Religious debates over the Harry Potter series spirit; he contrasts occult "invocational" magic (calling up spirit beings to do your bidding) with literature's common "incantational" magic (saying a set phrase to use power from an unspecified source). Indeed, says Granger, the themes of love triumphing over death and choosing what is right instead of what is easy are very compatible with Christianity. In 2000, the Dean of Canterbury Cathedral refused to allow his church to be filmed as part of Hogwarts in the "Harry Potter" film series, saying that it was unfitting for a Christian church to be used to promote pagan imagery. Gloucester Cathedral agreed to
Religious debates over the Harry Potter series the criticism of "Harry Potter" is from fundamentalist evangelical Christian groups, who believe the series' depiction of witchcraft is dangerous to children. Paul Hetrick, spokesman for Focus on the Family, an American Evangelical Christian group based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, outlined the reasons for his opposition to them: "[They contain] some powerful and valuable lessons about love and courage and the ultimate victory of good over evil; however, the positive messages are packaged in a medium – witchcraft – that is directly denounced in Scripture." "Harry Potter" has been the subject of at least six book burnings in the U.S.