As to Catholic saints being "in his books" i don't think Tolkien placed any intentional examples...that would have smacked too much of allegory, IMHO. But we cannot divorse the Man from his works. Tolkien was Catholic...meaning not just that he went to a Catholic church, or believed Catholic doctrine,--- Catholicism was a part of his essence (just as his "Englishness" was part of his essence).It colored not just how he thought, but how he wrote. "Catholic thought" permeates tLOTR if one knows where to look. Rather than "force the issue" by having certain characters represent saints (or other "real world" persons), i think he chose to place his ideals "in between the lines".
sharku: I beg to differ. If you would like to learn a little about about Catholic Saints and whether or not they are fictitious, I can give you the location of many of their graves (some of which are glass coffins where their remains-still incorrupt-can be seen) along with legal testimony (secular courts) documenting many of their works.
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