Question:
I'd really appriciate if Harry Potter fans could answer these questions :)?
?
2010-05-29 06:09:18 UTC
In the books, most of the characters have Christian names/surnames. They practise witchcraft which is completely forbidden in the Bible *CHRISTIANS USED TO BURN WITCHES IN THE MIDDLE AGES* and at the same time, they celebrate Christmas with such mirth.

Practising witchcraft is against the Bible and Jesus, so why the heck do they need to celebrate Christmas? Why should the armour stands sing carols?

Why the heck does Voldemort want the Philosopher's Stone when he has the time turner? Can't he get the time-turner and turn the time when he was powerful and try to kill baby Harry again?
Sixteen answers:
timebomb
2010-05-29 07:42:59 UTC
Hmmm... this would get a good debate in the Religion and Spirituality section.



Anyway, the answer is easy enough. Christmas was originally a Pagan holiday celebrating the Son of Isis. Gift-giving, feasting and drinking were common. The Bible gives no details about when Jesus was born exactly, but it may have been around September. Bible historians say it's impossible for Jesus to have been born on December 25th because it was snowing and the shepherds were tending their sheep simultaneously. Sheep don't graze where snow covers the ground. Many Christians believe Jesus' true birthday is Easter anyway.



Christians took the holiday and turned it into a day for Christ. Because of the Christians and Pagans rough history, it was basically like claiming a city for their leader. Halloween is also a Pagan holiday, many are, but in Pagan tradition Halloween isn't about Satan, but All Hallows Eve, honoring the dead. Just about everything the Pagans do is evil to most Christians, though. It's been that way for centuries.



In the Harry Potter world you can clearly see the people aren't Christians, but it doesn't necessarily make them Pagans either. Religion isn't talked about in Harry Potter. It's a children's book; it's irrelevant. But in the way they celebrated it, with the Yule Tide Ball and everything, you can also clearly see they weren't celebrating in a more Christian tradition, but in a more Pagan tradition which is the origin of the holiday anyway. They have done nothing against anyone's religion. If more people Googled "origin of Christmas" they wouldn't think it's so insulting. I think it more insulting that Christians don't acknowledge Christmas as what it is, a Pagan holiday turned Christian. But it's origins will always be clear.



I for one celebrate Christmas not as a religious holiday, but a time when most people are at their happiness. I celebrate that happiness and that family like bond people feel for one day of the year. It's a shame Christmas isn't everyday.



Voldemort never had a time-turner. Albus Dumbledore did. In any case, Voldemort was in hiding. It would have been very hard for him to track one down since they are very protected objects. Of course the people know in the wrong hands time-turners are deathly, so it wouldn't exactly be easy to obtain one. Besides, Voldemort had bigger fish to fry. He wanted Harry's blood, he wanted to be the one to kill him and prove Harry isn't so strong. Even if he did go back in time to when he was powerful, which was when he tried to kill Harry the first time, history would just repeat itself. Harry is stronger, no matter how strong Voldemort is. Harry had love, Voldemort never did.
Steven J Pemberton
2010-05-29 13:38:43 UTC
A lot of the witches and wizards are Muggle-born, meaning they didn't know they were witches or wizards until they got their letter from Hogwarts. A bit late to go changing their names then. Maybe their parents don't want to give them names that will stand out too much among the Muggles. (My own first name and middle name are "Christian", and yet I'm not a Christian - I wasn't raised one, and think the whole concept of having an invisible friend in the sky who sees everything you do is laughable. I don't see any logical disconnect here - my parents simply gave me names that were fairly common in the time and place I was born.)



It does seem a bit odd that wizards celebrate Christmas. Maybe they just like receiving presents as much as Muggles do. But Christmas was not originally a Christian festival. The early Christians hijacked pagan midwinter celebrations. It's no coincidence that Christmas is around the shortest day of the year, when the days start to get longer again, symbolising renewed hope and new life. Maybe the wizards remember the earlier traditions, and are celebrating the true meaning of Christmas. You'll notice that the wizards don't celebrate Easter. Hogwarts takes a holiday around then, but that's probably to fit in with the Muggle school calendar.



