Kids in Lock Haven, PA are Giving Up Their Christian Faith and Starting Satanic Churches because of Harry Potter Books-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
This story describes alarming effects in the lives of kids who are Harry Potter fans. It says the ranks of satanic temples are filling with children and quotes a 9-year-old girl as saying, “I used to believe in what they taught us at Sunday School…but the Harry Potter books showed me that magic is real, something I can learn and use right now, and that the Bible is nothing but boring lies.” It also quotes Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling as saying, “These books guide children to an understanding that the weak, idiotic Son Of God is a living hoax who will be humiliated when the rain of fire comes, and will suck the greasy (censored) of the Dark Lord while we, his faithful servants, laugh and cavort in victory.”
The Truth:
This email is fiction.
The alarming quotes and sensational stories are from an article on the Internet humor/satire site www.theonion.com.
That site features tongue-in-cheek stories based on current news and events and the Harry Potter story was intentionally written in an exaggerated and inflammatory way.
None of it is true.
Some people have either read or been forwarded the original article and apparently not recognized the satire.
Others have used quotes from the article to write what sound like legitimate email alerts.
None of the people, quotes, or stats in the story is true except reference to the author of the Harry Potter books, J.K. Rowling, but the quotes attributed to her are fiction.
A new version of the eRumor claims the information is from the Christian group the American Family Association (AFA).
Other articles on www.theonion.com, for example, include, “Hershey’s Ordered to Pay Obese Americans $135 billion”, a front-page feature on then president Bill Clinton hurrying to get his teeth cleaned and to buy new eyeglasses before his health coverage runs out, and an article on a “copycat murder that lacks the artistry and nuance of the original.”
Visit www.theonion.com, read through some of the stories, then click “Masthead” at the bottom of the first page.
You’ll find the disclaimer, “The Onion® is a satirical newspaper published by Onion, Inc. The Onion® uses invented names in all its stories, except in cases when public figures are being satirized. Any other use of real names is accidental and coincidental.”
The original article posted on www.theonion.com has been taken down because it is now published in the Onion book “Dispatches From The Tenth Circle.”
This eRumor has been circulating since December of 2001.
Last updated 7/2/03
For more information: Focus On the Family Article on Harry Potter Books