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AUGUST 7, 2003 at 12:30 PM
Posted by GRAE
Source: The Detroit News via The Leaky Cauldron
After learning about the book burning held last weekend by the Jesus Non-denominational Church in Greenville, Michigan, community members expressed mixed emotions
about the event.
The Rev. Mark Shaw, senior pastor at Calvary Baptist, dismissed the book burning as a misguided publicity stunt.
"What kind of an image are they setting in the community?" Shaw asked.
Toni Jagger, director of the Alvah N. Belding Library in nearby Belding, said she is always disturbed by reports of book burnings.
"Burning books is such an extreme," Jagger said. "Books don't have to be read if people don't want to read them. That's one of the wonderful liberties we have in America."
As long as the book burning does not prevent readers from accessing those titles or other literature, the congregation can do as it pleases, said Tara Conaway, director of the Flat River Community Library.
It also turns out that Harry Potter books weren't the only objects being burned - included in the list of what the church considered evil were the Book of Mormon and non-King James Version Bibles.
Other books, magazines, posters, compact discs and movies that members believe do not promote God also went up in smoke Sunday, as more than 50 people gathered outside the church for the fiery display. Among the incinerated items were Shania Twain's album "The Woman in Me" and the Dan Akroyd movie "Coneheads."
The church's bishop, the Rev. T.D. Turner Sr., said the congregation "will burn 'Harry Potter' books and other witchcraft items to let the world know that there are true followers of Jesus Christ who will not call evil good."
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Student
Points: 293
jjkhp says:
Burning books is very bad for kids like myself especially the little ones. It could give tehm the wrong idea.
Posted Aug 8, 2003 at 4:27 PM EST
Squib
Points: 163
ObsessedWithDan says:
Where to start?? Oh yes... I have a friend who is Mormon and she would find the burning of the Book of Mormon very offensive. She also can't afford many things- like a $30 Harry Potter book! Why would someone burn something worth so much to so many people in the world just because they think it's evil??? If they don't want to read it, don't open it. Donate it to a charity or a library. If you add up one of all the things they mention, it could well be over $100. They also burned bibles?? That's got to be a sin.
Posted Aug 9, 2003 at 10:16 PM EST
Squib
Points: 137
Clint Potter says:
I think it's ridiculas that they're burning books. It's a complete waste of money. Why did they burn a Shania Twain album? Besides, it's bad to the ozone.
Posted Aug 9, 2003 at 10:35 PM EST
Auror
Points: 2303
padfoot5312 says:
"What kind of images are they setting in the community?" Yes, just what are they showing you. It’s a church that I wouldn’t have anything to do with. I live in USA and we have the freedom to have choices. I can’t believe that they would do that here. They didn’t have to burn all those things-money they wasted. They should have given those things to library.
Posted Aug 9, 2003 at 11:01 PM EST
Witch
Points: 750
siriusgurl says:
well said Mistress Moony! But this really is pathetic, it gives christians a bad name and my friends christian and she's almost as big a Harry Potter fan as me! But again burning bibles thats juts sickening.
Posted Aug 12, 2003 at 6:05 PM EST
Points: 64
OsirisNight says:
i think that its a shame that some of my fellow more closed minded christians friends. burn these books and music. allthough burning Nsync's cds is funny to me. when there are evil churches that elect gay ministers and tell people to stop abortions by killing abortion doctors. i am a christain myself. ive read the bible through twice. i know how much of a double standard christianity can be. these people are blind followers. if they were to read the Potter series. i bet they might learn and get a better un biblcal biased view of the problems in this world.
Posted Oct 14, 2003 at 3:32 AM EST
Keeper of Harry's Fate
Points: 8934
TheOneWhoMustBeNamed says:
Really tragic that someone would resort to this out of fear.
Posted Oct 24, 2003 at 4:49 PM EST
Auror
Points: 2034
Professor Snape says:
Burning bibles and harry potter books?? What a great example their church is showing the rest of the community, and even world. I believe in people being able to express their feelings about things they don't agree with, [b]but in an adult way[/]!! This is absolutely ridiculous! The whold nazi thing previously posted came into my mind also when reading this. To some it all up, I think the librarian of the town said it best, "Books don't have to be read if people don't want to read them. That's one of the wonderful liberties we have in America". There are better ways to making a point than what they did.
Posted Nov 14, 2003 at 10:09 PM EST
Prefect
Points: 355
Jocelyn says:
And I thought religious extremism was limited to the deep south... I was certainly proved wrong.
It is sad, really... when people have so closed their minds that fiction of this caliber is so much of a threat to them, that they have to react in this way.
Yes, quite reminiscent of Nazi Germany. And just as effective too. Such actions will not quash Harry Potter, no more than the Nazis quashed Bertolt Brecht (heard of the Threepenny Opera? Mack the Knife? That's him).
As a side note, I recall one German author (Oskar Maria Graf?) who wrote an editorial demanding that his books be burned... because he was against the Nazi regime, and his works had not yet been burned.
Posted Feb 4, 2004 at 3:48 PM EST
Professional Beater
Points: 20891
feltonluver says:
That is so stupid to do book burnings. People have the right to say whatever they want and that's plain wrong anyways!
