Harry Potter Meets Jesus

I ran across an interesting article in my local paper the other day. It was written by two professors at Fresno Pacific University a well-thought-of Mennonite institution. In it Eleanor Nickel and Audrey Hindes make note of the many nods they feel the Harry Potter series gives to the Bible.

For instance, the writers note the grave of Potter’s parents bears a biblical quote from Corinthians, and a war monument in a town square metamorphoses into a statue of Potter’s mother holding the infant Harry “replacing an image of violent conquest with one of the Madonna and Child.” Even in Harry’s mother’s name, Lily, they see “overtones of peace and the resurrection of Easter.”

The professors also remark on the parallels in the journeys of Potter and Jesus:

• Both have a “Gethsemane experience” where they agonize over the sacrifice they will choose to make.

• Both turn to a mentor for guidance, Potter to the white-bearded Dumbledore, Jesus to God the Father.

• Both walk willingly into death’s arms.

• Both return to the world they left.

Stories of struggle, death, and rebirth fascinate us and it may be that the trigger for this fascination is to be found buried deeply in our own psyches.

It was mythologist Joseph Campbell who first identified the twelve stages of what has come to be known as the “hero’s journey.” He found that these stages existed in stories told across all cultures and times. Campbell surmised that, on a primal level, all of us are drawn to this universal pattern.

The four stages demonstrated in the list above, in order, are:

• Refusal of the call—The hero's reluctance to leave the ordinary world.

• Meeting the mentor—The mentor may appear numerous times and take any guise.

• Supreme ordeal—This is the hero's greatest challenge. The hero often appears to die—metaphorically or otherwise—at this stage.

• Return with the Elixir—After the supreme ordeal, the hero returns with his new knowledge and shares it with those who stayed behind. Often the hero, since he has changed, no longer fits in the ordinary world and is unable to stay and enjoy the fruits of his journey.

Christ and Potter are archetypical heroes on a journey, and the writer of fiction—and biographies—desirous of a wide, lasting readership is wise to take a hint from their appeal and include as many of the stages of the hero’s journey in his stories as he can.

For more on the hero’s journey and how it applies to writers read Chris Vogler’s excellent book, The Writer’s Journey.