It appears that Harry Potter’s supernatural adventures aren’t that welcome among some parents. From the late 1990s until now, J.K. Rowling’s wizard’s books have been among the most challenged books, according to the American Library Association. And among children’s books, nothing ranks higher than the Potter adventures on the most-censored lists. Last year alone, there were 26 challenges nationwide, in 16 different states, to have Harry Potter’s adventures taken off bookshelves.

What is unique about Rowling’s books, though, is the reason for wanting to censor her books. Whereas it used to be that sex and violence were the number one reasons to ban a book, Harry Potter’s opponents don’t like the fact that his novels feature wizards and magic spells. They don’t understand that the books are fantasy–or at least, they worry that their children might perceive it as being real. Never mind that family classics such as “The Wizard of Oz” have long incorporated magic and wizards. Indeed, C.S. Lewis, a noted Christian, who wrote “The Chronicles of Narnia” series, sprinkles in magic, witches, and fantasy throughout the books. J.R.R. Tolkien, author of “The Lord of the Rings” books, was also a Christian, and despite the presence of wizards and wizardry, Christians have often seen spiritual metaphors in the series.

Of course, those books have the one thing Rowling’s books don’t have yet: time. Specifically, they have had enough time to prove themselves as classics. Perhaps in another 10 or 20 years, Harry Potter will also enjoy classic-status and be welcomed by all families who enjoy entertaining tales of right and wrong….even in a fantasy.

The Comics Code Authority is an organization whose chief purpose is to allow comic books to place the CCA stamp on their covers. They get this right after the CCA has determined whether the content of the issue is suitable for a largely youth audience. In the 21st century, this serves as sort of a guide for parents, to let them know whether there might be objectionable content inside. In the beginning, though, the CCA’s scope was quite wider. It was, in fact, a de facto censorship board for the comic-book industry. In the 60s especially, they were the arbiters of whether or not a comic book would be available on the comic stands. Spiderman, however, changed the CCA’s power forever.

Let’s back up and examine the CCA’s history. The Comics Code Authority was created in 1954 as a reaction to the publics growing concern about the “subversive” content in comics. Following congressional hearings into the medium, the CCA was created, and imposed numerous restrictions on the industry. Specifically, excessive violence, and “lurid, unsavory, gruesome illustrations” were forbidden. Also, they could not use the words “horror” or “terror” in their titles. And under no circumstances could a comic book talk about drugs or alcohol abuse.

Then along came Stan Lee and Spiderman. In 1971 in The Amazing Spider-Man #96-#98, Stan Lee created a story arc with an anti-drug message. In it, Peter Parker’s best friend was seen suffering the negative effects of drugs. Lee was informed that the story arc could not be published. The writer’s argument was that this story did not portray drugs in a positive light, but showed their negative effects. The CCA was unmoved. So Marvel Comics made a bold move: They published the issues without the coveted CCA seal. The story arc had fantastic sales, and received critical and fan approval.

Soon after, DC followed suit, showing Speedy (sidekick to Green Arrow) with a heroin habit. This took the Spiderman story a step further, because they actually identified the drug.

Soon after these issues, the CCA modified their requirements to allow the depiction of drug use as a “vicious habit.”

Today, the CCA continues to exist….but not with the power they once wielded. Today they serve as sort of a “parent’s friend,” to help them monitor the content of their children’s reading material.

If you’ve studied the subject of banned books, you’ve doubtless heard of something called The Anarchist Cookbook, by William Powell. Although it’s difficult in a free society to find a truly government-banned book, this one truly is not allowed at many state-run libraries in the United States. What’s more, the author himself, William Powell, wants it that way, and would prefer that the book stay out of print.

The book was written during the late 1960s after the author graduated from high school. Powell was involved in the anti-Vietnam-War movement and started the research for a book on how to get attention by causing massive chaos in the country. In the book are recipes for creating bombs, acids, and other materials to cause harm to human life. On the Amazon.com site for his book, the author recently wrote:

“The central idea to the book was that violence is an acceptable means to bring about political change. I no longer agree with this.
Apparently in recent years, The Anarchist Cookbook has seen a number of ‘copy cat’ type publications, some with remarkably similar titles (Anarchist Cookbook II, III etc). I am not familiar with these publications and cannot comment upon them. I can say that the original Anarchist Cookbook has not been revised or updated in any way by me since it was first published….Unfortunately, the book continues to be in print and with the advent of the Internet several websites dealing with it have emerged. I want to state categorically that I am not in agreement with the contents of The Anarchist Cookbook and I would be very pleased (and relieved) to see its publication discontinued. I consider it to be a misguided and potentially dangerous publication which should be taken out of print.”

Incidentally, I researched several websites with a similar name: some variation of “The Anarchist Cookbook.” Most of them are pitiful attempts to capitalize on the name of the original in appealing to people who still possess a desire to overthrow the government.

Although seen in thousands of libraries across the United States, “Mein Kampf,” the infamous book by Adolf Hitler is banned in Germany. Why? We’ll examine that, but first, let’s talk about the content of the book.

“Mein Kampf” tells about Hitler’s childhood and what he perceived as the “betrayal” of Germany in World I. He talks about his desire for revenge against France. Most notably, though, Hitler talks about his racist agenda and why his “Aryan” race is superior to other races. This book later became fuel for the anti-Semitic fire that allowed him to perpetrate the Holocaust.

Make no mistake: “Mein Kampf” is the ranting of an evil maniac. But it is invaluable reading to completely understand why the Holocaust happened–and also to see just how evil Hitler was. Why, then, has Germany banned it?