Posted Feb 20, 2004 at 6:44 PM EST
Auror
Points: 2787
PunkyDunky says:
That church is messed up. I hate it when people judge things without reading them or finding out more about them. That's what many of my friends did when HP came out. They thought it was full of witchcraft and Satanism even though they never read it. People will find anything wrong with stuff just because it's new and it's different. Especially parents because they think they're doing what's right for us, but in the end, they're hurting us. That whole burning thing is wrong and no one should burn things that are involved with other people's beliefs or ideas. It's very insulting.
Posted Mar 7, 2004 at 7:32 PM EST
Unspeakable
Points: 3920
stocco says:
Church in Greenville, Michigan
Never in all my life have I been ashamed to be from Michigan. Never. I'm so glad I'm going to Japan in the fall.
Posted Mar 16, 2004 at 10:39 PM EST
Squib
Points: 103
ceres says:
How silly!!!!!!!!!
This is just so silly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
everyone's all so messed up!!!!!!!!!!!
Funny how it ended though!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted Apr 29, 2004 at 12:56 PM EST
Student
Points: 247
Danni says:
This is so stupid. I hate when people get too extreme with stuff. "Witchcraft" in this book is a metaphor for something much deeper. What these people don't understand is that they're burning the very thing they represent.
Posted May 31, 2004 at 1:16 PM EST
Prefect
Points: 306
Trillium says:
Whoa. That's messed up. Yeah, I may be catholic and stuff, but I wouldn't burn books. I wouldn't burn CD's, or magazines, or movies or.... anything! Come on, Shania Twain? Dan Aykroyd? Both of them are Canadian! (I should know, Dan was born in Ottawa, about an hour away from me, and Shania was born in Windsor, about three or four hours away) Maybe they have something against Canadians and the British... haha. Either way, thats just wrong. Burn everything almost, because half of the world isn't about God.
Posted Jun 9, 2004 at 3:56 PM EST
Witch
Points: 795
Emma Look Alike says:
ugh! I hate it when people do that! Its like saying..ok! Lets all go burn Peter Pan, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Pinnocio, Shrek, Snow White,Mickey Mouse, The Chronicles of Narnia,Lord of the Rings, and every other fairy tale! Harry Potter is as real as a bot who flys and beats up a pirate! It gets on my nerves so bad! I am Chrstian myself and them burning Bibles is stupid for I read The King James Version and Th Niv vERSION. i DONT BELIVE IN THE mORMAN BOOK AT ALL NONONO! BUT THEY HAD NO REASON TO BURN IT!!
Posted Jun 10, 2004 at 4:27 PM EST
Auror
Points: 2303
padfoot5312 says:
I still can’t believe that a church would burn books. He burned the Book of Mormon and Non-King James Version Bibles. This is not right. If his church chooses not to read these books, that’s ok. What is he showing the community? It’s ok to burn things. What if children or parents in his church choose to burn their bibles? Would he be ok with this?
Posted Jun 15, 2004 at 9:21 PM EST
Brightest Witch
Points: 3111
hermione_rox. says:
If some people object. They should Just not read them!!!!!! Burning is not the answer- Witchcraft isn't all that bad!!!
Posted Jun 30, 2004 at 2:55 PM EST
Student
Points: 282
Clever Miss Granger says:
nothing makes me more mad then book burnings. WAKE UP PEOPLE! Do somthing more productive with your life and leave the poor fairy tales alone.
Posted Jul 3, 2004 at 10:09 PM EST
Magical Music Professor
Points: 4839
MagicalMusicDreamer says:
Book burning is primitive. The mentality is some kind of perverse fear.
On the positive side, it gives the topic press and attention and will probably boost sales, which I think is great.
Posted Jul 9, 2004 at 10:41 PM EST
Witch
Points: 849
*SkyHighandFallen says:
Geez, people are so paranoid! Honestly. I mean its a book. I can understand people might get freaked about the magickal aspects of it, but its still just a book. But the SHania Twain album? and cone heads?? Are these people losers or what?
Posted Jul 16, 2004 at 2:15 PM EST
Muggle
Points: 63
samandra says:
Who bought the books for them to burn in the first place? They must have. Oh well, they wasted their own money.
Posted Aug 24, 2004 at 8:58 AM EST
Student
Points: 236
Tonks! says:
Book burning just reminds of me of Farenheit 451,its barbaric and uncivilised. We're blessed with living in a country that supports all views and religion but there are certain people who just go to major extremes.
If someone was to burn the bible saying that it was 'inciting evil' they would go and hit the headlines, calling the burners barbaric (which is true but a little hypocritical).
I agree they are 'ignorant, illguided' but I'd like to add another word 'fools'
Posted Aug 25, 2004 at 1:18 PM EST
Student
Points: 212
TomFeltonsLady005 says:
Ugh. I really dont get that! Do they just but the book then burn them???? What a waste of money!!!!! What these people don't get is- the book is FICTION!!!! The book does not recommend putting spells on people. I think it is such a waste of time!
Probably when they see a person wearing all black they would try to burn them at the stake.
Posted Aug 25, 2004 at 3:28 PM EST
Points: 1890
WarnBot2 says:
Anyone who says that the Harry Potter books are satanic has obviously never read them. From their view, there is no story worth mentioning, and the books are nothing more than evil witchcraft books, witch they are not. The Harry Potter books are great stories, not evil Non-Christian whatever.
Posted Sep 23, 2004 at 4:40 PM EST
Student
Points: 217
Dreyven says:
Nooooooo, not the coneheads! I love these nuts, they crack me up everytime. Let the people burn the books. It just gives JK more money to keep on writing the material.
Posted Sep 25, 2004 at 1:29 AM EST
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