Michael O'Brien's Toronto Art Exhibit and Talk: The Vocation of a Christian Artist

Michael O'Brien giving his talk in the chapel at Regis College

Recently I had the privilege of meeting Canadian Catholic artist and author, Michael O'Brien, at his art exhibit and talk at Regis College, the Jesuit School of Theology at the University of Toronto.

It was a much anticipated event on my part as I am not only familiar with his artwork, but even more so with his writings on culture and fantasy.

Although I have corresponded with O'Brien over the years, part of which included expressing my gratitude for his writings, it was only up until last week that I was able to extend my gratitude in person: what a gratifying feeling that was.

Born in 1948, O'Brien is the author of twenty-eight books, several of which have been published in fourteen languages, and widely reviewed in both North America and Europe. His articles on faith and culture have appeared in several international journals such as: Communio, Catholic World Report, Catholic Dossier, Inside the Vatican, The Chesterton Review, and Our Sunday Visitor. He was also the editor of Nazareth Journal, a Catholic family magazine.

O'Brien has given hundreds of talks at universities and churches throughout the world. His interviews and articles have been translated for foreign language journals: Croatian, French, Spanish, Italian, and Polish.

As a professional artist since 1970, O'Brien has had more than forty exhibits across North America. Exclusively painting religious imagery since 1976, O'Brien's talents have not gone unnoticed. Over the years he has been commissioned to produce many works: the painting of the martrydom of Saint Thomas Becket by the Thomas Becket Fund, the American Catholic law firm in Washington, D.C. that fights for religious liberty; a series of four paintings for the novitiate chapel for the Companions of the Cross, a Catholic religious Order in Canada; and a host of other works for churches, monasteries, universities, communities and private collectors in Canada, the U.S.A., England, Germany, Italy, Australia, and Africa.

O'Brien is the recipient of many awards: the Canadian Christian Writing Award, from the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada: First Place, for Eclipse of the Sun, awarded 1999; the Andrija Buvina Award from the Church in Croatia, for accomplishments in Faith and Culture, awarded 2005; The Servant of the Word Award, from the Archdiocese of Denver, Colorado, awarded 2006; The Archbishop Adam Exner Award for Catholic Excellence in Public Life, from the Catholic Civil Rights League, Canada, awarded 2012; Logos Book Award, “Best 2012 Book—Fiction” for The Father’s Tale, from the Logos Bookstore Association, U.S.A., awarded 2013; and the Catholic Culture Award, from Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Academy, awarded 2014.

Michael also teaches art history at Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Academy, a Catholic college in Barry's Bay, Ontario. He currently resides near Combermere, Ontario where he and his wife Sheila have six children and ten grandchildren.

My initial discovery of Michael O'Brien from his writings on culture and fantasy

I first came to know of Michael O'Brien through his writings on the Harry Potter occult controversy. Back in January'2002 a Franciscan friar handed me a print-out of an article from SpiritDaily.com of Father Gabriele Amorth's warning on the dangers of Harry Potter. I took the warning seriously and endeavoured, together with the friar, to research it further. It wasn't long before I arrived at LifeSiteNew's, Harry Potter Problem: Whirlwind of Controversy page where I bookmarked and printed out several articles, including those from Michael O'Brien.

What resulted from that research—which eventually led me to the reading of O'Brien's book, Harry Potter and the Paganization of Culture—was an awareness campaign disseminating information on the dangers of Harry Potter, that a few years later became a blog post titled, The Dangers of Harry Potter: The Occult Controversy.

To get a sense of the depth of O'Brien's contribution to Christian culture, consider visiting his web site, studiObrien.com, and in particular the two sidebar links, Writings on Fantasy, and Writings on Culture. Both have an impressive list of articles that are sure to satisfy any reader in search of the truth, knowledge, and understanding.

StudiObrien.com is the perfect, one-stop location to be brought up to speed for those who were never aware of the many controversial cultural issues that had infiltrated into Canadian mainstream society. Some prime examples that you may want to consider are: Harry Potter and the Paganization of Culture, the Twilight vampire series, The Golden Compass, and Pan's Labyrinth.

As to some of O'Brien's fairly recent writings on culture, I found his article, Euthanasia: from war crime to act of compassion, to be most intriguing. Those who have an appreciation for history will find it to be a thought provoking read that truly speaks of that most valuable lesson to be learned from history, quoted perfectly in Winston Churchill's 1948 speech to the House of Commons, in which he paraphrased George Santayana (The Life of Reason, 1905), "Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it."

