{"id":478,"date":"2007-07-24T01:34:45","date_gmt":"2007-07-24T01:34:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/jwalking\/2007\/07\/dobson-potter-christians.html"},"modified":"2007-07-24T01:34:45","modified_gmt":"2007-07-24T01:34:45","slug":"dobson-potter-christians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jwalking\/2007\/07\/dobson-potter-christians.html","title":{"rendered":"Dobson, Potter, Christians"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week, a Washington Post<\/em> article<\/a> speculated that the next great Potter-type book might just be an explicitly Christian-themed book. In the article, the reporter incorrectly stated that Focus on the Family head James Dobson embraced the Potter books.
\nYesterday, Dobson and Focus on the Family issued an emphatic clarification<\/a> on the front page of their website:<\/p>\n

Dr. James Dobson wants all friends of Focus on the Family to know about an error involving him that appeared on Page 1 of Wednesday’s Washington Post. In a story about Christians’ views on the Harry Potter books and films, reporter Jacqueline Salmon wrote that “Christian parenting guru James Dobson has praised the Potter books.”
\nThis is the exact opposite of Dr. Dobson’s opinion \u2014 in fact, he said a few years ago on his daily radio broadcast that “We have spoken out strongly against all of the Harry Potter products.” His rationale for that statement: Magical characters \u2014 witches, wizards, ghosts, goblins, werewolves, poltergeists and so on \u2014 fill the Harry Potter stories, and given the trend toward witchcraft and New Age ideology in the larger culture, it’s difficult to ignore the effects such stories (albeit imaginary) might have on young, impressionable minds. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I’m not sure I could disagree more. Bring on more Potters, more fantasy, more things that expand our minds beyond the temporal, beyond the material, beyond the physical. We live in a mystical world where good and evil both exist and the more things that point to that reality the better.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week, a Washington Post article speculated that the next great Potter-type book might just be an explicitly Christian-themed book. In the article, the reporter incorrectly stated that Focus on the Family head James Dobson embraced the Potter books. 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