‘The Workhouse’ – Tolkien’s Purgatory

[littlemanpoet]

Originally Posted by mark12_30

Grace is getting what I don't deserve. I haven't earned any food; you feed me. I haven't shown you any loyalty; you welcome me into your family. Grace is displayed when gift is freely given without regard to merit: "Unmerited favor".

The application of Grace is broader than mere release from the Workhouse. That Niggle is allowed to spend time developing his character in areas of his weaknesses is, itself, Grace. To construe the two voices as Law and Grace is to misunderstand this. Rightly or wrongly, I have always seen the two voices as Father and Son - - - the Son was not even known of in the Old Testament, but there are multitudinous instances of Grace throughout the O.T. So the two Voices are discussing the application of continued Grace to Niggle, and what form it should take, whether more punishment, or reward.

[Formendacil]

Actually, Selmo, the Catholic Church has NOT done away with Purgatory. You are conflating Limbo and Purgatory. Limbo was the theological concept of a place outside of Heaven for those who die without Baptism, yet who lived lives worthy enough of reward, and since Heaven requires Baptism for entry (or so holds Catholic dogma), then there needed, in fairness, to be somewhere for those such as innocent babies or righteous heathens to go after death, since they clearly had not merited Hell.

The current thought in the Church officially does away with that, and replaces it with the dogma of "baptism of desire", the idea that desiring baptism is itself merit enough to go to Heaven. Presumably, this desire is assessed in ways we can't exactly measure.

Purgatory, on the other hand, while certainly less emphasized since Vatican II as a result of an attempt to get away from the whole idea of "Catholic guilt" and get closer to being a people of joy, remains very much a part of Catholic theology.

It is, as has been noted already on this thread, a place for those who have not died in a state of perfect grace, but who are not overall bad enough for Hell. It is important to distinguish between Catholic and Protestant concepts of how Grace works here. Classical Protestantism believes in the doctrine of "sola gratia"-- through grace alone. This is, in fact, one of the great dividing lines theologically between Catholics and Protestants. Catholics hold that Faith AND Works are necessary to get into Heaven. It is not enough just to believe, if you truly believe, you must DO.

Now, it is true that Catholics believe, as Protestants do, that entry into Heaven is impossible without God's grace. However, it is necessary to do your part as well. It's not just a matter of saying "I accept Jesus as my lord and saviour", and POOF!, you're in the lineup for Heaven. In Catholic dogma, you are now eligible... but you still have to deal with those sins, since no one ever stops sinning. Confession (the Sacrament of Penance) and the Eucharist are both ways of erasing sin, but it is almost impossible to be going to confession so often that, when you die, you haven't a sin on your soul.

To draw this back to Tolkien somewhat... let's use the Elves as a comparison. It has already been said on this thread that Mandos seems an appropriate analogy for Purgatory, and I think it apt.

Now, when an Elf dies in good graces with the Valar and with the world in general, it is inevitable that he or she will be reborn, correct? Since it is the inherent nature of the Elves to be reborn, rebirth for an Elf could be equated to Heaven for Catholics. However, Elves are not necessarily reborn immediately after death. While a certain waiting period seems to be in order, the period also seems to vary. Some, such as Glorfindel or Finrod, who would be the Elven equivalents of the Saints, pass through remarkably quickly, whereas the average time in Mandos seems to be somewhat longer, just as most of humanity spends a bit more time in Purgatory than Mother Theresa or John Paul II. Then there are those who take FOREVER... the Sons of Fëanor for example seem to be consigned to particularly long sentences.

I would say, though, that Mandos also functions as "Hell" for the Elves. Hell, by a more modern definition, is a separation from God's presence and love, the natural intended state of humanity. Well, the nature state of the Elves is corporal life in Arda while it lasts, so the state of being permanently separated from it would, by definition, be Hell.

Getting back to Purgatory, it is certainly understood as a place of perfection. Niggle is obviously a good enough man that deserves Heaven (and for Niggle, Heaven is getting to finish his tree, which makes one feel that the phrase "Heaven on Earth" is applicable, and also makes one wonder what tastes of "Heaven" in our lives we will encounter in their fullness on the other side...), but he is not a perfect man...

