[greyhavener]

You're right. I think I read Tolkien through the filter of my own spiritual experiences. What I should have said was that Frodo's struggle with the ring resonated with me in the context of my own Christianity. As a reader I experience what I read within the context of who I am and who I am becoming. I never meant to imply symbolism was Tolkien's intent, I know it was not. The depth with which Tolkien's work connect with readers on a spiritual level is amazing. If a reader has a Biblical background, then that is the texture into which is woven those parts of Tolkien's work which contributes to our spiritual understanding. Though the Lord of the Rings is not intended to be a Biblical work, I think it contains amazing spiritual depth.