Volu m e II - Purdue University Calumet

Version of the Bible, the idea is there. During his death in the Gospel of Luke, the onlookers mock Christ,
saying: “Let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God” (23.35). Later translations support the
connection as the same verse from Luke is translated to “let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the
Messiah of God” (New American Bible). Both translations refer to Christ as “the Chosen One” of God, come
to save the world from their sins. By naming Harry “the Chosen One,” Rowling strengthens the link
between her hero and Christ and foreshadows what is to come as biblically literate readers of Rowling’s
work see Harry’s new identity as proof of Harry’s destiny to rid the Wizarding World of its evil (Killinger
49).
The parallels to Christ’s life are even more plentiful in Deathly Hallows. The first major similarity
between Harry’s and Christ’s stories in the seventh novel is how both men are tempted while isolated in the
wilderness before their great sacrifices. Christ is tempted by the Devil after fasting for forty days and
nights. He tries to make Christ turn stones into bread, throw himself off of the pinnacle of the temple, and
bow down to him in exchange for the entire world, but Christ remains steadfast in his allegiance to God
(Holy Bible Matt. 4.1-11). The three temptations represent three basic humans wants—comfort, safety,
and power—but Christ denies the Devil’s offers “for the sake of the realm of heaven” (Levine 342).
Similarly Harry is tempted while hiding from Voldemort in the wilderness. While he, Hermione, and Ron
hunt for bits of Voldemort’s soul, Harry becomes tempted by three objects known as the Deathly Hallows.
The Deathly Hallows consist of an unbeatable wand, a resurrection stone, and an infallible
invisibility cloak which, when combined, transform the owner into the “Master… Conqueror…
Vanquisher” of death (DH 409-10). These three objects refer back to the basic human wants of Christ’s
temptation. The Stone represent comfort to Harry, who desperately wants his loved ones back from the
dead; the Cloak represents safety through its ability to hide its wearer from sight; and the Wand represents
power as it is known to be “more powerful than any in existence” (407). Harry is greatly tempted by the
Hallows and considers searching for them instead of the Horcruxes, justifying his desire by quoting the
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