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Estel the Descender · 03-15-2002, 02:20 AM

There are many Christians who do not see parts of the Bible as one big allegory, if by allegory one means using symbols to convey some truth, usually spiritual truth. Rather, these Christians see great portions of the Bible as actual history which happens to have some relevance to anyone who wishes to apply the lessons found there. Thus, to many Christians (and Jews), God is not a symbol of good (an allegory) while Satan is the symbol of bad. God is THE GOOD, THE TRUTH, THE WAY (the Tao[?]), THE LIFE. God exists and the Bible is the record of that existence. The Bible is a snapshot of God.

The Silmarillon, the Hobbit, and the LotR are snapshots of Middle-Earth. The books were not supposed to symbolize anything: they are not allegories. Yes, they have relevance (the "Power corrupts. . ." thing) but they are not symbols of some cosmic truth. I think that Professor Tolkien wanted his history to be taken "literally". Not that hobbits actually exist in our world, but hobbits must be understood to exist in "Tolkien's" world. They do not represent any virtue or vice.

In this, the Bible and the LotR are similar: they are not allegories. If the LotR says that Elves go to Valinor (meaning: "Fairies return to Faerie), then not only do they do so but that fairies exist. . . in Valinor. If "The Two Towers" imply that Gandalf resurrected from death, Gandalf is not meant to symbolise Jesus Christ. It must be taken that Gandalf DID resurrect. . . in Middle-Earth. And if the Gospels say that Jesus Christ was crucified, was buried, and then resurrected on the third day, the entire story is not supposed to symbolise a conceptual victory over the oblivion of death. We must assume that the historical Yeshua Bar-Yoseph BenDavid actually was killed and came back to life literally in ancient Palestine. Tolkien believed this to have been actually true, a myth that became reality and therefore NOT AN ALLEGORY.

03-15-2002, 02:20 AM	#129
Estel the Descender Haunting Spirit Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 55	There are many Christians who do not see parts of the Bible as one big allegory, if by allegory one means using symbols to convey some truth, usually spiritual truth. Rather, these Christians see great portions of the Bible as actual history which happens to have some relevance to anyone who wishes to apply the lessons found there. Thus, to many Christians (and Jews), God is not a symbol of good (an allegory) while Satan is the symbol of bad. God is THE GOOD, THE TRUTH, THE WAY (the Tao[?]), THE LIFE. God exists and the Bible is the record of that existence. The Bible is a snapshot of God. The Silmarillon, the Hobbit, and the LotR are snapshots of Middle-Earth. The books were not supposed to symbolize anything: they are not allegories. Yes, they have relevance (the "Power corrupts. . ." thing) but they are not symbols of some cosmic truth. I think that Professor Tolkien wanted his history to be taken "literally". Not that hobbits actually exist in our world, but hobbits must be understood to exist in "Tolkien's" world. They do not represent any virtue or vice. In this, the Bible and the LotR are similar: they are not allegories. If the LotR says that Elves go to Valinor (meaning: "Fairies return to Faerie), then not only do they do so but that fairies exist. . . in Valinor. If "The Two Towers" imply that Gandalf resurrected from death, Gandalf is not meant to symbolise Jesus Christ. It must be taken that Gandalf DID resurrect. . . in Middle-Earth. And if the Gospels say that Jesus Christ was crucified, was buried, and then resurrected on the third day, the entire story is not supposed to symbolise a conceptual victory over the oblivion of death. We must assume that the historical Yeshua Bar-Yoseph BenDavid actually was killed and came back to life literally in ancient Palestine. Tolkien believed this to have been actually true, a myth that became reality and therefore NOT AN ALLEGORY. __________________ Qui desiderat pacem, præparet bellum. E i anîra hîdh, tangado an auth.