His most recent article posted on his web site, Reflections on the Church, is a friendly reminder to "keep the faith" regardless of the current condition of the Church, particularly in North America and Western Europe. The last sentence of the article says it all, "Take heart. Trust in the Lord, especially when there seems to be little or no grounds for trust." 

I could not do justice to O'Brien's contributions to Christian culture without mentioning his newsletters. Many times his newsletters were exactly what I needed: a faith strengthening read of a Catholic witness whose love for Jesus permeated every aspect of his personal and professional life.

Most worthy of note is O'Brien's second instalment, dated September 25, 2003. It is a treasure trove for all Catholic artists, writers, and those involved in other creative endeavours. What I found particularly impressive and encouraging was his uncompromising fidelity to Jesus in his work, in a Canadian landscape that became increasingly secular over time, shunning Christianity in art and writings in the process. Perhaps it appropriate that I include a few excerpts:

A few thoughts on the new evangelization, and what it asks of us:

We live in a society that is almost completely dominated by death. The Holy Father [Saint Pope John Paul II] refers to modern western civilization as a "culture of death." He means by this more than abortion or the growing trend to euthanasia. Most families in the developed nations, including most Catholic families, feel pressured to eliminate children from their lives, one way or another. At the root of the culture of death is fear. St. Francis of Assisi called fear and discouragement a 'demon.'

'Perfect love casts out fear,' Jesus says. How do we grow in love? How do we cast out fear?

 ...To create always costs something in terms of human investment, labor, and sacrifice. To create a human life and to nurture it to maturity costs everything we have to give. So too, genuine culture costs. Sometimes it costs everything we have to give. And often the price entails our perseverance in the creation of words of Truth and Love in the face of all opposition and apparent failure.

...How, then, to be fruitful in a time such as ours? 

I have no quick strategies to offer you. 'Success' or 'failure' is entirely God's affair. Your and my responsibility is faithfulness to our 'talents' regardless of the cost. My secret is this: Abandon yourself with full confidence to Jesus, live the totality of the Catholic faith without compromise, and he will do the rest. Pray, work hard, pray, and don't give up...

...If creators of Christian culture hope to produce work that will bear good fruit, we must draw our life from the true source—our living Savior. He is real. He is present. But all to often we reduce him to an abstraction, giving him intellectual assent, but not our hearts.

This dichotomy, so endemic to the modern age, has negative consequences. The solution is simple. I repeat: Abandon yourself with full confidence to Jesus, live the totality of the Catholic faith without compromise, and he will do the rest.

Over the years I have printed out many of his newsletters and articles, and placed them into a folder that is over one inch thick and growing. Some of what was included in the aforementioned newsletter was reiterated during O'Brien's talk. 

The vocation of a Christian artist

Travelling from suburbia, I made sure to leave well in advance of the 7:00pm talk. Taking one of my trusted routes proved to be a very wise decision as I arrived at approximately 5:30pm, affording me the opportunity to pray in a quiet atmosphere at Saint Basil's Cathedral, just one block north of Regis College.

St. Basil's Cathedral, Toronto

Built in 1856, St. Basil’s Cathedral is the founding church of the Congregation of St. Basil in Toronto. It is an enormous and beautiful structure on a vast property that serves a large congregation and certainly accommodates many visitors.

I have attended Mass and received the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) at this cathedral many times; spending time there again was familiar territory. That same evening, before O'Brien's talk, I recited two sets of the Rosary mysteries (Sorrowful and Glorious) with the special intentions that God and Our Lady would protect Michael O'Brien, all those attending the event, and grant an abundance of graces and blessings for a successful night.

With about a half an hour to spare, I made my way to Regis College and viewed O'Brien's art exhibit; a small collection of selected paintings that he commented on during the latter part of his talk.

The talk, whose theme was The Vocation of an Artist, began promptly at 7:00pm and surprisingly, O'Brien apologized for having to abandon his planned talk due to his flu, which was barely detectable except for a handful of coughs. It did not seem to deter him in the least, as he was quite energetic, enthusiastic, and attentive to the task at hand. Perhaps it was God's way of telling him that He wanted O'Brien to speak from the heart, which is exactly what he said he would do, adding, "All I can give you is what I really am, what Sheila [his wife] and I, really are."

