The popular series comes to an exciting and emotional conclusion as “the boy who lived” comes to a new understanding of death and self-sacrifice.

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Overview

A young man realizes that he is destined to give up his life in order to defeat evil and save his friends. Alone, walking through the stillness of night to surrender to the enemy, he embraces his fate with trepidation and resolve. Though he wishes there was another way, he knows he has to die for others to live. Sound familiar? Author J.K. Rowling, a churchgoer, has said in interviews that she was afraid the religious parallels with her own Christian beliefs might spoil the ending of Harry Potter for readers and viewers. Besides making Harry into a sort of Christ figure, Rowling also says that death—and our response to it—is “possibly the most important theme” in her books, particularly Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (which was adapted from the book into two films). This study will contrast the evil Lord Voldemort’s fearful and selfish response to death with Harry Potter’s calm and selfless approach, begging the question of whether or not we’re truly living without something—or someone—worth dying for.

Discussion Guide

    • Movie Summary

    • Discussing the Scenes

1. Understanding Death—The Tale of the Three Brothers
(Proverbs 11:19; Ecclesiastes 7:1–2, 8: 7–8; Romans 6:8–10)

So what exactly are the Deathly Hallows? They must be important to Harry Potter’s story since they’re in the title; and in fact, they all play a part in Harry’s exploits. According to the dictionary, a hallow is something considered sacred or holy (hence “Hallowed be Thy name” in the Lord’s Prayer). In Harry Potter’s world, the Hallows are three ancient artifacts from an old fable given by the personification of Death to three brothers crossing a river. Each brother asks for a different power to try and outwit Death. Each receives a different Hallow and each reaches a different conclusion with Death. The parable helps us come to some understanding of how people respond to death in different ways. It also helps Harry gain understanding in how he might defeat Voldemort.

2. Fearing Death—Voldemort
(Luke 9:23-25, 17:33; Hebrews 2:14–15; 1 John 3:16–18)

By understanding the story of the three brothers and the Deathly Hallows, we gain a better understanding of the motivations of the core characters in the Harry Potter saga. Especially Lord Voldemort, whom we got to know a little better through flashback in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. It’s all too easy to say that Voldemort is simply evil incarnate. As it turns out, his evil stems from a trait that haunts all of us from time to time: fear. And by giving into fear, Voldemort misses out on a greater power that can conquer all.

3. Accepting Death—Harry
(Matthew 6:19–21; 1 Corinthians 15:26; John 15:13)

At last we come to Harry Potter, our hero who survived a deadly attack from Voldemort when he was just an infant, thanks to the love of his mother. Up to this point, we have always assumed that Harry would have to confront Voldemort. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, we learned from a prophecy that “either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives.” The conclusion to that seems obvious. And then Harry receives a bombshell revelation from the memories of Severus Snape...