Voldy doesn't have a time turner. We don't know how powerful they are, or how far back in time they can go. Hermione never uses hers to go back more than a few hours - maybe that's the limit. Even if Voldy could have gone back and had another go at killing baby Harry, he wouldn't have succeeded. He couldn't do it when he was at the height of his power, so he couldn't possibly do it in the first book, when he was almost dead.



You might also want to look up "grandfather paradox", a common concept in stories about time travel. This is named after the question, "If you had a time machine, what would happen if you used it to go back and kill your grandfather before he met your grandmother?" You would never be born, so you can't go back and kill him. But then if you don't kill him, you're born after all, so you can go back and kill him. The paradox suggests both outcomes must be true at the same time. Voldy using a time turner to kill baby Harry is a more complex example of the same paradox.



EDIT: If Voldy wanted a time turner, he could've got one, or told one of his servants to steal one for him. That suggests a time turner wouldn't have been any use to him - or, as other answers say, he was too proud to try.



There are passing references in the books to Muggle persecution of wizards. It stopped a few hundred years ago, when the wizards decided to withdraw from the Muggle world. There's a bit at the start of one book (can't remember which) where Harry's doing an assignment on why burning witches at the stake was a pointless thing to do. (I think he said the witch could just cast a charm that makes the flames near her cold.)



Those who are saying "it's just a story" or "it has to be like that, otherwise the story wouldn't work" are missing the point. A story has to have some sort of internal consistency and logic, otherwise it's worthless - the author can make up whatever crap they want to get the heroes out of whatever tight spot they're in.
Toni
2010-05-29 14:08:10 UTC
I think you're thinking too much about this. Christmas is a holiday and is becoming less and less about Jesus every year. It's unfair to stop celebrating such a happy time if you believe in witchcraft. Plus, it would confuse the heck out of all the little kids reading it, because they aren't probably familiar with the Salem Witch Trials or anything, and would be super confused on why they wouldn't celebrate the merry holiday. Also, what about the Muggles who celebrated Christmas before going to Hogwarts? Are they just supposed to stop?



If Voldemort kept on going back in time, first of all, he'd meet up with himself and probably fight himself to the death. Second, Lily Potter would do the same thing each time: use old magic to protect her only son. And the books wouldn't even exist if Harry was killed.



Honestly, just enjoy the book and stop asking all these meaningless questions. It's how the books were written, just stop over thinking.
Suiris(Sirius) [RA]
2010-05-29 13:17:24 UTC
Well Christian names are really popular english names, quite alot of people have christian names even though they are athiest.

About Christmas well loads of people around the world celebrate it even if they are not christian, they just celebrate it as a festival. The wizards needed something to celebrate that was big and christmas is a really big festival.

Lastly Voldemort couldnt of used a time turner because when harry was a baby and weakened him he wasnt strong till 11 years later- the time turners go back in hours so he would of had to go back alot of hours

hope i helped
Becky_E
2010-05-29 13:16:49 UTC
Hey,



Some of the witches and wizards were with humans to begin with. Although Hogwarts and the magical world are made up the world outside of it wasn't. The young witches and wiz would have lived with 'muggles' who were maybe Christians and even if they weren't they would still have celebrated Christmas right?



As for the time turner, where does that come into play?

If you think about it Lily Potter would have still died to save Harry no matter how many times he went back and even so by changing one element of time would change many others for the worst. Besides it is, after all only a book.



Don't get worked up, it's there to be read for pleasure and not to be frowned upon for little insignificant details.



Bekah x
caring carer
2010-05-29 14:47:13 UTC
Voldemort never had a time turner in the story.



The early church were destroyers of the pagan religion but used pagan symbols to convert man or said the symbols were demonic. The early church made up most of the bible to suit their needs to convert people.



