From: agoldschlager at penguinputnam.com <agoldschlager>
Date: Mon, 29 Nov 1999 13:00:09 -0500

I know I'm going to regret responding to this, but I feel I have to.

First, a friend of mine who is being ordained as a priest this week tells me that the exact meaning of the word that your translation of the Bible refers to as "witchcraft," is extremely unclear.

Second, I am unsure as to what _you_ mean by witchcraft. If you are referring to the rituals practiced by wiccans, who worship a goddess (and sometimes a god as well), I do not think there is any way that you can call what they do "heinous crimes." Wicca is a peaceful religion, and one of their most important tenets is the Threefold Rule: Anything that you do will return to you threefold. That refers to good as well as to evil. Wiccans do not worship Satan. If you are referring to the rituals practiced by Satanists, I personally have never encountered any Satanists, although perhaps you have. I have certainly never come across any documented cases of actual Satanists committing crimes, although again, perhaps you have.

I think I'll leave the rest of this debate to others (whether what Harry does is indeed condemned by the Bible. and whether your interpretation of the Bible should be regarded as some sort of moral standard that everyone, Christian or not, should follow.). However, I am curious if you find C. S. Lewis's Narnia books and the Lord of the Rings trilogies to be offensive as well, although both were written by extremely devout men.

Let's hope that a flame war will not develop here, and courtesy will prevail. Everyone is entitled to their viewpoint.

Sincerely, Amy Goldschlager Assistant Editor, Phyllis Fogelman Books
Received on Mon 29 Nov 1999 12:00:09 PM CST