#hpsacredtext

[designwitch]

😳 WHAAAAAAT??? Elphias and Dumbledore could have been boyfriends??? How did I miss this?! I have to go and reread Deathly Hallows RIGHT NOW. 😍 . #hpatst #hpsacredtext #harrypotter #dumbledore #queerread #deathlyhallows #hpatdh https://www.instagram.com/p/B_oRKdXnGgw/?igshid=wozadxkof8jx

[maraudersmessrs]

I want to suggest to everyone the podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text.

[mentalcurls]

On Harry being a Parselmouth and how he feels about it

I was listening to @hpsacredtext and I got to the episodes about chapter 11 of The Chamber of Secrets, “The Duelling Club”, read through the theme of excellence, and about chapter 12, ”The Polyjuice Potion”, read through the theme of belonging. Kaspar and Vanessa discuss Harry finding out he’s a Parselmouth and then they talk about excellent teachers and my mind combined the two things so I just thought: why does none of the Hogwarts teachers and grown-ups check up on Harry after he finds out he's a Parselmouth?

It's a pretty life changing thing for him, it explains stuff from his past like why he could talk to the snake at zoo the year before, and it defines him as even more out of the ordinary among wizards and not in a nice way. Parseltongue casts a negative light on him, especially considering the rumors about Salazar Slytherin’s Chamber having been opened (think Ernie Macmillan). Harry's just a kid and suddenly he has this new, creepy power he had never even heard of before and all he gets is Ron explaining to him that a lot of dark wizards were Parselmouths. Yeah, thanks mate.

Why does nobody intervene? Ok, fine, the only teachers who are right there are Lockhart, who is an idiot, and Snape, who is not the most empathetic of people, but word gets to McGonagall and to Dumbledore: why don't they talk to him? Surely they could give Harry a better, more detailed explanation. She is Head of Gryffindor, she has a duty to help and check up on her students, and she’s an academic she must be able to explain stuff better than Ron. And even more so Dumbledore, but when Harry goes to see him in chapter 12, the headmaster does not tell him any different from what Ron told him and doesn’t ask him how he's doing. The only thing he asks him is a generic, vague question when he a) can easily guess Harry is scared c) he's the ultimate wise and authoritative figure in Harry's life and would be the best to calm him down and explain things to him. 

Like, I understand  Dumbledore wouldn’t be able to tell Harry why he is a Parselmouth a) because he only suspects at this point b) cause that would scare Harry more, but surely he could have sort of lied and told him it was something like a recessive gene in old wizarding families or something.

In addition to that he could have explained the possibilities this ability gave Harry to do good, and maybe he could have mentioned a few non-dark wizards who were Parselmouths. He could have framed it as a gift, that could turn dangerous and might be misinterpreted, but could also be used for good things like Harry already experienced when he saved Justin Finch-Fletchley.

Vanessa and Kaspar mention on the podcast that Harry sees Fawkes in Dumbledore’s office. The phoenix has a lot of secret gifts like healing tears and huge strenght, but doesn't use them everyday, even though they can be really useful. They suggest that could be a metaphor for Harry and Parseltongue, hidden, not used frequently but useful, but I don’t think it’s enough? It's something we the audience read afterwards, through the lines, a meaning we are able to assign to a text after reading and re-reading it and analyzing it, not something that can reassure a scared 12-year-old who just found out he can talk to snakes like a Dark wizard.

All I want is for someone to grab Harry and be like “Hey, are you ok? How are you dealing with this? Are the others giving you grief? It's not something that defines you, you know, it's not that everybody who speaks Parseltongue is automatically evil, whatever they may think. Don't mind them.” , which, not very helpful as you know if you've ever got a talk like that, but it shows you that you might be actually right about yourself when you think you're not bad, and that you have someone (an adult, more experienced, with more power than you) in your corner.

[ecologistsarealwaysfine]

Harry Potter reading group?

If any of you all listen to @hpsacredtext you’ll know it’s a fantastic podcast known to spark re-obsessions with Harry Potter, or at least it did for me.

Would anyone be interested in a semi-regular Skype reading group, following a similar model as Harry Potter and the Sacred Text? “Sacred” is really a synonym for close reading in this context, so don’t be scared away if you’re not religious. Neither podcast host is particularly theistic, and they still get a lot out of it. Obvi this wouldn’t be as amazing as the pod because the pod is AMAZING, but I want to do what the pod does with some IRL people. 

So, it would be perhaps every other week, we’d get together and read a certain amount of a given Potter book through a theme, discuss it, and then engage with the text through spiritual practices from a bunch of different religions. 

idk man I think it would be fun. Message me if you’re interested. 

[hpsacredtext]

Cooking with @blueapron has made #hpsacredtext team meetings magical! It's 10x better than potions class because after we're done putting all ingredients in the cauldron, we get RISOTTO, not just judgmental looks from Snape ... 😂

[hpsacredtext]

Getting ready for the #hpsacredtext Facebook live! Starting in 5 minutes on our page!! (at Divinity Hall, Harvard Divinity School)

[hpsacredtext]

Come join us tomorrow for the #hpsacredtext reading workshop and discussion group at #NerdCon! Sunday, 1pm, Room 201! We can't wait to see you all there! (at Boston, Massachusetts)

[hpsacredtext]

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Here's a snippet of our #hpsacredtext panel at #NerdCon today! Casper explains some of the process and benefit of reading #HarryPotter closely and intentionally, as if it were a sacred text. (at John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center)