Now, because the Catholic concept of justification, being made right before God, does not just involve accepting God's grace, but involves work. It is not an instantaneous process, but a more labourious one, and it requires the work of the person it concerns. Because of free will, we can't just be flicked from bad to good. It has to be our effort, though it is only the grace and mercy of God that we have the strength or the guidance to succeed. For Niggle, before he was ready for Heaven, he had various problems with his personality, his management of time and his efficiency being the "allegories" of sinful defects. When his time in his cottage, painting away, which can be taken as his mortal life, is over and he is not yet perfected, he is taken to the workshop to finish the job.

I'm fairly sure I've rambled more than need be... and I'm quite sure there's some repetition with what's already in this thread, and I'm positive more can be said, but I'm at what feels like a good place to stop. Convalescents have the right to be selfish, don't they?

Obviously, as resident Catholic, I can't avoid a thread touching directly on such things... but I am exhausted, and I can only hope the above makes sense. My leg throbs and my butt is numb is my excuse if it doesn't...

[littlemanpoet]

Just one thing, Formendacil, it appears to me that you have confounded Grace and Faith, as opposed to Works. Could you elucidate, when your leg throbs less?

[Formendacil]

Originally Posted by littlemanpoet

Just one thing, Formendacil, it appears to me that you have confounded Grace and Faith, as opposed to Works. Could you elucidate, when your leg throbs less?

Hmm... that seems to be a fair criticism. I do seem to have conflated the two ideas, though I'm not entirely sure that that changes the position or strength of my argument entirely.

Classical Protestantism, as I have been taught, believes in both sola gratia, by grace alone, and sola fidei by Faith alone. Together with sola scriptura, these are the Protestant answers to the three major issues of the Reformation: How are we saved? (Protestants answer Grace alone), How are we made right before God, that is: how are we justified before God? (Protestants answer Faith alone), and Where does authority reside? (Protestants answer Scripture alone).

Now, the third question doesn't concern this matter--not directly anyway. Certain the debate of Scripture alone vs. Scripture AND Tradition could make for an interesting Tolkien debate-- LotR alone, or do we count the HoME? However, we are dealing here with "How are We Saved?" and "How are We Justified?"

The first question bears on the Purgatory issue very clearly. Basically, it is asking "How can we enter Heaven?" The Protestant opinion, Grace Alone, clearly has no use for Purgatory, hence why it isn't found in their theology. If the only reason we're going to Heaven is because God has said so, then what point is there to a place of purification or penance? None--the dead sinner is going to Heaven through nothing he has done, but through complete gift. All he has to do is say "yes".

The Catholic view, obviously, has to be different. If it were the same, we'd've had no Reformation. The Catholic opinion is that while Grace is NECESSARY for Heaven, it's not the whole story. We have the belief that it is necessary for us to do our part too. Without Grace, Heaven is unattainable and impossible, but Grace is there to help us attain it, not to hand it to us on a silver platter.

This Catholic thought can, I think, be seen in parallel, in Tolkien's work. Frodo is given the Grace necessary to reach Mt. Doom and save Middle-Earth. He cannot do it on his own, but needs Gollum's intervention in the end (comparable to Grace), and he receives help along the way: Galadriel, Elrond, Gandalf, Faramir, Sam; who could all be seen as instruments of grace. If we applied the Protestant doctrine of Grace Alone to the same analogy, we'd have Frodo fly to Mt. Doom on the Eagles, one of which would bump him so that he dropped the Ring over the Fires.

The second question, How are We Justified, is closely entwined with the first. How are we made right before God? How are we made worthy of His Grace?

Well, the Protestant answer is Faith alone--all you have to do is confess and believe that Jesus is your Lord and Saviour, and you're in. Get yourself baptised, and it's all done. Well, Catholics hold that there's a bit more to it than this... Yes, you have to BELIEVE that Jesus is Lord, but you also have to do some work. Hence the Catholic/Protestant debate of Faith vs. Works. Properly, Catholics believe that both are necessary, but due to Protestants holding the position of Faith Alone, Catholics tend to overemphasize Works. And in contrast to Protestant practices, all of our strange rituals like rosaries and novenas, as well as numerous sacraments and detailed liturgies, it can certainly seem that we overdo the outward show and neglect the inward truth, and this is certainly a danger. Properly, however, all this outward show is simply the outward harmony of mind and body. If the mind is focused on Heaven, so should the body be as well. And this applies to acts of charity as well as to physical manifestations of inward faith.

