LONDON (Reuters) - British and Irish churches are being urged to acknowledge the escapades of Harry Potter in their teachings, defying a global Christian trend of denouncing the boy wizard's adventures as a corrupting force.
Many churches around the world greeted the arrival of the bewitching bestseller with ceremonial book-burnings and angry sermons, leading to criticism that they have lost touch with the modern world.
But a new independent report "Presence and Prophecy" commissioned by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CBTI) said on Wednesday the stories posed some serious theological questions and were an example of the type of popular culture Christians should embrace.
"We're not trying to Christianize Harry Potter," Simon Barrow, CBTI Assistant General Secretary told Reuters on Wednesday. "But the books deal with serious, adult issues -- the struggle for love, truth and self-giving sacrifice for others."
CBTI is an umbrella organization for British and Irish churches, including the Church of England. The report will be debated by the Church of England's General Synod next month.
The tale of the schoolboy sorcerer has sparked off a storm in many corners of the globe, particularly in the deeply Christian United States, but also in Australia, where the book was banned from 60 church schools.
Harry has been roundly denounced from the pulpit in Bulgaria, Germany and Taiwan.
"There have been some Christians who get very upset about this and say Harry Potter is leading people into the occult," said Barrow. "But Christians, rather than standing around and being sniffy about this, should actually be immersed in this culture."
A new book by U.S. author Connie Neal "The Gospel according to Harry Potter" concurs, describing 52 examples in Harry Potter of what she describes as "glimmers of the gospel."
Barrow quoted from a booklet "Transparencies," which was published alongside the 241-page "Presence and Prophecy" report: "How can we use popular interest in Harry's story to ask people to think again about the selfish material world and the presence within it of Christian values?"
"Is this just to be a magic world in a story book? Or can it point toward the world that we really want to make a reality?"
Alongside Harry Potter, the report also embraces several other elements of modern culture including Europe's largest shopping mall Bluewater, in southern England, which it praises for its welcoming ambience.
The book "Girlfriend in a Coma" by Douglas Coupland is also lauded, as is "The Muppets Christmas Carol" television show.