Harry Potter vs. Sarah Palin: The Final Epic Battle
Watching the final Harry Potter film over the weekend, I was struck by just how wrong my mom had been. You see, when my sister and I were young, my mom, a devout Christian, forbade us to watch anything remotely "Satanic," which included any and all things supernatural. Thus, "I Dream of Jeannie," "The Munsters," "Bewitched," among many others, were forbidden in our house, which -- of course -- made them all the more alluring.Now, I am not a Harry Potter fanatic, as what I know of the series, I only know through our boys. And while they love the movies, their knowledge of the books is haphazard at best. But I went into the final film with a basic knowledge of the back story, and the boys enthusiasm for the series brought me on board. Still, compounding matters is that my mother has made it clear to us that she believes that Harry Potter is just as "evil", anti-Christian and blasphemous as those harmless 60's sitcoms (none of which she has, of course, actually seen.)My mother has fought for years against perceived evil, even in the most benign of places. She has made it her duty to protect her children and grandchildren from invisible horrors, while never tackling the bigger problems of our day. Did she instill in us a need to care for the environment? To be of service to others? To battle for peace and justice? To truly "do the work of Jesus"? Not really."Harry Potter" is, like so many stories before it, a Christ-tale, which makes my mothers opposition to it even more befuddling. While, yes, he is a practitioner of wizardry, his battle is not against good, but against the deepest evil: the evil which seeps into the soul.
To my mother, though, evil is easily identifiable. It is the "other", with the assumption that you are the good. And yet, as history has taught us, evil can come in any form. It could be the boy next door, or in the smile of an acquaintance. Rarely does it come wearing the requisite horns and carrying the proverbial pitchfork.This weekend, interestingly enough, "Harry Potter" battled many films, including "Sarah Palin: Undefeated," for the title of box office champ.While there was no question Harry would triumph over Sarah, the lack of audience for Palin was both surprising and encouraging.Sarah Palin has quickly created her own myth, with help from a crack team of PR agents, which is a very white-bread, stars and stripes, Colgate-teeth version of what it means to be "American" and "Christian." Her carefully crafted tale is that Sarah has battled against all odds, somehow -- through the grace of God -- made it through a "grueling" two years of a four year term as governor, and -- having done so -- is here, ready to lead the masses.But she doesn't rate shit compared to Harry. Daniel Radcliffe started making Harry Potter films when he was only 11, and completed them when he was 21. Which means that he portrayed Harry for 10 years -- eight years longer than Sarah Palin performed her role -- and Mr. Radcliffe actually finished the job.
And, along the way, Harry battled Lord Voldemort, assorted horcruxes, and the hoards of Death Eaters, while all Sarah Palin battled was a bridge to nowhere, grumpy old McCain, and the "lame stream media."While it would be easy to pick on Ms. Palin, in truth, I feel sorry for her. She has a very misguided view of what being a Christian truly means, in terms of being both humble and doing the work of Jesus. She has somehow come to believe that she is Jesus, but exhibits none of his desirous traits.My own faith is a bit unclear, but I do believe in a higher power and that we are here to help others. I am less certain, though, in my belief that the Bible is anything more than a terrific take on Aesop's Fables. I believe in the lessons behind the stories, but have a hard time believing in the various miracles, and definitely don't believe that the Bible is meant to be taken as historical fact.
Regardless, I try to live my life by following those same lessons. I try to be of service, to be kind and caring, and to follow the path of peace and justice. And I wish more "Christians" would do the likewise.Harry Potter came to realize something very important -- he and Voldemort were essentially the same, with evil residing within. It was only their choices and actions which delineated them.Another famous practitioner of magic, Glinda from "The Wizard of Oz," had it right when she asked Dorothy, "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?"We are all witches and wizards. We all have the capacity to do either harm or good. We just need to decide which side of the battle we are on.