Harry Potter: The Prophecy Trivia Quiz

Answer:

Although it had been implied throughout the previous books, it was not overtly revealed until the "Order of the Phoenix" that Harry was indeed the chosen one who would lead the battle against the forces of evil.

Harry returned to Professor Dumbledore's office at the conclusion of the Battle of the Ministry, after witnessing the death of his godfather, Sirius Black. During the heat of battle, the globe that was believed to have contained the above prophecy was accidentally destroyed. Harry soon learned that the prophecy destroyed was the "official version" that was written after the attack on his parents. Finally, using Dumbledore's pensieve, a magical device that stored memories for future examination, the person who witnessed the original prophecy...Dumbledore himself...could tell Harry exactly what it said.

It was interesting to learn that the person who had made the prophecy was Professor Trelawney, whose ranting and raving during her Hogwarts classes was difficult to take seriously. In fact, Hermione had even dropped her class, believing that Trelawney was a fraud.

Sixteen years prior, Dumbledore had agreed to give Trelawney a job interview, however, he wasn't sure at the time that he wanted to offer a class on Divination. He had only agreed to meet with her because her great-great grandmother, Cassandra Trelawney, had been a very gifted Seer. At the end of their meeting, which was held on August 1, 1980, he politely told Professor Trelawney that he was not interested. It was at that moment that she gave the above prophecy.

By that time, Lord Voldemort, the Dark Lord mentioned, had been steadily amassing his power; the First Wizarding War began in 1970, and, although there was opposition, he was gaining strength due to his use of cruelty and Unforgiveable Curses against his opponents. The first Order of the Phoenix, to which Harry's parents belonged, had been formed in an attempt to stop his evil takeover.

Harry had indeed been born at the end of the seventh month; his birth date was July 31, 1980. His parents, James and Lily Potter, had defied Voldemort three times - presumably by turning down the invitation to become Death Eaters and then subsequently fighting against his takeover. According to J.K. Rowling, just turning Voldemort down and fighting against him counted, but there are three specific instances seen in the books - the Potters' refusal to join his squad, James' defense of his family when Voldemort attacked his home, and Lily's defense of Harry after James had been killed.

Lily was protecting Harry with the Sacrificial Protection charm when Voldemort took her life, refusing to step aside and let Voldemort kill him, offering her life for his. When Voldemort attacked the baby on October 31, 1981, this spell is what caused his curse to bounce off Harry and strike him back. Harry was left with the mark, a scar on his forehead as Voldemort's equal (it later was revealed that this left Harry with a fragment of the Dark Lord's soul), and Voldemort was vanquished, left without a body. The First Wizarding War was over.

So, what power did Harry have that "the Dark Lord knows not"? It was the power of love. Lily's love for Harry protected him after she made the ultimate sacrifice, and, in spite of having to endure Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia's upbringing, Harry had a great capacity for love. Voldemort never knew love as he was growing up; it wasn't given to him and he did not return it to others.

What is very interesting about the prophecy is that there was another who was born at the end of July whose parents had defied Lord Voldemort three times. Why did the chosen one have to be Harry? Because Lord Voldemort gave Harry the scar. Dumbledore explained that Voldemort probably chose Harry because, like himself, Harry was a half-blood wizard.

Now Harry learned perhaps the most difficult part of the prophecy - one of them - either Voldemort or Harry - had to die because neither could stand what the other represented. There's a bit more reading to do in order to see how that turns out!