Trilogy and Bible?

[Ancalime]

what value added is gained by trying to find parallels between Tolkien's writings and the Bible?

That is a question that has been in my mind. In my perfectly honest opinion, there isn't really a value, especially since he did not intend for parallels to be drawn. It seems that many people spend a lot of time trying to 'read' a meaning into what an author says without realizing that perhaps the author had no 'hidden meaning' that can only be arrived at by tenuous jumps from what is said to what that person thinks the author meant. Many people miss the fact that most stories are written to be just that: stories. No ulterior motive, no hidden meanings, no allegory. Just pure, unadulterated fiction for the sake of telling a (in Tolkien's case, great) story.