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Originally Posted by LadyBrooke
Can I just say one thing? Some Roman Catholic commentators will stress a religious component. Other Roman Catholics, like many people in my father's family, think that people read too much Catholic belief into the books. So, can we stop acting like all Catholics, all Americans, all whatever believe the same thing? Even within groups, the people might disagree, and that's good.
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I'd first like to say alot of the discussion since my last posting seems to make a case I'm more than happy with. I do believe you have Christ figures dotted through LOTR, but that's my opinion; I don't require anyone else to hold it.
On this point I'd like to point out that there have only been peripheral alterations to Catholic belief in the past centuries. More a case of tinkering at the edges, further all Catholics are bound to believe the teaching of the Magisterium of the Church. Put simply if Tolkien wandered into Mass tomorrow, he might be annoyed that it's not in latin, but otherwise it would all be 100% familiar.
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Oh, and the Roman Catholic Church Tolkien grew up in would have been different from the one that exists now. There has been quite a bit of new Canon and clarification on the old in the past half a century or so. So, I'm not even sure we can try and make it fit into current Catholicism, though they're similar. I'm not schooled enough in the differences to say how that would fit in with the books. Just a thought to throw out there.
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It's not a question of 'new' Catholicism, the fundamental teachings etc are entirely unchanged. Vatican 2 was more about 'opening' up the Church to be more accessible, however, what was bad before, remained bad after and vice versa.
P.S. On the Beren and Luthien issue earlier, the 'Harrowing of Hell' seems a reach to me, given that the Harrowing refers to Sheol, as opposed to the 'other place.' Further I'm not clear on how this achieved any sort of redemption, seeing as it was Earendil all those years later who actually sought forgiveness.
In the LOTR I content the Christ-figures (as literary allusion) all play a part in redemption. Again though, no one has to believe this, it's simply my own opinion.