Only as the talk progressed did I come to understand God's wisdom in directing Michael to speak from the heart. Michael informed the audience that Sheila was in the back room praying for him which, as he further explained, is what she always does during his talks, no matter where his talks take him throughout the world. That fact alone spotlighted how important Sheila's role has been in Michael's career; a role whose significance became crystal clear to the audience later in the talk.

This complimented the comment made by the young priest, assigned to introduce O'Brien that night, who expressed something to the effect that, he no longer thought of the artwork and writings as coming from just Michael O'Brien, but rather from both Michael and Sheila O'Brien.

John Bentley Mays

The talk was given in honour of the late John Bentley Mays, an award-winning Toronto writer on contemporary architecture and visual art, and the author of several books, who O'Brien characterized as a probing and honest intellect, untainted by any ideological agenda; a man searching in the "deep waters," yearning to find something, to find some meaning hidden in art.

A portrait of John Bentley Mays by Gertrude
Kearns. From United States of Being 2005:
The John Bentley Mays Portraits.

Originally from Shreveport, Louisiana, Mays's career path led him to emigrate to Canada, where he eventually became an art critic in Toronto for four decades; and is considered to be one of Canada’s great observers, interpreters and explainers of art and architecture. Mays had passed away earlier this year as a result of a fatal heart attack on September 16.

O'Brien read and referred to Mays's book, Power in the Blood: Land, Memory and a Southern Family, which he described as the book that truly revealed who he was.

O'Brien went on to state that what the reader encounters in Mays's reminiscence is a, "Thoroughly modern man and a very great intellect, very cultured, urban, going back to his roots as a Southerner, seeking to know who he really was." 

He elaborated further by stating that this "Moving book is a long meditation of a person in late-middle age going back to where he came from, with new eyes, to see it for the first time."

Mays traced his family tree going back many generations to the early colonial days in Virginia; the author's eye is a reflection of his looking deeper into his personal history, in an attempt to find himself, to know a little better who he really is.

Mays did this through the eyes of an artist, who O'Brien went on to further describe:

A highly developed intellect, a highly articulate man, a master of words. He was a gifted writer who wrote not as an exercise in self obsession. As his reflections move through time and perception, what emerges is a poetic sense of the heart of the man's view of the world. His poetic sense is not easily come by, primarily it is something that is instinctive and very intimately connected to the sense of wonder; a wonder for the limitless phenomena of reality.

The Christian artist's responsibility to respect the sense of wonder

Segueing into a deeper reflection of wonder, O'Brien quoted Plato who said, "Philosophy is born of wonder," to which he added, " So too is art, so too is love." 

He went on to explain that when one falls in love with another, there is a sense of awe of the other being, a sense of silence emerges; a silence, a holy silence of attention before the mystery of the being of another. That other being could be the face of child or a landscape that evokes thoughts of the transcendent reality or the truth of the gospel; it can be practically anything that is true, beautiful, and good.

 Michael O'Brien's Ecce Homo

For the artist there is an immense responsibility, especially a Christian artist, to respect his sense of wonder, not only in his own creative processes, but in those who will gaze upon his work, who listen to his music or read his writings. He must respect the dignity not only of his subject matter, and himself as an artist, but also the dignity of the viewer.

O'Brien went on to point out that today's electronic culture does not lead us to wonder, but rather to an experience of thrills, that becomes addictive requiring increased dosages to achieve the same "high"; a consolation for living at an inhuman pace that is killing us. 

He challenged the audience to look at the symptoms, the fruits of contemporary society: are our children our greatest treasure; how often do we experience reverence; what is the condition of our cultural forms; does it lead us to wonder or does it keep "packin on more thrills."

Man is capable of wonder and growing in love. O'Brien explained that in a culture, born of love, seeking truth, and reverencing being, it is only art that flows from those springs in human nature, which transcends all races, time, and history, that will awaken the souls of those that find nourishment in it. 

O'Brien asks where shall such art be born? For a Christian or anyone living in the right order of natural law—whether or not he knows our Lord Jesus—seeking the truth, yearning for the good and beautiful, a kind of natural grace occurs. For the Christian artist, a sanctifying grace is possible. A grace to see farther and deeper and to come to a condition of reverence and to see reflected in nature, especially human nature, that what is glorious and beautiful because it is a reflection of He who is truth and beautiful, He who made us in His own image and likeness. 

