AN ORTHODOX VIEW OF HARRY POTTER

Chapter discussions and book or film reviews of Orthodox Christian and secular books that you have read and found helpful. All Forum Rules apply.
Post Reply
Ebor
Member
Posts: 308
Joined: Sat 30 October 2004 3:30 pm
Location: Maryland

Post by Ebor »

Justin Kissel wrote:

Ebor,

I have read of Christian "Metal Rock Bands" as well.

I would be more than happy to suggest some, if you're interested! :D 8) Mwahahaha!

Thank you for the offer. :mrgreen: But what if I'm too old and they won't sell the disks to me, though"? :D

Ebor

Justin Kissel

Post by Justin Kissel »

Just buy them on the internet, that way they won't know how young you really are :) Not that I expect you to ever actually buy any, lol, but some suggestions...

Deliverance - Good thrash metal band, though the palm-muting got a bit tedious at times. Their earliest stuff was probably their best (especially Weapons of Our Warfare and Deliverance).

Tourniquet - Probably the best Christian metal band. They started as experimental thrash, went through a mellowing, more rockish period, and then attempted a synthesis of the two. I prefer the older stuff (Psycho Surgery, Stop the Bleeding, and Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance), though the mellow stuff (Crawl to China) and some of their newer stuff (Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm) are also intersting. Crawl to China in particular is a very strange album, but probably their most accessible to non-metal-heads.

Betrayal - Some good thrash metal, though they only really had one good album IMO (The Passing). Many people also like their Renaissance by Death album, though to me it sounds too amateurish. They were clearly still trying to figure out what they wanted to sound like (between Renaissance and Passing, two members were changed, less attempts at classically-inspired solos were made, and they tightened up a lot of other stuff). In The Passing there is still a lot of experimentation on the vocals (one song even sounds like Lajon from Sevendust), but they are settled down enough to create some good songs.

Underoath - This band changed a lot over the last 6 or so years. I've always loved them, perhaps because of the way I found out about them. I (by pure luck) happened to be at College in Florida when they were starting out, and (again by pure luck) a friend of mine at college was a manager of a local punk band, and also happened to personally know Underoath, so I did get to see these guys play live when they were first starting. They put on an awesome show too, very controlled-choas, and yet Christ-centered (at that time anyway). Their first couple albums was a blend of Black, Thrash, and even some Hardcore, though they have lost members over the last half dozen years, and now only one original member remains (the drummer). Today they play something along the lines of Screamo (which I normally dislike). But the latest album has a lot of catchy stuff in it. Their older albums (especially Act of Depression and Cries of the Past) are still my favorites though.

Stretch Arm Strong - Sort of a Punkish Hardcore band. They have some catchy stuff.

Strongarm - A very intense, and good, hardcore band.

Six Feet Deep - They are like a slowed down version of hardcore. Groovecore would probably be the most accurate description. I personally love their The Road Less Travelled album, but many people prefer Struggle.

Stryper - I think To Hell With the Devil is still better than most of the stuff on the radio today, and I don't even like hairbands! The vocals on the early Stryper albums are among the best on any rock album ever--regardless of how unpopular or uncool the band is. The guitar playing is also pretty good, especially when you consider the rock/metal bands that were big around the same time. Take out Van Halen and a few others, and Stryper would be near the top. Their downfall was twofold (neither of which has to do with their technical capabilities or creativity): 1) they're a hair band, thus they are lepers, and 2) they're Christians who sing about Jesus, thus they are ultra-lepers.

White Cross - These guys started out as a hair band, and ended up playing a grunge-style of rock. The early stuff has some good stuff, and I rather enjoy the later stuff, though most Christian metal heads dislike the later stuff.

Of course, I can only comment on the ones that I personally like. Many more (literally hundreds) can be found at Firestream. The reason I'm making this post (even if partly for fun), is that I don't like to pass up an opportunity to promote Christian metal (even when I don't even think it correct to call myself a Christian! :) ). I really enjoy it, and I think it is a wholesome alternative to the secular bands, if you are into the metal genre.

Most people (like 99.9% ) seem to dismiss Christian rock/metal because of things like not liking some Stryper tune 15 years ago. Apart from Stryper, and maybe DC Talk (which isn't really rock), most people have never even heard Christian rock/metal. But it's uncool to like it. And the very idea sounds wierd. And few people are going to step up and defend it. Thus, misconceptions continue. But, I would put some of the metal albums in the Christian metal sub-genre up against the most famous secular albums, and I think the Christian albums could hold their own. For example, I would say that Tourniquet's early work (early 90's) could very easily match (and sometimes surpass) Metallica's work from the same era. I would go even further in that comparison, and say that Tourniquet's three best albums (Stop the Bleeding, Psycho Surgery, and Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance) could match Metallica's (Ride Z Lightning, Master of Puppets, and the third choice would depend on which fan you asked ).

