The atrocity of the Akallabêth

[Tar-Telperien]

Originally Posted by davem

Is M-e monotheistic or polytheistic? It can't be both.

It is neither. Middle-earth is monolatristic.

To continue some of the things I was talking about above: the uncertainty his creatures have of Eru's plans with Arda, and their uncertainty of his "goodness", is what allows estel to exist. And estel does seem to be a concept that Eru's devotees take seriously (apparently because they feel he himself does so). It is only because they know so little of Eru that the request to trust him is so hard to fulfill. Estel is like "a fool's hope"; unlike the Christian, the Elf or Man has no assurance that their faith will be acknowledged and their desires for eternity fulfilled. It is taking the ultimate "leap of faith" because it is so utterly blind (in fact, this concept of estel really makes me wonder whether Tolkien ever read Kierkegaard; estel seems to be right in the vein of that philosopher's ideas of absurdity and trusting in God). So yes, I think there is a "theological" reason for Eru's aloofness. Otherwise, trusting him would just be too easy and make too much sense. If Eru is nearly as much of an "artist" as he seems to be, of course he wouldn't want to fit into that mold