Michael's conversion, meeting his wife, and the clarity of his vocation

At about the mid-way point of the talk, O'Brien took us back to the moment when his conversion became more profound, and how creative works begin to spring forth in his life, that eventually led him to the meeting of his wife; a meeting of great importance for him personally and professionally.

It was shortly after his conversion that O'Brien decided that he would venture out into the Gatineau hills (just north of Ottawa), to write a few paragraphs about nature. He came across a scene, a sapling about three feet tall growing from a heap of broken stones. Life had sprung up from where one would least expect it.

It was a scene whose significance was about to be revealed to him. As he set out to write about nature—which he never ended up doing—Michael's profound conversion was taking place. He described it as a time when, "The more he looked, the more amazing things appeared around me...my eyes were beginning to see deeper and farther than they had before..." O'Brien shared that little did he know that the sapling growing out of those rocks was to be a living metaphor of his own life; the beginning of a new life from what had previously been sterile ground.

It was at this point, in the early days of his vocation, that O'Brien began to draw; a time in which he experienced an inpouring of grace that illuminated his soul that resulted in the production of many drawings. Within a year, through divine providence, he had his first art exhibit in Ottawa in 1971. It proved to be quite a successful exhibit with three-quarters of the drawings sold.

The proceeds from that exhibit afforded him the opportunity to travel to British Columbia, where he came to a village that a friend was working at. It was at this village that he met his wife, which he married a few years later. He had abandoned all thoughts of becoming an artist, and set out to take on the responsibilities of married life.

A few months into the marriage, when Michael and Sheila were expecting their first child, Sheila had approached Michael and candidly stated, "Michael, you are an artist." As I watched and listened to Michael sharing this, I could not help but think that God was calling him back to his vocation through Sheila's insistence and certitude. 

This was confirmed a minute or two later. Michael shared that he sort of "shrugged off" the title of being an artist, and was set on meeting the responsibilities of a having a family. Sheila countered by stating, "God has given you a gift. God does not give gifts to leave them abandoned." That day was the return of Michael to his vocation as an artist.

Since that day in 1975, to present, O'Brien stressed the importance of his wife's unfailing support through some very long hard years. He went on to further state, "To be a Christian artist in these times is not an easy task."

A place we all could live

Michael O'Brien's painting: A Place We All could Live

During the second half of the talk, O'Brien displayed selected paintings in a slide show, and explained the meaning and inspiration behind each one.

The above painting, one of two that depicts a typical small Canadian town in winter, drew my attention and has since, become of one my favourite paintings. 

As to why Michael painted it, he explained that one day Sheila remarked how nice it would be to live in a small town where the church was the spiritual and physical center of the town, and the children were everyones' joy and treasure. In response to this, he set out to paint such a scene for his wife. 

Personally, I totally agree with Michael and Sheila, it would be great to live in such is a place. Concluding his comments on this painting, O'Brien asked the audience, "Does such a place still exist?" 

The gift to create and to know it is a gift from above

Michael O'Brien

Among the many things O'Brien shared with the audience was how blessed he has been considering that he was the individual least likely to succeed in his vocation. He was also blessed to see his radical poverty and then to be open, through grace, to receive many gifts. Among them was the gift to create and to know it was given from above and not his possession to do with as he willed.

Ever since my discovery of Michael O'Brien many years ago, I have always understood, and even more so from my attendance at the art exhibit and talk, that he is a deeply spiritual man; a man who has taken to heart Fra Angelico's advice to artists, "To paint the things of Christ, one must live with Christ."

What I discovered at his talk, that particularly impressed me, was O'Brien's pursuit to understand the meaning of his vocation. It wasn't just about developing the artistic skills, deep within was a desire to understand the meaning of it all. In addition to reading about other artists, one source of information that helped him to acquire the understanding, was Saint Pope John Paul II's Letter to Artists, in which he read the following paragraph:

Human beings, in a certain sense, are unknown to themselves. Jesus Christ not only reveals God, but “fully reveals man to man”. In Christ, God has reconciled the world to himself. All believers are called to bear witness to this; but it is up to you, men and women who have given your lives to art, to declare with all the wealth of your ingenuity that in Christ the world is redeemed: the human person is redeemed, the human body is redeemed, and the whole creation which, according to Saint Paul, “awaits impatiently the revelation of the children of God” (Rom 8:19), is redeemed. The creation awaits the revelation of the children of God also through art and in art. (14)

O'Brien talked a great deal about the vocation of an artist through the narrative of his life and that of other artists, who like him, have been faithful to their talents regardless of the cost.

