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Like every other Harry Potter book things have started to pick as The Order of the Phoenix nears its conclusion. Dumbledore had to flee Hogwarts, the fifth years have taken their O.W.L.S. and Hagrid made his escape after taking down a group of wizards. I am incredibly excited to see how the book ends and know that once I finish The Order of the Phoenix I’ll want to immediately begin The Half-Blood Prince.
Below are some thoughts from chapters 27-31 of The Order of the Phoenix.
Dumbledore
Dumbledore is awesome; he takes out two Aurors, the High Inquisitor, the Minister of Magic, and his Junior Assistant all by himself. Throughout most of The Order of the Phoenix Dumbledore has been rather aloof and disconnected from Harry. I don’t think there will be an answer for his distance in this book, but I imagine there will be in the next book. Sometimes we feel the same way about God that Harry did about Dumbledore. Harry thought that Dumbledore was ignoring him; I’m sure we’ll find out that Dumbledore wasn’t ignoring Harry but keeping his distance for good reason. Sometimes we feel like God is ignoring us but he’s always there, walking with us. We may think he’s being silent but he is always seeking our good in every situation. We just have to trust that our feelings are wrong when we feel like God is far away.
Poor Snape
I still really like Snape and I hope that he does something truly heroic before the series ends. After seeing his memories of being tormented by James Potter and Sirius, I liked him even more. Like a lot of nerds, I got picked on a lot when I was younger. I did anything I could to avoid going to school during the sixth grade because I was so thoroughly harassed. By God’s grace, though, I was able to move beyond the bullying and it doesn’t have any impact on my life today. Unfortunately I don’t think Snape can say the same thing. A lot of his sour attitude seems to stem from his abuse at the hands of James and Sirius. Snape wasn’t able to move beyond the bullying and it affects his attitude and his treatment of Harry. Like Ephesians says, we need to let go of grudges or else they will maintain their grip on us.
James Potter
I didn’t just feel bad for Snape, I also felt bad for Harry. I felt bad that Harry had to see his father as a 15-year-old boy, acting the fool; it shattered Harry’s image of his father. Sirius and Lupin reassure Harry that James grew up and turned into a much more respectable man. I’ve often had the same problem as Harry when it comes to people I’ve known for a long time. If I knew someone when he was 15, I’ll still hold what he did as a teenager against him now that he’s an adult. That’s ridiculous; people grow and change. I was an idiot when I was 15 and I certainly hope no one holds that against me now that I’m 31. People grow and change; they mature and evolve. We should keep that in mind when interacting with people we’ve known for a long time. True, they may have been bullies, jerks or inconsiderate when they were younger, but they may have changed. We should view people as who they are and who they’re becoming, not who they were.
I’m so excited to finish The Order of the Phoenix. I think it has been my favorite of the series so far and Alycia assured me that it’s about to get much better. Depending on how this book ends I might not take a break and try to finish The Half-Blood Prince before the end of the year.
What thoughts do you have from chapters 27-31 of The Order of the Phoenix?
The Christian Nerd 