Wizards that peep and mutter

[Here's my final "retro" Sunday School post before I start writing new material again next week. If you want to study what I'm studying for this week's class, go here. The following was written and distributed to my congregation last November, on the eve of the HP 7.1 premiere. This seemed like a great time to revisit it.]

I bet a lot of you have been engaging in marathon Harry Potter
sessions lately, rereading the books, rewatching the movies, and
otherwise getting ready for the penultimate installment of the film
series, hitting theaters this weekend.

If you have, that's fantastic! That means you're well on your way to
being prepared for this week's Gospel Doctrine lesson. Seriously. Read
Ezekiel 37:1-17 and tell me JK Rowling didn't blatantly rip it off for
the final scenes of Goblet of Fire. Dry bones being covered with flesh
and skin? People coming out of graves? Two sticks becoming one? Come
on.

Makes you wonder what else from the wizarding world might be copied
from the scriptures. Is Hogwarts just a cheap ripoff of Solomon's
temple? Did the idea for Harry's miraculous childhood survival come
from baby Jesus escaping Herod? Could owls delivering letters be
prompted by Noah's dove? Is the Urim and Thummim the inspiration for
the Philosopher's (I'm an originalist) Stone?

There's more of Ezekiel to study this week, so don't spend too much
time pondering these things this week (unless you've got one of those
time turners like Hermione). Here's some info to guide your
preparation.

So study hard, enjoy the movie, and may the force be with you. Wait,
wrong franchise...

Jeff