Reflecting back on the talk, I can not help but think of how he has lived the recommendations from the second instalment of his newsletters: he has been faithful to his God given talents, and abandoned himself to Jesus with full confidence; he has lived the totality of the Catholic faith without compromise; and prayed, worked hard, and never gave up.

What Michael O'Brien has wonderfully and passionately communicated regarding his vocation as an artist and author, is that it involves prayer, hard work, faith, and perseverance. It certainly was a very pleasant feeling to know that his career has been quite successful, one that has included the opportunity to give talks throughout Canada and the world. Where would we be without them?

It was a privilege to be in attendance at his art exhibit and talk, and an honour to have finally met Michael O'Brien; a man who I greatly admire and who earned my respect many years ago.

Thank God for Michael and Sheila O'Brien, for their past and continued contributions to the restoration of Christian culture.

The Dangers of Harry Potter: The Occult Controversy

Fr. Gabriele Amorth, Pope Benedict XVI, and Harry Potter

Although much of the spotlight and hype has been far removed from the Harry Potter book and movie series, a recent occurrence during my visit to a local Catholic parish had prompted me to revisit the occult controversy surrounding it, and subsequently publish today's post on the dangers of Harry Potter.

In addition, J.K. Rowling, the author of Harry Potter, has sought opportunities to parlay the book and movie series into new projects. You might already be familiar with some of them, the various Harry Potter theme parks throughout the world, the video games and more.

Rowling's most recent effort has been her screenwriting debut in a Harry Potter spin-off for a new film titled, Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them. The film's movie title was inspired by a textbook of the same name, given to pupils at the Hogwarts School, a school for learning witchcraft in Harry Potter.

Let me first explain what happened at a parish, here in my local community of Woodbridge, Ontario. It was during a recent visit to St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church that I was in conversation with two women in the parish office. We had briefly talked about the topic of children's readings and Harry Potter, and I had mentioned how some parents were pleased with the Harry Potter series because they found their children were reading books, as opposed to playing video games and other things. Before I had the opportunity to expand on this, one of women replied, "Oh, all my children were raised with Harry Potter, they have read all the books, seen all the movies." Her enthusiastic tone and disposition indicated to me, that she was not aware of the occult controversy surrounding Harry Potter. I did not reply to her comment, but kept quiet pondering what if anything, I should say or do about it.

In thinking and praying about it, it became clear to me that the best thing I could do was to share this experience on my blog. By doing so, not only can I fully reply to her comment, but help others who have confronted similar scenarios. At the very minimum, today's post seeks to spread awareness on the truth about Harry Potter.

The fundamental danger of Harry Potter is that it propagates and glorifies the occult. This is due to the fact that contained within the story lines are high levels of occult material. Add to this the target audience, primarily children and teenagers, and the danger becomes even more alarming.

The truth is that the Harry Potter stories, both print and film versions, seduce and corrupt souls that have just begun to develop. Children and teenagers due to their age and inexperience, lack the knowledge and understanding to determine what is evil and what is good. As such, when the youth read the books and see the movies, they do not reject them for their occult content, but on the contrary, they find the story lines exciting and entertaining. The added danger to this is that children and teenagers become desensitized to the occult, and indifferent to suggestions that such things are evil and wrong.

Whether you are new to Harry Potter controversy or you have little knowledge of the occult, I hope the following resources will clarify and strengthen your understanding of the dangers of Harry Potter. For your immediate reference, I have prepared a list of what the remainder of my post includes:

1. Warnings from Father Gabriele Amorth, Rome's former Chief Exorcist and co-founder of the International Association of Exorcists
2. Warnings from Bishop Julian Porteous, Auxiliary Bishop of Sydney, Australia 
3. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's Opposition to Harry Potter
4. Quote from the Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians 
5. References to the Catechism of the Catholic Church
6. J.K. Rowling's admission of Harry Potter's occult content
7. Father Lazare de la Mere de Dieu's insights
8. Michael D. O'Brien's extensive writings on the dangers of Harry Potter
9. LifeSiteNews.com's dedicated location, Harry Potter - A Whirlwind of Controversy

Warnings From Father Gabriele Amorth

Father Gabriele Amorth's first major public warning came in early December 2001, and was reported in LifeSiteNews article, Rome's Chief Exorcist Warns Parents Against Harry Potter. The article states, "Behind Harry Potter hides the signature of the king of the darkness, the devil...that J.K. Rowling’s books contain innumerable positive references to magic, the satanic art. He noted that the books attempt to make a false distinction between black and white magic, when in fact, the distinction does not exist, because magic is always a turn to the devil."

