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Originally Posted by The Phantom
Sure, Prof T might have gone with seven for a concrete reason (to mirror something Biblical or something in a Norse myth), but I also think that he might've picked seven anyway without religious influence just because seven is a great number.
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There are some things in LotR which have a specifically Christian reference - but they tend to be 'hidden'. He stated himself that the date of the fall of Barad-dur - March 25th, the old date of Good Friday - was chosen deliberately ('Guide to the names in LotR' in Lobdell), but this is easily (& intentionally so on Tolkien's part) missed by general readers. The number 'symbolism' in the story - the 'Numenorean' seven for instance, seems to have a meaning
within the story & its there we should look for it, not in the Primary world.