You are what you read.

Well, there is some truth to that statement, anyways.

A review of past examples of great Christian leaders reveals that many enjoyed a diet of histories, biographies, and theologies during their youth.

The literary sustenance of our present generation is largely defined by evolution-driven science fiction, ungodly fear-provoking horror, and both the neo-pagan and occult imagery which is pervasive in much of the modern fantasy genre.

Such a feast is a recipe for cultural and spiritual disaster. It is not merely literary junk food, in some cases it is a slow poison.

This week we were reminded of America’s national cravings for yet another plate of “good” occult witch vs. bad occult witch, when the final installment of the Harry Potter series hit the book stands.

The other year, I addressed one aspect of the current debate concerning whether it is healthy for our children to ingest Harry Potter. The article was entitled: “Harry Potter and the Lavender Brigade: Is It Scriptural to Favorably Present Immoral Behavior in Fantasy Stories.”

The article generated a tremendous response. In my follow-up piece “Harry Potter Meets the Mercury Radio of the Air,” I explained that some people did not read the whole article and responded much the way another audience responded in 1938. But the responses continued to come in, and many were truly interesting. I also reported on “Harry Potter and Literary Santeria” as well as the Barna Group’s analysis of Harry Potter in Christian homes.

In my personal view, most of the arguments from professing Christians in defense of the legitimacy of good witches, good sorcerers, good centaurs, and good spell-casting, is more a product of emotions and experientialism, than sound theology. Christians—like the rest of America—are addicted to fantasy stories of sorcerers, centaurs, and witches. It is really as simple as that. Long ago they stopped asking the question—“is it a good idea to favorably use the images of idolatry, paganism, and the occult as metaphors of nobility and righteousness?”

The reason why the right questions are no longer asked is emotional, not theological: Once an individual has drunk deeply from the font of baptized paganism, and declared their first loyalty to warm childhood memories (of such happy figures as “Glinda the Good Witch”) it is simply hard to be hard on Harry. (Lets be honest—influences as diverse as Judie Garland in Oz, Saturday morning cartoons, Disney, and our much beloved “Jack” Lewis have contributed to this phenomenon.) Instead, new theologies must be adopted to compensate for the emotion-driven choices.

Today, SAICFF Judge, Dr. Voddie Baucham offers his thoughts on one of these theologies as it relates to the latest news from Pottersville. Voddie takes on the misguided “indulge in evil so you can be salt and light” argument offered by many Christian parents.

The end of the matter is this: We need a literary diet based on far more than just the exclusion of unhealthy toxins. We need a vision for nutritious, healthful literature that will fuel visionary men and women capable of thinking and acting like Christians. That means that far more is needed than a negative response to Harry Potter. That is helpful, but not sufficient.

Nor do we want the synthesis of Christianity and paganism by Christians hoping to appeal to the taste of the public for Potter, by sprinkling holy water on the subject. (I can see it now—a “Christian alternative” book and movie series with Evangelical witches and warlocks.)

Harry Potter may be A problem, but it is certainly not THE problem. The problem is that we have failed to cultivate a taste for that which should be supremely delicious because we have allowed the worst influences in the world to dictate what kind of literary food will be grown and supplied to the children of America.

That is why I am an advocate of replacement industries built on presuppositional analysis and distinctively biblical thinking. In this case it begins with answering a preliminary question:

How do we develop a distinctively, and presuppositionally biblical theory of literature, aesthetics, and discipleship, so that we can stock our cultural kitchens with only the most nutritious, healthful, and enjoyable (i.e. Christ-glorifying) products? That is one of the missions of our present generation.

We will answer the question or we will become victim of one of two unhappy outcomes: Death by starvation, or death by poison.