In 2006, Father Gabriele repeated his warnings on Harry Potter. LifeSiteNews once again reported the major warning in the article, Vatican's Chief Exorcist Repeats Condemnation of Harry Potter Novels. In the article, Father Gabriele is quoted as saying, "You start off with Harry Potter, who comes across as a likeable wizard, but you end up with the Devil. There is no doubt that the signature of the Prince of Darkness is clearly within these books. By reading Harry Potter a young child will be drawn into magic and from there it is a simple step to Satanism and the Devil." The warnings are clear, magic should always be avoided as it is evil and can lead to greater evils.

Warnings From Bishop Julian Porteous

In 2010, Father Jeremy Davies, co-founder of the International Association of Exorcists, led a discreet forum on the ancient rite of exorcism in Sydney, Australia at the Mary MacKillop Place in North Sydney. At the forum was Bishop Julian Porteous, Exorcist and Auxiliary Bishop of Sydney. The forum was in response to the increased need for exorcists in Australia.

The need for increased amount of exorcisms has been a result of, as Bishop Porteous points out, an increased involvement with a variety of New Age and occult practices.  In an article from The Australian, Deliver Us From Evil, Bishop Porteous states:

What starts off seeming innocuous and not creating any difficulties at some stage turns dark. They start to experience quite frightening personal phenomena and it is at this stage that they turn for help. Bishop Porteous sees a link between the growing demand for exorcisms and the spiritual adventurism of young Australians. He says the growth of non-Christian alternative relaxation techniques such as yoga and reiki, as well as forms of divination such as tarot cards, fortune-telling and seances, pose temptations that could invite demonic trouble. He also points his finger at popular culture, saying the Harry Potter books and films, and the vampire-themed Twilight series, have revived curiosity with the supernatural. “While Twilight and Harry Potter are not in themselves demonic, they can lead to a fascination in this world and young people can be drawn and become more attracted to these things.

Clearly, the message from Bishop Porteous is to completely stay away from these deceptive instruments of evil. Why any one would willing even consider doing the opposite would have to be, in some cases, simply a matter of being uninformed and unaware of the dangers.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's Opposition to Harry Potter

In 2003, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, then Cardinal Ratzinger, entered into the debate and provided clarity on the Roman Catholic Church's position on Harry Potter, with his support for German writer, Gabriele Kuby.

Gabriele Kuby had raised objections about Harry Potter. The thrust of her objections was that Harry Potter corrupts the hearts of the young, preventing them from developing a properly ordered sense of good and evil; thus, harming their relationship with God while that relationship is still in its infancy.

Kuby was interviewed by Zenit, during which she quoted Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's support for her efforts, "It is good that you shed light and inform us on the Harry Potter matter, for these are subtle seductions that are barely noticeable and precisely because of that deeply affect (children) and corrupt the Christian faith in souls even before it (the Faith) could properly grow.” This quote and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's opposition to Harry Potter can be read at LifeSIteNews article, Pope Benedict Opposes Harry Potter Novels.

Saint Paul's Letter to the Galatians

In Saint Paul's Letter to the Galatians, he states, "Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal 5:19-21) The key word is this passage is "sorcery," as it is rampant throughout the Harry Potter story line, with the casting of spells, creation of potions etc.

Catechism of The Catholic Church

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part Three: Life in Christ, under Section Two The Ten Commandments: III "You Shall Have No Other Gods Before Me," no. 2117 states: 

All practices of magic or sorcery, by which one attempts to tame occult powers, so as to place them at one's service and have a supernatural power over others - even if this were for the sake of restoring their health - are gravely contrary to the virtue of religion. These practices are even more to be condemned when accompanied by the intention of harming someone, or when they have recourse to the intervention of demons. Wearing charms is also reprehensible. Spiritism often implies divination or magical practices; the Church for her part warns the faithful against it. Recourse to so-called traditional cures does not justify either the invocation of evil powers or the exploitation of another's credulity.

