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@denali-christianson well, I’m very curious to hear your response, because I believe you have a magic system in your story, right?

It’s not a hard line for me, but there are a few things I like to take into consideration:

1. Is the author a believer?

I’m much more likely to read a book with magic in it if the author is a believer and is approaching it from that perspective.

2. Is it set in the real world?

If a book is set in the real world and has a magic system, that could potentially be more dangerous than a fantasy book with magic in it

2. Is the magic similar to real world witchcraft or new age beliefs?

The reason that magic is forbidden in the Bible is because it involves using demonic forces to gain power for oneself.  It’s in direct, open rebellion to God.  However, I think there’s a lot of technology we have today that people 2,000 years ago probably would’ve thought was witchcraft.  I don’t think it’s as much about the ability or power itself, but where it’s coming from and who it’s glorifying.

So, “spiritualized” magic systems are an instant no for me.  For example, I know a lot of Christians love Star Wars, but I personally don’t really feel inclined to watch it because the “magic system” is portrayed as spiritual, and it’s very similar in many ways to real new age practices (which are clearly demonic).  This is my personal perspective, though.

4. How is the magic portrayed?  Is it just a natural ability some people have and others don’t?  Is it learned?  I think one of the major things I look for is the general “feel.”  If the magic is portrayed as dark or mystical, or feels spiritually unhealthy, then I won’t read it (although if that’s portrayed as evil in the story, that’s better).  It’s interesting, I think a lot of this has to do with the author’s intent and perspective.  So, one thing that feels kind of iffy to me is the presence of a learned magic system – ESPECIALLY when it’s portrayed as a spiritual knowledge that the person must obtain (again, getting too similar to real world witchcraft.)  However, I have a Christian friend who has a WIP involving a protagonist learning magic.  The difference here is that “magic” in this sense is almost in some ways like a scientific or academic study, with different fields and experts (iirc).  So in this case, there’s a “natural” magic which is just a normal part of the world, and an “unnatural” magic which is more like witchcraft.

which btw @merieshenanigans I’d be interested to hear your input for this one!

Also one thing I want to add – I think it’s kind of common for Christian fantasy writers to give their protagonist magical powers and say it’s from God.  I’d actually be really careful with this one, because when we bring God’s presence into the story that directly and tangibly, we’re under even more obligation to portray it responsibly and accurately (imo).  Just making a thing “Christian” or “from God” doesn’t necessarily make it good or accurate.  I suspect that this comes from a fear of just including magic in Christian stories – and while it’s certainly something to be wary and prayerful about, casually adding God or Christianity to it doesn’t solve any problems.  In the Bible, God didn’t performs miracles lightly, and He didn’t give prophets power just for fun.  All of these displays of power pointed people to His love, might, and terrifying, holy majesty.  People who God gave power to were often (if not always) in positions of great responsibility.  I also feel like it can sometimes be a crutch to avoid confronting larger questions or putting people off.  I’m not saying that this can’t be done right, because it certainly has!  But, I think it’s unwise to casually attribute “magic” to God just because it feels “safer.”  I’ve noticed that Christian fiction can be scarily casual when it comes to depictions of God and of His work in our lives – for example, a concerning amount of Christian romance novels implicitly say “if you’re faithful, God will give you a rugged handsome 6’5″ husband.”  TBH I actually think this has made Christianity a lot less appealing to unbelievers, because it makes it seem shallow, hollow, unrealistic, and unsympathetic to people’s actual struggles.

At the end of the day, it’s one of those things we have to bring to God in prayer, and ask what He thinks, and what His will is for our writing (not necessarily someone else’s – although there’s some things that are just objectively wrong in anyone’s writing XD)