As for witch burning this was done because they hated women!



Christmas was celebrated long before christianity but was not called christmas! Pagans and early man celebrated the seasons throughout the year with different festivals and the early church stole those too. Again to make it easy for them to convert people to christianity.



For me both the bible and Harry Potter are a work of fiction. And Harry Potter makes far more pleaseant reading of good and evil than the bible.
Parker
2010-05-29 13:18:01 UTC
Well they don't know that they're actually supposed to be practicing magic until they're 11. Since, I assume, that the biggest religion in the U.K. is Christianity, they would have been brought up as Christians, therefore have the need to celebrate Christmas. There are certain RULES to the usage of the time-turner, and he wanted the philosopher's stone so he could rise again. He was basically, at the time, a free-roaming, unicorn-blood-sucking, ripped-up-soul that had to use the stone to grow in power.



Hope this helps!
Dobby.
2010-05-29 13:57:14 UTC
Ok.. your getting mixed up between Harry Potter, and reality.

In reality, they burnt people accused of witchraft. Obviously they had no proof, so poor innocent women were burnt at the stake.

Harry Potter.. so? I have a christian name.. im not a practising christian, and i celebrate xmas. And that was 'bad' witchcraft, supposedly. Harry Potter have the ministry, people and azkaban for people who misuse magic. Important muggle figures also know about the magical community of harry potter too, such as the prime minister.



About the voldy... the stone and time turner are completley different. He wanted the stone to make himself immortal... he was afraid of death, as dumbledore said throughout the novels. He was afraid of dying, and so made the horcruxes. The time turner... remember what Hermione said?? ''You mustn't be seen.'' Also, he probably saw that point as a weakness, a fault that destroyed him. Harry destroyed him, and so he'd want to kill harry in the present.

The prophecy said ''he shall mark him as his equal''.. a baby isnt his equal.
?
2010-05-29 13:14:53 UTC
well, he didn't have the time-turner, voldemort never saw the time turner. the stone was so he could get back into shape and kill harry. they are witches and wizards yet celebrate chrismas because: some are muggle-born, some don't give a rat's ***. and this makes it easier for the possibly christian reader to relate to this book.
Greg
2010-05-29 13:13:49 UTC
I understand how you feel that Christianity and witchcraft are incompatible, but wizards have the freedom of religion just like everyone else.



the Philosophers stone would make him immortal, so that is more valuable than a time turner.



and if he did go back in time the story would not be nearly as interesting
?
2010-05-29 13:17:27 UTC
Because in their society witchcraft is not something learned, it is something they are born with, an innate skill..therefore a natural right. In their society God does not persecute against something He gave them. He has separated them from "our" world where we would not understand them. But in their reality He has put injustice in the form of who has the most magical blood, those with less being seen by the enemy as mere trash.

Voldemort doesn't possess a time turner-they are at the Ministry of Magic and not given to just anyone. He was too arrogant to rely on a timeturner to fix his issue, he was too egotistical for that. He was power hungry and wanted to kill Harry himself, not by aid of having to do it in a do-over scenario.



Same as in Narnia books..Christianity is still there, with the a backdrop of magic. Doesn't mean all magic has to be deemed evil, as Harry and those on his side used magic for the betterment of mankind.
Ellie R
2010-05-29 13:47:55 UTC
Its a children's book. you're supposed to read it for pleasure, not because its accurate w/ names etc. And fyi, Voldemort didn't have a time-turner. The ministry keeps all of the time-turners and hands them out very sparingly.
2013-12-07 21:11:41 UTC
Okay, most people that I know aren't christian, but still celebrate Christmas, why should it be that only Christians celebrate it?
Secret Passion
2010-05-29 13:13:19 UTC
voldemort doesn have a time turner
meXems Place
2010-05-29 13:11:43 UTC
because if that didnt happen, the writer would NOT be a billionaire
sophia the sexy beast
2010-05-29 13:13:04 UTC
that is an amazing question and i have no idea


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