At the same location, in Section IV "You Shall Not Make For Yourself a  Graven Image" . . ."no. 2138 states, "Superstition is a departure from the worship that we give to the true God. It is manifested in idolatry, as well as in various forms of divination and magic."

The above references are unambiguous, and clearly expose how far the Harry Potter story lines take the reader from the true worship that should be only given to God. No matter how well J.K Rowling packages a departure of worship from God, and simultaneously makes the worship of demons seem exciting in the adventurous tales of a young boy's life, the truth is, that under no circumstances should God be replaced with the worship of demons. For an adult reader, it does not take much to understand this. For children and teenagers, one can only wonder if there is any understanding of this truth. 

J.K. Rowling's Admission of Harry Potter's Occult Content

Back in 1999 in an interview on American radio, the Diane Rehm Show, J.K. Rowling the author of Harry Potter, had admitted and revealed that not only had she studied witchcraft and mythology in order to write the books more accurately, but one third of the Harry Potter content is actual occultism. One individual, Pastor David L. Brown, Ph.D. wrote an article titled, The Problem With Harry Potter, in which he details the occult elements in the story line. To illustrate how extensive the occult content is, below is a listing of just some of the occult elements:

• Charms and Casting Spells: Accio (the summoning charm), Alohomora (a spell to unlock doors), Adava Kedavra (the killing curse), Mobiliarbus (magic spell to move objects) and several more.
• Divination (Fortune Telling): arithmancy (divination through numbers), rememberballs (marble sized balls used by the holder to tell if anything has been forgotten), parseltongue (snake language) and the mirror of erised (divination mirror).
• Sorcery: thujone (dangerous drug), mandrake (narcotic with magical powers), monkshood (deadly poison), wormwood (used for sleeping potion), elixer of life (potion to make a witch/wizard live forever), unicorn & blood drinking, Nicholas Flamel (an actual occult figure from France) and more.

Father Lazare de la Mere de Dieu, FJ Insights

Although Fr. Lazare's critique of Harry Potter was directed at the first book, his insights puts the entire book and movie series into perspective. In LifeSiteNews article, Harrycane: a sign of the times under the subheading, "Is Harry a Christian?" one of the key points that Fr. Lazare makes is with respect to the omission of God in Harry Potter. Catholic teaching tells us that we should never return evil for evil, but good for evil. Harry Potter and his friends throughout the story line return evil for evil. The fact that Harry Potter breaks rules and lies is no example of how children should behave. The underlying theme of Harry Potter is "the end justifies the means." This is not the message we want our children to learn.

Christians need to have their children raised with Christian values, which begins with an understanding in the existence of God, a fact never mentioned by Rowling. As Lazare states in his conclusion, "...For Christians, Jesus Christ is "the way, the truth and the life," and no matter what life situations they find themselves in or how difficult the journey, how they cope with it all will be determined by the presence of Jesus in their lives, and His faithful mercy."

The Writings of Michael D. O'Brien

Michael D. O'Brien is a Canadian author and artist, who seeks to contribute to the restoration of Christian culture in Canada. O'Brien has written extensively on the Harry Potter controversy beginning with his article, Harry Potter and the Paganization of Children's Culture. The article contains a wealth of information exposing the truth about Harry Potter's occult content as O'Brien states, "...[T]he series presents the world of witchcraft and sorcery in a positive light." He goes on to further expose the first four books. Here's a short list of just some of the occult content he has commented on:

• the reader is introduced into the world of sorcery
• the main character, Harry, enters Hogwarts, a school for witchcraft and wizardry, where student witches/wizards are taught to cast hexes and spells, and there are different classes for divination, potions, spells, herbology and other occult knowledge
• there is a false notion throughout that "the end justifies the means"
• there is no reference to a system or moral absolutes against which actions can be measured
• he quotes and refers to Fr. Gabriele Amorth, who has stated that sorcery is the growing cause of diabolic possession, and other forms of bondage to evil

O'Brien has also written a book, A Landscape With Dragons: The Battle For Your Children's Mind. O'Brien's analysis of the degeneration of books, films and videos for the youth is described as "incisive and detailed." O"Brien's most recent book is, Harry Potter and the Paganization of Culture, which includes: an analysis of each Harry Potter book; parental strategies for a healthy family culture; information on Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI's opposition to Harry Potter; insights into the war of disinformation and opinion; other occult material such as Twilight of The West, and the Golden Compass. O'Brien presents a list of questions, and seeks to answer those questions, addressing the concern as to why the dangers of the Harry Potter have not been taken seriously:

• Have people developed a misinformed opinion based on first impressions?
• Is it due to a lack of knowledge of the occult and demonic activity?
• Is there a presumption on the part of some, that children's books are automatically innocent in their content?
• Is there incomplete knowledge of the Catholic faith, and as such, a lack of ability to identify sinful material?