Even if someone has hear a Christian rock/metal group (beyond Stryper), they normally don't like them, and therefore decide to deride the entire sub-genre. But how many crappy secular bands are playing in clubs, bars, and garages today? Good secular stuff usually gets on the radio because there are tens of thousands of (English speaking) secular bands out there trying to get airtime. Even if only 1% of them are good, that's still hundreds of bands. On the other hand, the Christian metal scene is much smaller, maybe in the hundreds. Thus, there is only going to be a handful of bands which are comparable to the seculars. This doesn't mean that there are no good Christian bands, it just means that you have to look for them (which is actually quite easy in the internet age). The radio stations/record companies sift through thousands of new albums each year, playing what seems like the best. No one is going to do that for Christian bands, and if they do you won't hear it on the FM dial.

What I don't understand is--especially when Christians put down Christian rock/metal--do people think that when you become a Christian God somehow zaps you and you lose your ability to play music? Do you suddenly become unable to play notes on a fretboard, write chord progressions, etc.? I used to play Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, and all sorts of other secular stuff... and suprise suprise, I could still play it when I became a Christian! :)

Anyway, I meant this post in fun, I hope no one will think that I am angry or anything, though I used to get annoyed. Now, I've experienced the rejection of my favored sub-genre enough to let it go right past me :) but I still do like to talk about it.

Ebor
Member
Posts: 308
Joined: Sat 30 October 2004 3:30 pm
Location: Maryland

Post by Ebor »

Justin Kissel wrote:

Just buy them on the internet, that way they won't know how young you really are :)

hehehehe, "how young" I am, indeed. :D So I'd have to sneak them instead due to advanced age. Thank you for listing them. I'd heard of Stryper and White Cross(I'm not totally antique :lol: ) You write some interesting thoughts, too.

What I don't understand is--especially when Christians put down Christian rock/metal--do people think that when you become a Christian God somehow zaps you and you lose your ability to play music? Do you suddenly become unable to play notes on a fretboard, write chord progressions, etc.? I used to play Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, and all sorts of other secular stuff... and suprise suprise, I could still play it when I became a Christian! :)

It works that way with other kinds of music too, depending on what some people like or think is the "right" kind of music that is Christian. There have been some who think that "modern' Christians can only relate to modern music (praise songs, pop like things etc). That liking or singing Old things, be they last century, 2 centuries, 5 centuries or more or in a different style (Sacred Harp, Chant, German multipart hymns etc) means that such a person is 'out of touch' or the music isn't 'relevant.

It's cool that we can talk about it. :)

Ebor

AndyHolland
Member
Posts: 388
Joined: Tue 1 November 2005 5:43 pm

Post by AndyHolland »

What little I read of Harry Potter personally found it to be inherently bigoted in mindset. My children have read them and know if daddy finds the books they'll be burned.

On the other hand a little poison at a time can build a stronger immune system over time. One should know it is poison though.

Doesn't the Bible say something like, 'thou shalt not suffer a witch to live?'

andy holland
sinner - mean old prude daddy

Ebor
Member
Posts: 308
Joined: Sat 30 October 2004 3:30 pm
Location: Maryland

Post by Ebor »

Does reading "of" Harry Potter mean that you actually read some of one of the books or that you read about them?

"Bigoted in mindset"? What do you mean by that, please?

Burning books... hmmmm where have we heard of that before. And will it be OK for people who don't like works that you do to burn them?

Ebor

AndyHolland
Member
Posts: 388
Joined: Tue 1 November 2005 5:43 pm

Post by AndyHolland »

Ebor wrote:

Does reading "of" Harry Potter mean that you actually read some of one of the books or that you read about them?

"Bigoted in mindset"? What do you mean by that, please?

Muggle seems to be a very bigotted word and way of thinking. I think the wikipedia definition is accurate, and I believe muggle comes from
a mindset that is intrinsically bigoted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muggle

Acts 19:19 is where magical books were burned.

Cervantes Don Quixote is a good book and gives a valuable lesson on the foolishness of magical fantasy. The inquisitiion burns Don Quixote's books and that is a good thing.

andy holland
sinner

P.S. If you ever come visit, we do have a very large 1.5 MW windmill on the farm :)

Ebor
Member
Posts: 308
Joined: Sat 30 October 2004 3:30 pm
Location: Maryland

Post by Ebor »

Have you actually read any of the Harry Potter books to find out how "bigotry" is looked down on? "Muggle" just means a person with out magical ability, the real bigots are the people in both camps who hate the others: the Dursleys and the Malfoys for instance. One of the messages in the books is to not look down on or mistreat others because they are different.

How is muggle different from other words that denote differences between people such as in their relgions or nationalities or having an ability or skill that someone else doesn't?

The Harry Potter stories aren't "Magical" books, btw, they are fiction.

As for book burning I was thinking of "Farenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury as well as some of the depredations in Germany before WWII. The Bradbury is an excellent and thought provoking book. Here is an overview:
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/451/summary.html

Ebor

Post Reply