Clearly it’s banned because of the guilt that Germany feels for the Holocaust. They also don’t want to deal with the “Neo Nazi” movement that is arising in their borders. (The ban went into effect when Germany banned any kind of pro-Nazi propaganda–of which, “Mein Kampf” seemed chief.)

Still, they should understand that study of this book is invaluable. We study history so that we don’t repeat the darker parts of history. Forbidding people from reading this book feeds right into the Neo-Nazis’ agenda of pretending the Holocaust never happened. Here’s a better alternative: Create a study guide for “Mein Kampf” that appears throughout the main text of the book itself. Encourage any publisher that publishes the book to make use of this study guide. This will ensure that, not only the maniac’s bigoted views get out, but also a reasoned response to his claims.

The number one religion that bans books in the 21st Century is Islam. And of course, leading their list of the number-one most hated, most forbidden book: Salman Rushdie’s ‘The Satanic Verses.’

For those who have forgotten, let’s review a brief history of this book. ‘The Satanic Verses’ was published in 1988, inspired by the life of Islam’s chief prophet, Mohammad. It’s a historical fact that early biographies of the prophet claimed that Mohammad was tricked by Satan into including certain verses in early copies of the Koran. It’s from these “verses” that Rushdie drew his inspiration, and where the book its name. In brief, a terrorist’s bomb destroys a jumbo jet high above the English Channel, and two passengers fall safely to earth: Gibreel, an Indian movie actor, and Saladin, star of the controversial British television program, The Alien Show. The near-death experience changes them into living symbols of good and evil. Saladin grows horns, Gibreel a halo. From this fantastic premise Rushdie spins a huge collection of loosely related subplots that combine mythology, folklore, and TV trivia. In the book, angels are seen as demonic, and demons are seen as angels. This, of course, flies in the face of Islam’s view of the spirit world.

Even though Rushdie’s main sources for his religious ideas in the book were those early “Satanic Verses” that Mohammad originally included in the Koran, the author’s book enraged many in the Muslim world. They accused Rushdie of blasphemy (although they withheld that accusation from Mohammad who predated Rushdie by many centuries in his embracing of the offending ‘verses’). The government of Iran offered a reward to anyone who killed Rushdie–a reward which still stands.

The effect of all of this was similar to the effect on most books that people try to ban: It became a bestseller, and is still in high demand on websites such as Amazon and Borders.com.

No website about banned books would be complete without an examination of the most banned book of the 20th century. Which one holds that honor? “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger.

In case you never had to read this book in high school, here’s a brief synopsis. Holden Caulfield is a cynical adolescent who narrates the story of a couple of days in his sixteen-year-old life, just after he’s been expelled from prep school, in a slang that sounds edgy even today To give you a feel for the language, here’s one sample paragraph: “If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them.” He also makes generous use of the “G-D” cuss word.

Reasons for banning the book were numerous (Keep in mind; this was the 1950s when the censorship began). The afore-mentioned language was one reason. But there was far more than that. There was the fact that Holden was skeptical about most of the institutions that were respected in his day, including organized religion and law enforcement. There’s the fact that a prostitute is seen in a positive light. There is the outright rebellious attitude that Holden seems to exhibit.

Today, though, the book is more accepted. Why? Because Holden’s attitude was ahead of his time. It’s much more in line with the thinking and attitudes of young people in the 21st century. Most youth are skeptical about the very things that Holden was–and more accepting of the off scour of society (such as the prostitute) than they were in the 1950s.

Most of all, “The Catcher in the Rye” transcends politics. It’s enjoyed by liberals and conservatives alike. Liberals like it because of its emphasis on questioning our traditional institutions. Conservatives like it because it frowns on letting the government authorities dig too much into our personal lives.

Oh, it still has the foul language. But “Catcher,” while much censored in the 20th century, seems to have found its home in the 21st century.

Which book holds the honor for being the most censored or banned book throughout history? Is it Hitler’s “Mein Kampf?” Perhaps it’s some piece of trashy pornography? Or Salman Rushdie’s “Satanic Verses“?

The truth is, the book that has faced more censorship than any other is the Bible–or some portion of it.

We find an example of banning certain parts of the Scriptures right within the Bible itself. Jeremiah 36:1-26 tells of the time when King Jehoiakim was read a portion of the Hebrew scriptures by the prophet Jeremiah. He was so shaken by what he heard, he ordered that the scrolls be cut and burned. A few hundred years later, according to the Apocryphal book of First Maccabees, Antiochus IV in 168 ordered the Jewish Torah to be torn in pieces and burned (I. Maccabees 1:56).

During the Reformation, Catholics were so committed to the Latin versions of the Bible that they persecuted–and even put to death–those who tried to translate the Bible into their own nations’ languages. Martin Luther’s German-language translation met with this sort of resistance.

Bible-banning continues in the 21st Century. Muslim countries and Communist nations like China make it very difficult for citizens to obtain a copy of the Scriptures. Missionaries regularly report the need to smuggle Bibles into nations, because government agents won’t permit it to come into the country otherwise. One lady, Hillery, emailed me about this very thing. “I actually did help smuggle Bible’s and literature into China, from Hong Kong, while I was there. It was exciting, and scary.”

One group that helps smuggle Bibles into countries that forbid them otherwise is an organization called Bibles Unbound. A representative of the group told me, “Persecuted Christians from around the world are gathering names and addresses from their local communities. These names are then submitted to Bibles Unbound where members have the opportunity to mail New Testaments in the appropriate language directly to the field.”

Those who oppose the censorship of books by religious or political groups must be consistent–and support groups such as Bibles Unbound, who, though different in religious views from you, are likewise the victims of unjust censorship.