Further in Harry Potter and the Paganization of Culture, O'Brien expands on the use of symbolism and how J.K. Rowling has negatively influenced readers. O'Brien explains, "...Then there is the moral 'values' narrative, which lies beneath the surface, and is still visible but not so easily discerned---the constant dramatization of the end justifying the means. Beneath this layer is the narrative of symbolism, astonishingly rich in details, and equally impressive in the way it references the world of occult ideas and rituals in its many manifestations." (35) Some other important points that O'Brien notes:

• With hundreds of millions of readers of these occult books, the Harry Potter series is playing a significant role in a massive shift of consciousness, a lowering of our spiritual guard.
• No where in the series is there any reference to a system of moral absolutes against which actions can be measured.
• The argument that any type of reading is good, so long as children are reading is a flawed argument because it does not address the issue of the suitability of the reading material. Children should only be exposed to proper literary sources ensuring that the reading is moral and proper for their well being. 

In chapter eight, Where Is It All Going? O'Brien provides some key reflections and insights that are worth noting:

• O'Brien identifies the problem of a reduced of Christian life amongst the population. Due to the fact that so many Christians have not been living a Christian life, they have failed to become a contradiction to what Blessed Pope John Paul II referred to as the "Culture of Death," and what Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI referred to as, "the dictatorship of moral relativism." What has developed is a secular culture. For many who have any amount of faith, it is a faith that is compartmentalized. The consequences of this is that with each succeeding generation, God fades from the consciousness of our minds as the power of the mammon driven culture increases.
• O'Brien highlights the effects of such a reduced Christian culture by pointing to the fact that three generations ago, Harry Potter and other occult content would have never been acceptable or tolerated. For so many Christians who have either abandoned their faith or are ignorant of it, they have failed to discern the immoral content in the media, be it television, the internet, films and books.
• O'Brien also notes that there may be the incorrect presumption that occult material in the mainstream culture will end with Harry Potter. Based on the pattern that has developed in the last fifty years, it is very easy to put forth a compelling argument that there will be a host of new occult content to dazzle and deceive future generations.

Do we want children to be exposed to the pursuit of power, and esoteric knowledge as presented in the occult world of Harry Potter? No, we do not! As O'Brien states, "...In reality, magic is an attempt to bypass the limitations of human nature and the authority of God, in order to obtain power over material creation and the will of others through manipulation of the supernatural. Magic is about taking control. It is a fundamental rejection of the divine order in creation..." If you are a parent, and your children have been exposed to the Harry Potter book and film series, make no mistake, no matter how enjoyable your children how found them to be, the many dangers of Harry Potter are very real. 

One such danger is the very real possibility of exposure to Harry Potter may lead to the desensitization of occultism. For some children, who as they get older, it may lead to other aspects of the occult. As O'Brien states in his article, Harry Potter and The Paganization of Children's Culture, "...If magic is presented as a good, or morally neutral, is there not an increased likelihood that when a young person encounters opportunities to explore the world of real magic he or she will be less able to resist its attractions?" At the end of his book, Harry Potter and The Paganization of Culture, O'Brien has included his, Spiritual Strategies in The Pagan Tsunami. It is the answer to the problem of occult literature and how to protect the family from such evil. The article is available for reading at O'Brien's web site by clicking the above link.

LifeSiteNews.com - Harry Potter Whirlwind of Controversy

For a comprehensive listing of articles and other sources on the Harry Potter controversy, please visit LifeSiteNew's dedicate Harry Potter page, Harry Potter Whirlwind of Controversy.

To conclude, thank you for your patience in reading this exceptionally long post. Knowing how hard pressed some may be to find the time and energy to research the occult controversy surrounding Harry Potter, I intentionally included all the above resources in an effort to make this post a "one stop location" for parents in particular and all concerned individuals.

May God send you the grace to be strengthened and empowered by the information from this post.