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Originally Posted by EatingPie
In The Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter became a Christ figure.
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No, he became a self-sacrificing hero. Christ is not the only one of those.
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And we finally learn that Christian imagery has been a part of the series from the very beginning.
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JKR grew up in a culture steeped in Christian imagery; it finds its way into pretty much everything that doesn't take specific efforts to avoid it.
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A major theology of Christianity is that Christ made a loving, substitionary (he substituted himself for all humans) sacrifice that brings salvation to humanity, and his blood is one of the primary symbols of this salvation-bringing sacrifice.
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Another major theology of Christianity is that the reason this was effective, and other people's willing self-sacrifice would not be, is that he was divine. Was Lily Potter actually impregnated by a deity, not James Potter?
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- Harry makes a loving, substitutionary sacrifice.
In order to save the lives of those he loves, Harry chooses to die at Voldemort's hand.
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Dumbledore chose to die at Snape's hand, for Voldemort's purposes. What makes his sacrifice less effective? Christ died at the hands of the Roman army, not any supernatural entity.
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- Harry offers "salvation" to most evil personality in his history.
Harry attempts to show mercy to Voldemort three times, asking him to show "remorse" twice. This is equivalent to the Christian concept of repentance.
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When did Christ offer the opportunity for repentance to his killers?
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- Lily makes a loving, substitutionary sacrifice for Harry.
- Lily's loving sacrifice imbues protection upon Harry.
- The blood is the vehicle of this protection.
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Lily, of course, is the first mother in the history of wizardkind to willingly die for her child. Riiiight.
There are some similarities. There are also plenty of differences, and similarities to other dying/reborn hero myths.
Anyway, if the Harry Potter books are actually Christian allegories, what does that mean? That they become acceptable for Christian children, and as a non-Christian parent, I should discourage my kids from reading them or seeing the movies?