Wednesday, July 11, 2007

No Surprises Here

The conversation around the office lunch table invariably swings to the news of the day. First up for discussion over tuna sandwiches and diet Snapple today was the Pope's recent statement that the Catholic church is the only denomination that counts (one true church/faith kinda deal).

Reactions in the room were interesting, with the Catholics among us expressing the most incredulity. We non-Catholics were essentially unmoved, for two basic reasons. First, we already knew that the Catholic church held that position, so it wasn't news to us. Second, the Pope holds no authority to us. We don't think he speaks for God, and we don't think he has better access to God than anyone else. His opinion is fairly irrelevant to us, unless it impacts public policy or inspires genocide.

Any really interesting conversation (let me put my Geek hat on) today centered around Harry Potter. Discussions about the latest movie (released today) and the 7th book (to be released on 7/21; yes, I'll be in line at midnight) were animated and full of anticipatory speculation. Most people seem to think that Harry will make the ultimate sacrifice. He might be a horcrux (OK, I did mention the Geek hat, didn't I?), or Neville might turn out to be the wizard in the prophecy after all.

Those of you who have not followed the story have already tuned out on this post. Those of you who know the HP saga must have a guess about the final outcome of the series. What do you think?

A few of my predictions:
Ginny Weasley will play a significant role
Snape: friend, not foe (though never friendly)
There are a few surprises yet to be learned about Harry's family history
Harry might die, but Voldemort will not win
Neville and Luna will play important roles, as well
Draco Malfoy could make an unexpected change for the better
House elves, goblins and giants will factor into the final fray

OK, so I've dissed the Pope and exposed my interest in the wizarding world of Harry Potter. Am I a wanton liberal, or what?

7 comments:

mommanator said...

hummm at least I see you are back to posting, miss ya's and the lunch room chat

Random Kath said...

Merci:

Yes, the Pope thing was definitely not a big surprise to me (my mom's family is Catholic) and I just figured everyone knew that to Catholics there are only two categories: Catholic and Heathen. :-)

My prediction: Dumbledore will have something to do with the outcome, even if it is from the grave (which I've read some commentary hypothesizing that he might not really be dead.)

Merci said...

Mommanator-
We miss you, too! Come for a visit soon.

Random Kath-
My father's family was Catholic. Mixed denominations within a family can be as tough as mixed faiths sometimes!

I think Dumbledore will be important, too. I hadn't heard the speculation that he is not dead. I can't wait to get my hands on the final book!

Joe Tornatore said...

you just never know what sotrylines you will read here.

Pax Romano said...

Damn, I miss that lunchtime crowd!!!

Merci said...

Joe-
No more faux bears, I promise! I'm all too likely to see real ones in the new digs.

Pax-
Oh, how we miss you! Come back to us!

CS said...

I believe Dumbledore will be there, alive in some form or another, and I also think Sanpe will be revealed to be a friend, if a surly one. They hinted at recruitment among othe rmagical creatures, so I'm wondering if their wil be sme sort of epic ord of the Rings type battle scene. Actually, I hope not - I hate the batle scenes. Tomorrow will tell!