I have always loved fantasy and immediately saw that this series was right up my alley. As I read the three books in 2000-1, as a devout Catholic and an ordained deacon, I could tell throughout them that the author didn't like the leadership of the Catholic Church because he named the "bad guys" the Magisterium. But what a story he told! Goodness and truth and beauty and life win out over evil and lies and unnaturalness and death.
For instance Lyra with her daemon, Pantalaimon, was living a boyhood dream of mine from growing up in a Catholic home. I had always learned that I had a guardian angel who loves me and looks out for me. What if my guardian angel were visible? What if my guardian angel could change shape and be an ever-present friend who never needed anything but my love and yet could read my innermost thoughts. I would never be lonely again. In all three books I saw connections like this one to goodness and Catholic truth. I just couldn't put the books down, despite feeling annoyed at Pullman's prejudice against the Catholic Church, something I have willingly and joyfully given my life to serving. Heck, as an ordained deacon I am a member of the magisterium of the Catholic Church. The Church Pullman portrays and the Church I love are quite different and my experience is what's true to me. Afterwards, I judged that the books were more devoid of the important spiritual truths than a concerted attack on my Catholicism. The DaVinci Code was way more blatant. The series showed more of an absence of religion rather than a calculated agenda to destroy my faith in God and in the Catholic Church. And on the plus side, I saw the selflessness and courage and compassion of Lyra and later Will winning out over selfishness and ambition and greed. But that's my opinion and it is not the opinion of many others. Visit the Elms library Our Blogs page for a collection of differing views on these books.
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