Novus Ordo church becomes ‘Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry’…
Wizards and Witches Welcome:
Harry Potter-Themed Ecumenical Service Draws Hundreds
image credit: Günter Mydlak (fair use)
On the evening of Feb. 28, 2026, the Herz-Jesu-Kirche (Heart of Jesus Church) in Herne, Germany, part of the archdiocese of Paderborn, was the scene of an ecumenical service of a different kind.
Whereas an ecumenical pseudo-liturgy in which ‘Catholics’ (Novus Ordos) and Protestants worship together would be bad enough, this one added another layer of evil: It was Harry Potter-themed.
For those who are unfamiliar, Harry Potter is an immensely popular series of ‘fantasy’ books written by J.K. Rowling aimed at children of ages 8-12. A total of seven volumes were published from 1997 until 2007. Of course it did not take long for the book series to be made into a string of movies, no less popular, and a total of eight films were released between 2001 and 2011.
Popularity, however, is no sign of moral goodness, and in this case we are in fact dealing with something extremely sinister: witchcraft and sorcery. What makes the matter even worse is that the story is targeted at children, who are extremely vulnerable and impressionable. They are being seduced, for they are being introduced to the occult and the demonic in a way that appears exciting and light-hearted. But this is no matter for amusement. When casting spells is ‘cool’, witchcraft is ‘fun’, and sorcery is presented as a tool that can be used for good, the door to spiritual ruin has been opened wide.
Through Harry Potter, Rowling has made sorcery palatable to children, which is a crime for which she will have to answer to God Almighty (cf. Mk 9:41; Apoc 21:8). Is it any wonder that so many children and young adults today are confused about so much as whether they are male or female, and what that even means? Let’s recall the testimony of Fr. Gabriele Amorth (1925-2016), who noted in one of his books:
Diabolical obsessions are disturbances or extremely strong hallucinations that the demon imposes, often invincibly, on the mind of the victim. In these cases the person is no longer master of his own thoughts. Rather, he is subjected to a powerful force that creates mental activity in him that is repetitive, obsessive, and irresistible. Such representations of reality, even if foreign to his manner of thinking, become profoundly fixed in his psyche. The objects of these hallucinations can be manifested as visions, as voices, or as rustlings; they can also appear as monstrous figures, horrifying animals, or devils. In other cases it can be an impulse to commit suicide or to do evil to others; and, particularly in the young, it can lead to confusion about one’s gender. The history of cases is so vast that it is impossible to enumerate all the forms of diabolical obsession.
(Fr. Gabriele Amorth and Stefano Stimamiglio, ed., An Exorcist Explains the Demonic [Manchester, NH: Sophia Institute Press, 2016], translated by Charlotte J. Fasi, pp. 72-73; underlining added.)
For more detailed information about the dangers of Harry Potter, we refer interested readers to the sedevacantist Introibo ad Altare Dei blog:
- Reading, Writing, And…Relativism? (2020)
- The “Beautiful Side” Of Evil (2014)
- Not Even Remotely Good: Occult “Remote Viewing” (2021)
- Strangely Familiar (2022)
But now let’s examine the actual ecumenical prayer service.
Both the ‘Catholic’ parish of St. Dionysius, of which Heart of Jesus Church is a part, and the Lutheran Haranni community in Herne had jointly issued this advertising flyer (source):
On the top right we find the spell ‘Expecto Patronum!’, which is Latin for “I await a guardian” or “I await a protector.”
An automatic translation of the text found in the body of the flyer is as follows:
Dear fans and Hogwarts newcomers,
who are known as “young or grown adults” in Muggle world,we are delighted to announce that the doors of the Great Hall will be open for a magical evening filled with candles, light, and darkness – an evening that will show us how hope takes shape.
We are awaiting you at 5 pm for a magical prelude with butter beer and treats from the “honey pot” in the entrance hall of the Heart of Jesus Church in Herne. Feel free to come dressed in your house colors or magical attire; Muggle clothing is also welcome.
A promotional video published by the parish on Instagram shows pastoral assistant Bettina Aust ‘magically transforming’ herself into a wizard (witch?) with a magic wand.
A few other web sites had reported on this sinister happening ahead of time. For example:
- ‘Harry Potter church service’ at German Catholic parish receives over 500 complaints (Life Site, Feb. 19)
- A “Harry Potter ecumenical service” in a German Catholic church unleashes criticism for trivializing the sacred (InfoCatólica, Feb. 7)
- German Catholic parish plans to host “Harry Potter ecumenical service” (The Catholic Herald, Feb. 2)
It is unfortunately not surprising that this diabolical function was held in a beautiful old traditional Catholic church building originally constructed in 1908, not in one of the many monstrous brutalist churches that are so prevalent in Germany.
