Orthopraxy. Never heard that term before. But I like it, orthopraxy. And you are quite right, in Middle Earth it doesn't seem to matter whether the people are educated in the higher truths like the Eldar, or unschooled and (in all likelyhood) superstitious like the Rohirrim ot the Hobbits. How they measure up is decided by how they act in relation to their fellow man (or Elf or Dwarf etc) and to nature. This is something I really like about Tolkien's world and his morals. His moral standard is not a judgemental one in the sense that many conservatives now and in the past hold dear, where a failure to comply to orthodoxy leads to condemnation, but rather one tolerant of differances between peoples and individuals, as long as the heart is in the right place and you try to do what is good. I don't feel excluded from this moral standard, penned up by a deeply religious man, although I've no theistic beliefs myself and I respect Tolkien for that.
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Originally Posted by Beth
It is historically true that Judaism and Islam have placed greater emphasis on orthopraxy rather than orthodoxy, but that does not mean the concept would not be known to Tolkien.
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You mistyped and mixed up the terms here, didn't you?
