The Harry Potter books, the last of which is released on July 21, have been attacked by some Christians as a dangerous influence on children.Even the Pope believes JK Rowling's popular tales are pure 'hogwash' and "distort Christianity in the soul".
His comments were made to a German author who wrote Harry Potter - Good Or Evil? which criticises the books.
Gabriele Kuby sent the German pontiff a copy of the book in 2003, when he was still a cardinal, and his replies were published two years later.
"It is good that you enlighten people about Harry Potter because these are subtle seductions which act unnoticed and by this deeply distort Christianity in the soul before it can grow properly," wrote Pope Benedict XVI.
>> Millions pre-order last Potter book He also thanked Kuby for her "instructive" book, in which she says the Potter series corrupts the hearts of the young, preventing them from developing a sense of good and evil.
Concerns about Harry Potter also prompted Canterbury Cathedral to reject a request from Warner Bros for it to become a location for the first film in the series, Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, for fear of upsetting groups unhappy with the books.
>> JK Rowling to reveal Harry Potter secrets The film's makers had thought the spires, buttresses and arches of the cathedral were ideal for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The dean of Canterbury Cathedral, the Very Rev John Simpson, said at the time he was concerned "the imagery of witches and warlocks" in the Harry Potter books "might upset some Christians".
In 1999, JK Rowling was forced to defend her work during a publicity tour of America after parents in South Carolina asked for Harry Potter books to be removed by the board of
education because of their "dark and evil" content.
The author said in a newspaper interview: "I have yet to meet a single child who's told me that they want to be, you know, a satanist or are particularly interested in the occult because of the book."
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