So, I think there is a character more important symbolically than Harry,
Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore or Voldemort in the Harry Potter series. So, you may
be wracking your brain with thoughts of Cedric, Lupin, Sirius Black, Dobby,
Hagrid or many other characters. To which I would say, “Good job…your HP
knowledge is pretty awesome.” I think those of you who know me best would
probably assume it has to be Neville Longbottom. But, though Neville is my
favorite character in all of the series, I am actually referring to Fawkes.
Fawkes is central to the relationship of Dumbledore and Voldemort, Dumbledore
and Harry and ultimately Voldemort and Harry. How so? Most of you know, but
Dumbledore owned Fawkes, who gave two feathers for wands, one being owned by
Voldemort, the other by Harry. Ollivander says this in the very first book when
Harry buys his wand. As a side note Ollivander is probably the creepiest
character in the entire series. Others may be more slimy or inconsistent or
evil, but none as creepy; well maybe Barty Crouch, Jr. could give him a run for
his money.
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| Neville? Is that you buddy? |
But here’s the deal with Fawkes being the symbol of the series (in my
eyes) – Harry Potter is ultimately not about magic…it’s about life and death. I
think The Deathly Hallows makes that clear. So the opposite of Fawkes would be
not just Nagini, but all the horcruxes. When you juxtapose Fawkes and horcruxes
here is what I think Harry Potter is all about – death, true life and hope in
true resurrection versus fighting to maintain every bit of life you can in this
life. That sounds like more of an Easter message, but here is how I see it in
terms of Advent.
Fawkes is a phoenix. Phoenixes are known for several things, chief
among them, they burst into flames and are reborn amongst the ashes. Again,
great Easter message James, but we’re talking Advent and you said don’t crucify
baby Jesus the other day on Facebook. True, but like Fawkes, Jesus’ entry into
the world was the end of something and the beginning of something new.
Depending on your understanding of two things—God in the Garden and Melchizedek—Jesus’
birth was the first time God took on flesh. It was the first time that
Christians would say God incarnated in the world. Before this God came in
Spirit or in voice or sent heavenly beings to speak in His stead.
For Jesus then, this was a rebirth. Gone were the days of being
entirely God. Woah, James. Watch your heresy there bud. I know, it toes a thin
line, but what I mean and am trying to communicate is that Jesus experienced
being human for the first time…not that He become less than God. Jesus
experienced the limitations of flesh (think His temptations in the desert or
even His death on the cross), Jesus felt all sorts of crazy irrational emotions
(think the Scripture that said Jesus experienced all things common to man). In
other words, Jesus’ experience was completely new, because he had this thing we
call flesh added to what He was in spirit. Gone up in flames were the days of
divinity alone. Again…not trying to be heretical or limit the power of Jesus.
Just communicating that Jesus now could fully empathize with humanity because
He experienced life from their vantage, okay? Good. Now please don’t report me
to the council that decides I could be burned at the stake for heresy after you
finish this. Still maintain as the Church has for a long time – fully God,
fully man.
Many people may not realize this, chief amongst them Protestants and
Evangelicals, but Advent starts the calendar year. So, this year, the Church
calendar started December 1. That is opposed to January 1 or approximately August
15, or July 1 or April 16 or many of the other calendar years that we mark as
the start of some kind of calendar. What we celebrate in the Advent is the
start of new things. To carry on the symbol, the phoenix burst into flames on
November 30, and was reborn in the wee hours of the morning December 1. Advent
is celebration of new life, not from the perspective of resurrection, which is
of ultimate importance to our faith, but from incarnation.
As I watched the first 5 HP movies the last few days (and would have
finished 6-8 had I not leant them to a friend) I started noting the importance
of Fawkes. I think Fawkes subconsciously leads the way for Harry to give up his
life at the end of the book. I find it akin to one of those moments that we
observe someone who doesn’t know we are watching them. For instance one time
when I saw my neighbor Chandler playing in the back yard with his kids. He was
just doing his thing, not thinking anything about who was watching. He was just
loving on his kids, and it taught me a little bit about how God cares for us…His
kids. Or like the time in high school where Mr. Futrell caught me telling a
lie. He didn’t get up in my face at the time. He let it slide. Then at a
teachable moment he confronted me, not with accusation, but with the truth of, “When
I hear you lie, how I can trust you are telling me the truth later.” That was
more powerful than yelling, “You liar” in the moment. And those observations
were a bit more subconscious than they were lessons taught in a classroom. They
weren’t important in the moment, but after something else triggered the lesson
later in life.
Somehow my little Thanksgiving marathon of Harry Potter stirred my
heart for the upcoming Advent season. It helped me see that opposed to fighting
to make every moment matter in this life, and worrying that it won’t, I can
instead fully live into the moment I am in now. That doesn’t mean every moment
has to be a crazy adventure like climbing Mt. Everest, it just means that
having coffee with a friend is the moment it should be. I’m not wasting my life
with that cuppa joe…that is my life. It helps me to remember that every moment is
new birth. At the end of my days I want to be in loving reminiscence or even
still seeking new adventures as opposed to regretting what I missed. Fawkes
shows me a bit about incarnation, and sure, a lot more about resurrection. But
as we celebrate the incarnation, remember that December 1 your life began anew.
You are already emerging out of the flames into new experience and new life.
And as Bob Goff writes over and over…live that new life whimsically.