Beyond Belief

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Religion & Ethics

Series exploring the place and nature of faith in today's world

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Beyond Belief: Harry Potter

Harry Potter

BBC Radio 4 - Beyond Belief, Harry Potter

Ernie Rea takes a look at the religious themes in Harry Potter.

Some Christian voices have suggested that the Harry Potter stories about witchcraft, magic and mythical beasts provide a gateway into satanic practices. But JK Rowling completely disagrees and she was glad that readers were unaware of her Christian faith at the time the books were first published because they might then have guessed the ending of the final book. To discuss the Christian allegory and religious themes in the Harry Potter books, Ernie Rea is joined by Dr Beatrice Groves (Research Fellow and Tutor in English at Trinity College, Oxford), Vanessa Zoltan (co-host of the podcast 'Harry Potter and the Sacred Text') and by author and lecturer John Granger who has been described by Time Magazine as “The Dean of Harry Potter Scholars”.

Producer: Helen Lee
Assistant Producer: Barnaby Gordon
Editor: Helen Grady

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