Does The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien Have Christian Ties?

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Many scholars, film buffs, Christians, Catholics, and Atheists have gone back and forth over this simple fact: is the film Lord of the Rings a film with Christian ties? This is a puzzling issue; If you take the film at face value you see: wizards, orcs, ents, magic and spells on screen. The viewer is left wondering how a Christian based film can have such things in it. Doesn’t Christianity renounce those beliefs ? If you dig deeper into the past of J.R.R Tolkien you will see that he has a rough road but what happens in his past only strengthen his belief in his faith, the strength of Tolkien’s faith even brought CS Lewis into Christianity. J.R.R Tolkien and Peter Jackson leave the viewer clues though out the film that is symbolic toward Christian beliefs. J.R.R Tolkien became a Catholic when he was 8 years old. The story goes that he and his mother got lost and they found dirt roads which lead them to a Catholic church. J.R.R Tolkien had his first communion in Christmas 1903, and his mom passed away from a diabetes-induced coma. He was left in the care of a Fr. Francis Morgan. Later Tolkien said that he believed his mother’s death to martyrdom for the faith. This martyrdom can be viewed in the scene where Gandalf the Grey is battling a Balrog. During this battle Gandalf the Grey fell with the Balrog; this is symbolizes martyrdom to allow the fellowship of the ring to continue on its quest. It was through Gandalf’s sacrifice that he was reborn as a White Wizard and became Gandalf the White. The hobbits are shown on screen as simple, peaceful folk that mind their own business in the shire. In the scripture Matthew 5:3-12(1) says: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who ... ... middle of paper ... ...For the 1,000 years Jesus reigns and there is piece throughout Earth. By comparison middle earth was left in turmoil when the rings tore apart the kingdom. J.R.R Tolkien even eludes to this by the way the character Aragon is shown on the screen as an individual that has a striking resemblance to Jesus , the dark hair; he has a beard, and is soft spoken, as a loyal leader, unbeknownst to him, he is the one to take over the throne of Middle Earth. J.R.R Tolkien tells a story portrayed in a fantasy world that has deep roots into Christianity. No matter how hard some people fight, the key points and striking symbolism has its beginnings in the Bible. Yes you do see wizards, orcs, ents, and magic but don’t take that for face value. This is a story in which you have to remove the fantasy façade in order to get the true meaning of what the story teller wants you to know.

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