Muggles and Mudbloods. The Power of Words to Create Differences or Belonging
“I’d say that it’s one short step from ‘Wizards first’ to ‘Purebloods first,’ and then to ‘Death Eaters,’” replied Kingsley. “We’re all human, aren’t we? Every human life is worth the same, and worth saving.”
— Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows [1]
I was applying to colleges during the fall of 1980. My father was a graduate of a well-known, prestigious college that had only recently begun admitting women. I decided that not only did I not want to try to manage any lingering animosity toward my presence on campus, but I would go in the opposite direction and attend a women’s college.
While at this small liberal arts institution, I discovered at the age of 18 that I was not a “girl” but a “woman.” (A conversation with my dad during Thanksgiving break of that year: “Dad, I was talking to this woman on my floor…” “Wait. How old was this woman?” “Oh, I think she’s a junior, so probably 21.” The look on his face conveyed, “What have I done??” Now I’m [silently] horrified when our 30-year-old daughter talks about her nurse practitioner colleagues as “girls” when they are intelligent and responsible, and making life and death decisions every night at Boston Children’s Hospital.)
The lesson? Words matter.
The way I think about my identity makes a difference in how I show up in the world. The word “girl” simply doesn’t have the gravitas and – let’s say it – the power of the word “woman.”
I cringe every time I hear a parent in a grocery store talk about their children as “little monsters” or some other seemingly playful and demeaning word. We grow into the words others use about us because our unconscious minds begin to believe those words.
Words are powerful.
Words create.
As we learn from Genesis 1, God created everything by God’s word. And then God’s Word became human. In John 1:1-4a, 14a we read,
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life… The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us…
In his book, The Identity Trap, A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time, author Yascha Mounk challenges the idea that group identity – what he calls “identity synthesis” – is necessary to create a level playing field that leads to an equal opportunity for all people to live a flourishing and fulfilling life. He says it starts with good intentions but creates unexpected difficulties.
Mounk states, “My concern about the identity synthesis is that, in its own way, it too makes it harder for people to broaden their allegiances beyond a particular identity in a way that can sustain stability, solidarity, and social justice.” [2]
As I reflect on the thesis in this book, I confess that I am reminded about how important it has been – as a woman – to recognize my differences from men. And as evidenced by the proliferation of subgroups on my campus, even today, I have always been made aware of the differences others experience who are not straight white women. The intention is good, I believe: to make sure that power is equally attainable and no one group runs over another.
(I don’t have time or space to go into all the elements of power today, though that is a critical component of the identity trap as explained by Mounk.)
But in a review of Mounk’s book, the non-partisan Council on Foreign Relations clarifies some of the problems:
“For much of history, societies have violently oppressed ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities. It is no surprise that many who passionately believe in social justice came to believe that members of marginalized groups need to take pride in their identity to resist injustice.
“But over the past decades, a healthy appreciation for the culture and heritage of minority groups has transformed into a counterproductive obsession with group identity in all its forms. A new ideology aiming to place each person’s matrix of identities at the center of social, cultural, and political life has quickly become highly influential. It stifles discourse, vilifies mutual influence as cultural appropriation, denies that members of different groups can truly understand one another, and insists that the way governments treat their citizens should depend on the color of their skin.
“This, Yascha Mounk argues, is the identity trap.” [3]
In naming my own identity, I suppose I could go even further. I’m a straight, white, married, well-educated woman with grown children and grandchildren. I live in northern New England and attend church.
The problem – I have discovered – with classifying myself by such identity marks is that they take me further and further away from my fellow humans. Kingsley had it right (above).
But there is a wonderful element to identity synthesis that we, as Christians, must take note of. When this wonderful element is weaponized, then we end up with the equivalent of Deatheaters and “mudbloods”:
“What unites the Malfoys and Voldemort with the Dark Side is a certain ideological perspective, an explicitly fascist ideology that wishes to preserve the purity of Magic blood from any taint of Muggle blood. In fact, it gradually emerges that it is this fascist ideology that primarily characterizes the evil of the Dark Side.” [4]
What’s that wonderful element? It’s unity. It’s belonging to a community. Mounk notices the struggle too: “A society that encourages all of us to see the world through the ever-present prism of identity will make it especially hard for people who don’t neatly fit into one ethnic or cultural group to develop a sense of belonging.” [5]
And in their book, The Other Half of Chuch, Wilder and Hendricks explain,
“Around age twelve, the brain undergoes a structural change that balances individual identity with group identity. From this point on, our group identity is a key player in the formation of character. We are formed by our strongest attachments and the shared identity of our community. Our brains are wired this way…
“In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus delivers a heavy dose of group identity for a chosen, royal, holy, special people. He answers the questions: What kind of people are we? How do we act as members of God’s kingdom on earth?” [6]
The authors go on to explain that direct willpower has little effect on our character. It all comes down to those to whom we are attached.
