Tolkien, Lewis & Theology

[lindil]

Helen said:

Many people that read Tolkien's work seem to come up with a desire to be more like Somebody Good that they read about in his books. I see many people wanting to be more elvish, more hobbit-like, or to be like Gandalf or one of the noble Numenoreans. I think that this would have pleased Tolkien, and I think that if those desires are allowed to flourish-- if we encourage the pursuit of that luminosity, the shining goodness, the glory, the beauty, the pursuit of truth and transcendance-- that is good theology of a completely different type; it is theology of the heart, which then, afterwards, slowly affects the mind.

an absolutly beautiful summation.

I have only read abit of Lewis outside of narnia.So Ican only speak to that a bit.
I was profoundly moved though to read about JRRT's part in lewis' conversion.And the Screwtape letters is sobering in the extreme.

I have read pretty much all of tolkien except some of the lotr drafts in HoME.

I'm a convert to Orthodox Christianity of 7 yrs or so. via taoist practices and a lot of other things. So I appreciate JRRT's Christian roots and how subtly they are woven into the LotR. They are much more visible in the Silm and quite pronounced in many of the HoME writings intended for the Silm but left out by CRT. I must say I got shivers reading Finrod declaim the need for Eru to become incarnate in order to purify creation.

I think Tolkien and Lewis have been some of the biggest missionaries in euro-american 20th cent. I know quite a few [ there must be millions] whom they felt played a key roll in their conversion.


A note about the Last Battle. This was always my favorite narnia book, even way before I was a Christian. It puzzled me but gave me hope. I have always had a sort of apocalyptic attitude towards modern life [ Revelations was the first book in the Bible I read] and the Last Battle presented that idea in a rather simple but profound package.

I read it again recently, this time to my 5 year old daughter and was seriously spooked by the whole 'Tashlan' business. Way to close to the mark. Of course Lewis was in England as the whole Ecumenical movement was gaining steam and saw the logical 'preogression' of thought.

JRRT is for me more like Christs parables; where in layer upon layer can be uncovered.

Lewis is more like the Episles of the Apostles, where what you see is what you get. A simplistic analogy I know.

A beautiful thread folks at a wonderful board. How lucky we are!