No God in Deathly Hallows?

by Johnny

Who would have thought that Michael D. O’Brien and Lev Grossman would have something in common, particularly since both, while holding diametrically opposing worldviews, are so eager to say that there is no God in Harry Potter. And they proclaim this in the midst of an overwhelming positive response to the Christian themes in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Perhaps we can forgive them for being too pompous or stubborn to acknowledge these reviews, but there is no excuse for them to ignore the words of J.K. Rowling. Consider what she said on the Today Show with Meredith Vieira:

Well, there– there clearly is a religious– undertone. And– it’s always been difficult to talk about that because until we reached Book Seven, views of what happens after death and so on, it would give away a lot of what was coming.

In the past JKR has shown reticence in sharing her religious beliefs lest they would give away what was coming in the books. In an Vancouver Sun interview that every Christian fan of the series should know, Max Wyman asked her if she was a Christian and she answered yes before saying:

Which seems to offend the religious right far worse than if I said I thought there was no God. Every time I’ve been asked if I believe in God, I’ve said yes, because I do, but no one ever really has gone any more deeply into it than that, and I have to say that does suit me, because if I talk too freely about that I think the intelligent reader, whether 10 or 60, will be able to guess what’s coming in the books.

In an earlier interview with Evan Solomon, JKR expressed her frustration and said, “Again, there is so much I would like to say, and come back when I’ve written book seven. But then maybe you won’t need to even say it ‘cause you’ll have found it out anyway. You’ll have read it.” This frustration was due to the protest of the novels by South Carolinians and all the persistent questioning of JKR’s religious views in light of all the magic in her books. I have documented elsewhere the evidence for JKR being a Christian and religion in Harry Potter, but the point is that anyone who neglects to pay attention to an author’s words when trying to examine their work, do so at their own peril.

Now what about the last novel? What did O’Brien and Grossman miss? First are the scriptures that Albus Dumbledore chose for the tomb epitaphs for Kendra and Ariana Dumbledore (“Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also”), and presumably for James and Lilly Potter (“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death”) in Deathly Hallows. These scriptures, found in Matthew 6.21 and 1 Corinthians 15:26 respectively, were not lifted out of the Bible at random, but are relevant verses for the storyline. The context of the first verse is that one cannot serve two masters, God and money. Dumbledore was seduced by power and the quest for immortality through the Deathly Hallows. As a consequence, his foolhardy quest led ultimately to the death of his sister, Ariana. We can argue that Dumbledore settled for earthly treasures rather than the heavenly treasures that Christ spoke about. The context of the second verse is of course Christ’s Resurrection and the hope for our own. As Christ sacrificed himself and rose from the dead three days later, Harry Potter laid down his life for those fighting against evil and in the end, triumphed over Voldemort, thus saving the wizarding world. This would make Harry a Christ figure in the novels. What is even more fascinating about these scriptures is the fact that Dumbledore is aware and probably owns a Bible himself.

Second would be the presence of a church in Godric’s Hollow. Yes, an actual church serving as a backdrop to the cemetery outside it. While Harry and Hermione were busy searching for his parents tombstone, parishioners inside the church were singing Christmas carols. Perhaps they were singing “O, Come All Ye Faithful” or “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”, which are two carols mentioned (or alluded to in the case of the second) in Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix respectively. If you look at the lyrics of these songs, they are filled with explicit references to God. Harry and Hermione were within earshot of the carol singers and even after they found the grave of Harry’s parents, Harry felt like suggesting to Hermione that they should take refuge in the church.

O’Brien and Grossman are wrong about the death of God in Deathly Hallows. The awareness of biblical scripture and the presence of a church in Godric’s Hollow are enough examples to cast doubt on O’Brien and Grossman’s conclusion that Harry Potter is devoid of God. Even more important is that we have to take into account JKR’s statements regarding her work. If she says that her belief in God is the key to unraveling the series conclusion, then we have to take this into account when examining whether God appears in the series. O’Brien and Grossman fail to do this. Strange bedfellows, indeed.