Let me start off by saying I love satire. I love subverting humour, poking gentle fun, and giving popular tales a funny twist. However, as many of you may know, it can sometimes be difficult to know if something is serious or satire… Sometimes the satire is so convincing that people are fooled into thinking it is fact: just one look at The Onion’s comments threads can enlighten one to this.
After reading snippets of Hogwarts School of Prayer and Miracles I can say I am not entirely convinced it isn’t a joke. It couldn’t be real, surely? Well, apparently it is, and it was written by a seemingly well-meaning Christian mother who felt witchcraft and wizardry offends her delicate values. I feel this off-base thinking, and misinterpretation of the original story is a reason many books have been banned in the past.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a liberal and open person who doesn’t enjoy the mockery of another’s beliefs, but when faced with a Christianised version of a hugely popular series I cannot help but giggle. While I can’t get through the whole thing without my inner grammar pedant screaming, or my outer cynic puking, I admire her dedication to her crusade against the evil of friendship, loyalty, and the fight between good versus evil.
Here are some segments from the piece so you can see for yourself:
Original story: Hogwarts School of Prayer and Miracles
RIDICULOUS.
Ah, no. It’s a joke. That last chapter was far too sarcastic not to be. I read through it, trying to be Unitarian Universalist and accepting and all that, and then that last chapter…
@Jaehyun: I think you mean RIDDIKULUS!
As a Christian, i’m quite offended she doesn’t “believe” in evolution as it’s a fact… Faith shouldn’t be related to scientific illiteracy.