As the wizardry-themed ecumenical service had been announced over a month in advance, certain conservatives in the Vatican II Church were alarmed and tried to stop it. Petitions to cancel or prevent the service were submitted to the archdiocese of Paderborn, but to no avail:
In a written response, the Archdiocese of Paderborn defended the event as a pastoral initiative aimed at evangelization in an increasingly secular society.
Spokeswoman Isabella Struck said: “Familiar images and stories from contemporary culture can help to open up initial approaches to the Christian faith and build bridges to the holy Scriptures. With this in mind, local pastoral workers are drawing on motifs from the well-known and popular Harry Potter series, which is an integral part of the lives of many young people — and adults too — for an ecumenical service of the word.”
(Alexander Folz, “German parish’s ‘Harry Potter’ church service sparks Catholic outcry”, EWTN News, Feb. 6, 2026)
And so the scheduled date came, and the event transpired as intended.
On Instagram, the diocese published a short video reel which shows footage from the event. We have uploaded this clip to YouTube in order to expose it. Most of the audio is muted because it consists of the official Harry Potter music, which is copyrighted:
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St. Dionysius parish published numerous photographs on its web site and explained that people “were welcomed by a special atmosphere: lights, music, elements from the Harry Potter book series, interactive activities, drinks, and snacks – there was something to discover and experience everywhere before the ecumenical service began at 6 p.m.” (“Großer Andrang beim ökumenischen Gottesdienst ‘Harry Potter'”, Mar. 2, 2026). During the service, “the chamber orchestra of the Lutheran Haranni community performed well-known melodies from the Harry Potter films”, the same post notes.
Of course the Lutherans, too, reported on this event, since it was an ecumenical initiative. On the official web site of their larger church community, we read that there were approximately 350 people who attended the service, of which a “floating Patronus” was the highlight:
Herne. – On February 28, the Evangelical Church Congregation of Haranni and the Catholic St. Dionysius Parish celebrated an ecumenical Harry Potter-themed service. The event took place at the Sacred Heart Church on Düngelstraße in Herne, which was decorated to resemble the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Well over 300 fans of the character from J.K. Rowling’s novels attended the service — with some dressed in themed costumes. Three passages from the third book in the series, ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’, were read aloud by actress Inga Stück and connected to biblical themes.
Reverend Melanie Jansen juxtaposed the young Harry Potter’s fears and his eventual ability to cast the Patronus charm as a protective spell with the fears we face in our own lives. She offered the Christian message of hope as a source of strength, especially in moments of fear and worry. A highlight of the service was the performance by stilt walker Pauli from the Schnick-Schnack Circus, who floated through the church as a Patronus. As the Patronus disappeared, a three-meter-tall illuminated cross shone brightly at the end of the service, symbolizing the enduring hope of Christianity.
In addition to Inga Stück and Melanie Jansen, pastoral assistant Bettina Aust and Reverend Katja Lueg participated as liturgists. The musical arrangements were provided by district cantor Wolfgang Flunkert on the organ and a string ensemble from the chamber orchestra of the Kreuzkirche. A team of volunteers, including Kai Wiemers, who was responsible for the lighting, took care of decorating the church and selling butterbeer, other drinks, and snacks.
(“Schwebender Patronus als Highlight”, kk-herne.de, Mar. 3, 2026)
So the entire service was women-led, and here’s how that looked:
You won’t find a Catholic among them: The leadership crew of the Harry Potter ecumenical prayer service
image credit: Günter Mydlak (fair use/cropped)
Grotesque! Many more photos of the event can be viewed on Facebook here.
A group of conservative Protestants showed up as well and did some reporting on this frightful event, which they published on YouTube here, including interviews with attendees and a look inside the church just before it began.
We must emphasize that, as we already saw, this latest spiritual crime took place with the explicit permission of the local ‘Catholic archbishop’, the Least Rev. Udo Bentz (b. 1967), who was appointed to his current post by ‘Pope’ Francis in 2023. But then, he is the same Novus Ordo prelate who attended an ‘artistic’ performance in his own cathedral last year that included three scantily-clad weirdos dancing with chickens-in-diapers, singing “Fleisch ist Fleisch” (“Meat is meat”):
It doesn’t come as too much of a surprise, therefore, that Bentz doesn’t have a problem with a witchcraft-themed liturgy conducted jointly with (other) heretics.
Oh, God! “Lift up thy hands against their pride unto the end; see what things the enemy hath done wickedly in the sanctuary.” (Psalm 73:3).
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