 |
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
Click here
|
Harry Potter Curricula Explore Witchcraft in the Classroom 8/29/2001 Harry Potter Curricula Explore Witchcraft in the Classroom “Kids today have lost the sense that witchcraft is dangerous.” — Rev. Robert McGee New publications by Scholastic and Beecham’s SourceBooks have upped the ante in the Harry Potter debate. Now, not only are the Potter books featured on school shelves and read by teachers in class, but they are also being incorporated into classroom lessons. This development means the Harry Potter phenomenon has progressed to a point that parents with school-age children must deal directly with the topic of witchcraft, whether or not they allow their children to read the series or see the upcoming movie. “That’s the way with all cultural change,” Rev. Robert McGee, co-host of the video Harry Potter: Witchcraft Repackaged, Making Evil Look Innocent told C&F Report (see August 15 issue of Culture & Family Report). “They establish change one small step at a time. Now that Harry Potter is seen as acceptable children’s literature, it’s not surprising the publishers are pushing it and other occult themes deeper into the classroom.” ‘SHAPE SHIFTING’ AND DRUIDS Witchcraft, Wicca and mythology are also covered. In the section of the book dedicated to projects, discussion questions and further research, suggestions include: The suggested reading section provides a bibliography of 28 books on magic, witchcraft other occult variations. Titles include: Exploring Harry Potter, written by Elizabeth Schafer, Ph.D., includes a large collection of Web sites, including links to active pagan, Wiccan and Druid groups and practitioners. The Beecham Sourcebook manual goes so far as to undermine Biblical faith by referencing only theologians and mystics who deny the inerrancy of Scripture and the deity of Christ. Christian anti-cult expert Caryl Matrisciana finds this one-sided intrusion into classrooms disturbing. “The bridges are quite clear to me,” Matrisciana says in the Harry Potter: Witchcraft Repackaged video. “Here you have this religion being introduced into the schools … at taxpayer expense. “What we have here is a complete indoctrination program in the schools,” Matrisciana says. “First they interest children in the occult with delightful fantasy literature, then they bring the books into the schools, along with teacher’s guides to fuel the interest in exploration of the occult. Now with this Beecham’s SourceBook, any computer-literate child can access genuine witchcraft training classes right in their home or classroom.” ENTER SCHOLASTIC PUBLISHING “The following discussion guide … features summaries of the plot, theme, conflict, setting and characterization, as well as a number of questions designed to encourage conversation. …,” writes Beers on the Scholastic Web site. Discussion questions include comparing various Potter characters to those in ancient mythology and finding similarities between the masked wizards that torment muggles (a Potter-ism meaning normal humans) and groups in real life that have worn hoods when tormenting others. Still other questions ask students to ponder moral themes, like self sacrifice, choosing what is right over what is easy, and free will versus pre-ordination— themes better left to parents, since they would lose their value under the morally relativistic constraints of today’s secularized public school system. That has been the real issue of the Potter-in-the-classroom debate that has raged over the past two years. Parents who have been told that Christianity and faith must be kept out of schools due to the “separation of church and state” are now trying to protect their children from classroom discussions about paganism and the occult. In 1999, Dominic Schmidt, a father in Moorpark, California, tried to have his son removed from a fourth-grade class in which Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was being read. Last year, Julie Barker from Alexandria, New Hampshire, expressed dismay with local school officials because the Potter books were being read in her daughter’s class without prior parental notification. These and other parents wanted merely to direct the moral upbringing of their children and protect them from dangerous and/or inappropriate material. Yet, they and others like them have been labeled “book banners” by the American Library Association (ALA) and other liberal groups. In September 2000, the ALA issued its annual report on challenged or “banned” books. Judith Krug, head of the ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, told The Tennessean that the Potter books now top that list, becoming one of the 100 most frequently challenged books of the decade. “All the challenges we have had [to Harry Potter] have been in schools, which means the children are going to be deprived of what appears to be the biggest phenomenon that children’s publishing has ever known,” Krug said. As for parents who believe they should direct the teaching of values to their children, Krug added, “They’re smart enough to realize if they can remove materials that conflict with their deeply held beliefs, their values have a better chance of becoming accepted across the board.” Despite the heavy-handed influence on schools of liberal organizations like the ALA — and the book industry’s attempt to exploit the Harry Potter phenomenon by selling related classroom materials — Rev. McGee says parents can’t give up the battle for the hearts and minds of their children. “Parents have to be prepared to look ‘foolish’ if they plan to stand their ground,” said McGee. “The media have been feeding us a candy-coated version of what the occult is really like, and kids today have lost the sense that witchcraft is dangerous. “The challenge is also on churches to once again educate parents and children to the realities and dangers of the occult and spiritual warfare,” he said. |
|
Concerned Women for America 1015 Fifteenth St. N.W., Suite 1100 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 488-7000 Fax: (202) 488-0806 |
Feedback / Questions? || Problem with this page? || Archives
