[Mithadan]

I usually stay out of discussions of this sort, but as this thread has accumulated so many posts I decided to take a peek. In my opinion, one tends to interpret what one reads according to one's world-view. It is thus not surprising that Christians seek religious references in Tolkien's works. Oddly enough, some early criticisms of LoTR included arguments that it was anti-Christian or even pagan in nature. One does not have to look very hard to find such criticisms (even contemporary ones - a church website recently warned parents against letting their children read Tolkien). Clearly, LoTR lacks any overt references to religon. In Letters, Tolkien frankly admits this. There are no churches or temples. Yet if one goes beyond LoTR to the Silmarillion, there is an odd combination of monotheism (Eru) and paganism (the Valar, called the Gods in early drafts). However, by LoTR Eru and the Valar "only peep through" and while there is a form of recognition of both Eru and the Valar in the Men of the West and the Elves, they are remote... "there would be no temple of the True God while Numenorean influence lasted." (Letters, No.156).

Tolkien's quotes, repeated often in other posts, about lack of allegory and no conscious injection of Christianity, need not be repeated and should be taken at face value. To do otherwise is to call Tolkien a liar, and I do not believe he was. So what is the source of inspiration found in Tolkien's writings which is so often interpreted as religious allegory?

As he said, he wanted to write a good yarn. Interpret this as he wanted to write a story he himself would like to read. And what did Tolkien enjoy? Northern, Norse and Icelandic Mythology... fairy stories as he states in an essay. Many scholarly works are dedicated to Tolkien's writing with most attributing his inspiration, if not his sources, as the Icelandic Eddas. It is suggested that Turin is a direct rip-off of Kullervo from those tales (gotta read those Eddas someday).

But JRRT did not just rewrite old myths. He wrote his own tales, perhaps in a style or genre that he himself enjoyed. But as he wrote them, he inserted his own world-view via the ethics, logic and morals of Middle Earth. Thus no bad deed ultimately goes unpunished; good triumphs over evil; loyalty, steadfastness, determination in the face of adversity, honor and duty are virtues. Tolkien's Judeo-Christian world-view seeps into his writing unavoidably and does so over and over again. But Middle Earth and its characters are not based upon the Bible, purposefully (he expressly denies this over and again) or otherwise. What can be found in Middle Earth, the Men of the West, Hobbits and more or less the Elves and Dwarves are the values, ethics and morals which JRRT cherished (which happen to be Judeo-Christian as was he, but not exclusively so -- most religons espouse the same principles) as well as a ripping good series of stories in the style he loved. As such, his work, in a way, transcends and is loved by Christians, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Atheists, etc. Yet none can (or should) claim it as their own -- this was not what he intended. He wanted to write a good yarn and he did. And if people find inspiration in his writing, all the better.