There’s a great deal more that can be said about this, but here are my thoughts going forward.
To whom do we really belong?
Why is belonging important to character?
What can we do on our own to help the Holy Spirit form our character as followers of Jesus?
Is there anything wrong with identifying with particular groups? What’s right about it?
How do we make a bigger tent – as Jesus did – to include everyone as beloved children of God?
The questions raised by Mounk are challenging. But I firmly believe that when we view every other person first and foremost as a beloved child of God, the problems of power and equality fall away.
I pray for such wisdom, love, and compassion in the world every day!
We began with Kingsley. Let us end with the words of Albus Dumbledore:
Source [7]
==========
1 – J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (USA: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2007), 440.
2 – Yascha Mounk, The Identity Trap; A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time (New York: Penguin Press, 2023) 14.
3 – Council on Foreign Relations, review, The Identity Trap. Accessed March 5, 2024. https://www.cfr.org/book/identity-trap
4 – Suman Gupta, “Blood.” In: Re-Reading Harry Potter. (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009), https://doi-org.georgefox.idm.oclc.org/10.1057/9780230279711_14
5 – Mounk, 14.
6 – Jim Wilder, Hendricks, Michel, The Other Half of Church (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2020), 111-112.
7 – Rowling, 718.
About the Author
Debbie Owen
Deborah C. Owen is an experienced spiritual director, Neuro-based Enneagram executive and life coach, disciple maker, professional writer, senior librarian, and long-time church Music Director and lay leader. She has earned the award of National Board Certification for teaching excellence, and a podcasting award, and is pursuing a Doctor of Leadership degree through Portland Seminary at George Fox University. She lives in the backwoods of Maine with her husband and flat-coated retriever. She spends as much time as she can with their 3 grown children, daughter-in-law, and 2 small grandchildren. Find her online at InsideOutMinistries.info.6 responses to “Muggles and Mudbloods. The Power of Words to Create Differences or Belonging”
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Thanks Debbie! I love the use of Harry Potter in your post, especially as it relates to the forming of young minds. I appreciate your insightful questions at the end.
How do we create a sense of belonging in our faith communities that centers our identities around who Jesus says we are?
Ryan, Wilder and Hendricks have a lot to say about that. It’s about welcoming people into your group, showing them hesed (lovingkindness), and living out your values without too much individual preaching.
What kind of people did Jesus want us to be? It’s clearly in the Book. It also must be readable in our lives. That’s where we can only do so by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Debbie,
I must confess, I have never read Harry Potter. I have tried a few times to watch the movie and I walk away after five minutes. I just can’t do it. I know I am an outlier in this. Your mentioning of words matter cuts to my heart tonight though. I know words matter and I know that it was not helpful to tell my son he was acting like a butt tonight. Thanks for the reminder. As I watch him, I realize that he struggles with his own identity. When I think about his struggles in this way it helps me see a different perspective than the argumentative, teenager who rebels against everything.
Adam, God bless you in all your life activities, especially raising children. Let’s face it, they do act like buttheads from time to time! (Some more often than others!) And we ALL make mistakes as parents. I sure made/still make mine (even with grown children).
It is by the Holy Spirit that we can remain calm, non-anxious, and present… even in the face of what appears to be stupidity. And no, I’m not just talking about teens!
Thanks Debbie. I love the Harry Potter books. Its the Hero with a thousand faces again. In light of your discussion, how do you believe we can embrace the diversity of human experience while transcending the limitations of identity labels to cultivate a deeper sense of connection and compassion?
Glyn, that’s the $64,000 question isn’t it? 😉
Honoring unique, individual diversity and balancing it with life-giving, joyful community is exactly what we read about in the very earliest Christian communities in Acts. I think it always comes back to a cliche, but truthful question: What would Jesus do in this situation, if he were me? (Dallas Willard’s take on the old WWJD?)