eyes:

[Sal Minella]

13. Right. Magic is bad except for the Vatican brand.

[atfqn]

25. hahahaha

so true. I am happily looking towards the day that the church becomes completely irrelevant in an educated society.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

11. There are so many other things for them to worry about.

I think they're just pissed Harry Potter is more popular than mass. :shrug:
Duckie

[patrice]

12. I wonder what he says about the Left Behind series.

Do you suppose those are myths that he approves of?

[EstimatedProphet]

14. Boneheads

"Magic", "occult", etc. come from the same background as science - they are an attempt to explore and control our natural world. Are they now going to give up science? It's origins are the same, so isn't it Satan-worship too?

[IChing]

16. Occult only means "hidden knowlege" or

beyond the range of ordinary knowledge or experience, which is what the religious or spiritual life gives to the viewer.
What is white magic which the church deems satanic only because it is not approved is sacrilege. The battle of the
Roman Catholic Church and the gnostics is a prime example. The gnostics believe that the power that Jesus had to do magic was endowed in all and not to the Church hierarchy.

[EstimatedProphet]

18. Yes, it does

"Occult" meining hidden, that is...

If you look at the history of science, those that were first trying to do science (before Bacon quantified the scientific method) were lumped in with astrologers, mystics, and wizards. There's some historians that consider astrology to be the first attempt at science.

And I agree, this is about Catholic politics.

[Mythsaje]

19. Funny...

Didn't Jesus say the same thing?

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. Well well,

Sagan was right, we are living in an age where demons and warlocks fly aroudn the land... and the church ain't helping either.

By the way what is called in religious cannon a miracle (insert faith or religious text here, yep including the New Testament) can be considered magic.

Oh and the church at one time did practice magic... unfriggin unbelievable

[alfredo]

17. Hey Gabby, Harry Potter is a fictional character. He isn't real.

I guess if you live in a world of make believe demons, the line between real and unreal is very blurred.

[Solly Mack]

20. spews pea soup all over monitor

[SlavesandBulldozers]

27. lol

i got it anyway.

[mcscajun]

21. Hmmm...lemme get this straight.

The Vatican's chief opponent of one fictional character is equating another fictional character with the one he fights? :crazy:

I guess that's one way to build up the franchise. :silly:

:spray: :rofl:

[SpiralHawk]

22. Child molesting priests are "kings of darkness," Mr. Ratzinger

And they are real.

Harry potter is a fictional story.

Get a clue.

[Canuckistanian]

23. So, the pope's top wizard thinks Harry is Valdemort?

He should challenge Harry to a game of bludgers and boggarts.

And I'll bet he doesn't even know the rules of Quidditch.

What a Muggle!

[Cerridwen]

24. Isn't exorcism a form of magic?

Pot - kettle - black.

edit to add: or maybe just a wee bit of irony?

[SlavesandBulldozers]

28. meanwhile. . .

there is war in Babylon and Lebanon. Plagues, earthquakes, famine, collosal storms, floods, droughts, fires, brimstone, what-have-yous, what-have-nots-es.

And the Devil is a alive and well to the church, in a work of fiction.

Are they just begging for marginalization or what?

[peekaloo]

29. I've always suspected David Copperfield to be the Anti-Christ.

Hmmmmm.