Harry Potter smackdown!

Over at Christianity Today, it's time for this year's Harry Potter Smackdown!

It begins with the positive review of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire at CT Movies, alongside an article called "Redeeming Harry Potter.".

Then, the letters start pouring into the CT Mailbag.

In this corner... Doug Kimball!

Redeeming Harry Potter.

And in this corner... Mary Ellen Mattern!

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Meanwhile off to the side ... our good friend Peter T. Chattaway considers Mary Ellen's assertion that Harry Potter offends Old Testament standards. He responds in his email to me this morning:

"I wonder if Mary Ellen Mattern ... realizes that the good guys in the Narnia books practise astrology and dance with maenads and Bacchus himself in a bacchanal. I believe the Old Testament had penalties for these abominations, too."

And another friend replies:

"Boy, Mary Ellen, if we are going by the Old Testament penalities, we are all in trouble. Disobey mom and dad? Death!"