Fear and superstition prompts removal of Harry Potter books from Catholic school library.

The summer reading feats of Lynne Bimmler's sixth-grade class are proudly chronicled on the St. Joseph's School website.

"The sixth grade reads an average of 7.5 books each with many students in double digits," says a note on the class page. "Of course, Harry Potter was a popular choice."

But last month, students found that their favorite series had "disapparated" from the school library, after St. Joseph's pastor, the Rev. Ron Barker, removed the books, declaring that the themes of witchcraft and sorcery were inappropriate for a Catholic school.

"He said that he thought most children were strong enough to resist the temptation," said one mother who asked that her name not be used because she did not want her family to be singled out. "But he said it's his job to protect the weak and the strong."

It seems that no matter how far humans progress from the superstitious cave dwellers that saw spirits in trees and ghosts revealed in the morning mists, we still cannot seem to let go of a primitive belief that fears magic or philosophies which challenge their chosen belief systems.

These books have fired up children's imaginations and made reading fun again. That is the sort of "magic" that should be in any school library.