A Nashville school priest, Reverend Dan Reehil has been advised by exorcists to ban the fantasy novels in the Harry Potter books, over fears the popular children’s novels could be used to summon spirits.
According to reports, Reverend Reehil who contacted the exorcists in Rome and the US got the recommendation to remove the fantasy novels from St. Edward Catholic School’s library in Tennessee.
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A global success, the Potter series by British author J.K. Rowling has been repeatedly banned from schools in the US and Britain, mostly for allegedly promoting satanic values or black magic.
In an email obtained by local media, the reverend is quoted as saying,
“The curses and spells used in the books are actual curses and spells; which when read by a human being risk conjuring evil spirits into the presence of the person reading the text.”
The superintendent of schools for the Catholic Diocese of Nashville, Rebecca Hammel also told The Tennessean newspaper that Reehil had “canonical authority to make such decisions. The pastor made the decision after receiving an inquiry from a parent, Hammel told the Tennessean.
“Although the school used to stock the books, it will not offer them to pupils in its newly opened library,” Hammel said.
Launched in 1997, the series of books spins an epic tale of good and evil focused on the adventures of the eponymous bespectacled young wizard as he struggles against the dark wizard Lord Voldemort. The original “Harry Potter” books, written by J.K. Rowling, were published between 1997 and 2007. The eight “Harry Potter” films were released between 2001 and 2011. The franchise has also spurned an amusement park, a Broadway show, and several related works written by Rowling.
The film and book series received phenomenal global success, and have also sparked international debates over the past two decades. The view that “Harry Potter” is a threat to religion is not a new concern, as columnist Daniel Nexon wrote in New Republic in 2007. At that time, the final instalment of the book series was being published, and the fifth film had just premiered.
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