Hogwarts..

...school of witchcraft and wizardry...


Harry Potter is so ridiculously controversial...while I would LOVE to get into the argument of the biblical defense and theological implications of allowing children to be exposed to a "warlock" hero...something more pressing deserves analysis



Harry Potter is a series about one of the most quintessential problems of our time, and I'm willing to say in all of history since the beginnings of the Hebrew people (I say it as if they aren't my people which they are in the way that matters). That issue is xenophobia, ethnocentrism, racism...however you want to label it Harry Potter addresses it and it's huge. The fact that Lord Voldemort is analogous with Hitler, the Hutu people (not all of them), Mugabe, Pol Pot(he's somehwat of an exception not becuase his crimes weren't as heinous because they were), the Burmese military Junta, basically whenever the words filthy and pureblood come into the mix there is reason to be concerned. The reduction or removal of human dignity. I would be as bold as to link this ideal which was "perfected" by the Nazi's to pure, unalderated Satanistic. The idea of meaningless and purposeless mass murder can only be linked to the evil one. The question is always asked "Why would Satan continue to fight, when he knows he's going to lose?" Just like many say Hitler knew he was never going to win the war...Most of the people I named (if not all) knew that eventually they would lose...but I think the most atrocious thing is I'm not sure if it's about winning or losing...I'm not sure if there is anything reasonable or rational about it...that what scares me the most for situations like Darfur, and possibly Zimbabwe...not that genocide hasn't or isn't occuring on every continent becuase surely it has or is or will...it's seemingly as unavoidable as it is irrational...

Harry says something at the end of the 5th movie that gave me the greatest bit of hope I've had about this whole genocide thing in a while he says "Voldemort doesn't have something that we do...something worth fighting for"...and there it is...unfortunately that "something" for some is just humanity...I think to stop there would be to fail to realize that humanity alone can't save itself and just perpetuate the problem...that humanity is destorying itself and has no hope alone...that human beings are never going to get better alone...in fact its fairly clear that they are getting worse if anything...to trust and hope for the best in humanity would be the most hopeless choice of them all because you would just be let down...at least if you have no hope you won't be let down by a shadow...by a blade of grass...unfortunately I fear Harry Potter falls into this worldview of secular humanism but I think it's slightly different in that i'm not really sure how the afterlife works in the wizarding world...ha

...but Jesus Christ is more than just escaping a post-mortem hell...he's facing this one with an assured confidence. He is trustworthy, he is more than a shadow, and he will not let us down. He is absolutely worth fighting for, and fight we must. We are called to be ministers of reconciliation becuase like a freind used to (still does just not at my church anymore ha) preach, God has come to make all things new through his son Jesus Christ, and he has called his people, his fold...an adopted, grafted follower such as myself to aid this process. Too often however, I perpetuate some very serious problems and world issues that I don't even realize the magnitude of...the scarier thing is sometimes I'm well aware....I am a deeply sinful person with more concern for myself than anything else, but i'm being restored...under construction if you will...anway back to the issue at hand...if Christ is the answer and this soverign God worth fighting for then how could he allow all of these things to happen?....I don't know the answer to this question, but three things I do know 1.) that in the end all will be made right in the world, 2.) that while i'm here I'm called to help make that kindgom a reality now by fighting injustice, showing and telling people that God is in constant pursuit of them and experiencing God's love in my own wicked heart and mind, 3.) that we would never know suffering unless there was something absolutely good, absolutely perfect to compare it to,...and while too many people attribute this to things of this world...we all must recognize that they come from the Lord becuase too many people look at the bad in the world and blame God but look at the good in the world and boast in man. ...people look at tradgedy and say "How in the world could a loving God allow this to happen?"...the problem is in the inquirer...like my friend Heath always says...if you aren't asking the right questions, you won't get the right answers...the question needs to become..."How did men get this evil?!?"...sure people do very good things...Oprah donates a lot of money to people who are in desperate need of it (she isn't the only one or even the greatest example in my opinion but for context purposes)...but not on her own accord...only by God's grace because for some strange reason God decides to use human beings (not 100% of the time...he has an infinite amount of other ways of revealing himself) to do His work in the world...but too many people spend too much time focusing on the shadow...and they miss the moon...

Anyway enough of my apologetic rant...

Somwhere in the mix of that rant however, was a little trace of my current path to self-discovery (one that never ends for people I hear)...but I'm at a very strange, exciting, and SIGNIFICANT point right now. I received a great beacon from my friend Winn...who told me three important things...to be kind to myself, to ask God what he truly thinks of me (which I found out that he wasn't mad at me which is something I didn't even know I thought but I definitely did) and that I need to be honest with the pain that I face. In many ways becuase of this it could be argued that I experienced grace for the first time in my life. That i'm truly learning what self-love looks like becuase I'm gaining assurance of God's love for me...while it may sound trivial or like something I should have already understood...it has been the most freeing and desriable feeling, thought process, peace...I have ever experienced and I couldn't be more satisfied. I no longer feel as alone, isolated, and at war. I know he's there and I know he's on my side...now if I can just learn to depend on and trust Him...

Another thing I've been learning is that my heart has no walls...that I let people in and out whenever they please, becuase that's what i've become a people pleaser....that way too often I've let people come in no matter what, and while this hurts me tremoundsly...I've recently discovered that others can be hurt in this process as well. What's sad is that when it's just me I don't care enough to change but because I know it hurts others then I start to wake up and realize what's going on...without self-respect one cannot attain self-love...I don't think at least

That's why my new favorite quote is "It takes a lot of courage to become who you really are." and that's what I want to do...throw off my fear and just be Ray Hobbs regardless of who likes it but because that's what God has asked...Gal 1:10...one of the greatest verses I've mediated on...shown to me by Molly Hagan...my first love...hahahaha

"i’ll do whatever it takes to squeeze us into this wedding gown...i’ll say the words that rattle your nerves words like sin and faith alone"

I'm freaked out about what to do after college...my friend Jim challenged me...don't think about what you want to do...think about who you want to become...and that's right where I am in my journey thankfully...God's timing is right on time and I didn't even realize it because I'm very "right now-minded"...he's guiding me for sure...not that i'm worry free now about graduating in December...but I know that I'm on the right path...


this is enough for now...more to come later for sure