Anyway, how does this Faith vs. Faith & Works debate translate in Tolkien? Well, to use the same Frodo analogy as in the Grace question, I would take a look at how Frodo is justified in the book. Is Frodo given the quest to Mt. Doom simply because he says that he will do it, as Faith alone would say is all that you need to receive Grace? No. Frodo receives the burden of the quest not just because he SAYS he'll do it, but because of what he has already himself DONE in getting the Ring to Rivendell. And when he receives "Grace" on the road, such as from Galadriel, it is not just because he said he'd take the Ring to Mt. Doom, but because he continued to demonstrate his steadfastness and effort.

I hope that more or less explains the difference. As I said, I don't think that the conflation makes much difference to what I was saying, but there definitely is a difference, and I certainly shouldn't have mixed them together.

[littlemanpoet]

Thanks for the elucidation. Classical Protestantism simply has too many holes in its logic, especially considering how the mindset is forced to make light of, or "answer away" the rather forceful statements in, for example, the books of James and Hebrews. So I can hardly call myself Protestant anymore. And of course it must be remembered that Luther was reacting, right or wrong, to what he saw as abuses. But that's another issue.

Also (I think this has already been said), Tolkien's version of purgatory is quite mild compared to such passages as can be found in Malachi, the gospels, and Revelation, where it is compared to purifying gold by means of heating, to threshing wheat, and to passing through fire.

[Estelyn Telcontar]

Thank you for your thoughtful, knowledgable posts, Formy! That's exactly what I was looking for when I first started this thread nearly three years ago. Though your information is not likely to convert me from "by grace alone" , I find it very helpful for understanding Tolkien's frame of mind and giving necessary background to this story.

I've been going through this tale and "Smith" intensively, preparing a paper for the German Tolkien Seminar, and for the first time, I had this thought:

What do you think was Parish's purgatorial experience? He doesn't seem to have needed the Workhouse as a labour-learning process, since he was already proficient at practical work. When the two men meet in what is to become Niggle's Parish, he is the one now absorbed in simply looking at things, so obviously he has by then learned to see and recognize beauty - something that he couldn't in life before death. So was he perhaps sent to an art school division to catch up on his deficiencies? Or was his training learning to sit still, not being active himself?

The two men remind me of the Biblical sisters Martha and Mary - one always practical and busy, the other one listening attentively.

The only actual information we have about the interim is that Parish also heard the Voices, since he mentions the Second Voice. So of necessity any conclusions we draw are speculative - which has never stopped us from having great discussions!

[Estelyn Telcontar]

How interesting - after I asked myself the above question, I came across a very brief comment by Shippey in Author of the Century:

...Parish, whose time in the Workhouse has clearly been spent in making him less practical, not more so.

Other than that, I don't think I've read any other thoughts on this - and I have researched fairly extensively.

[Selmo]

Originally Posted by Formendacil

Classical Protestantism believes in the doctrine of "sola gratia"-- through grace alone. This is, in fact, one of the great dividing lines theologically between Catholics and Protestants. Catholics hold that Faith AND Works are necessary to get into Heaven. It is not enough just to believe, if you truly believe, you must DO.
.

I think that the Protestant belief in "through Grace alone" is a bit of an over-simplification.
I'm a Protestant, of the British Methodist variety, and like most Protestants I can say that "Salvation is through Grace alone - but Works are also needed." (I know it's not logical but Faith and Logic don't always mix well.)

The criteria for membership of the Methodist Church of Great Britain as stated in the 1932 Deed of Union: All those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour and accept the obligation to serve him in the life of the Church and the world are welcome as members of the Methodist Church. (My emphasis)

At least some protestants believe that Works are more than just desirable.

Thanks for the input from a Catholic viewpoint. I'll now have to re-read Leaf by Niggle with fresh eyes.
.

[littlemanpoet]

Originally Posted by Selmo

(I know it's not logical but Faith and Logic don't always mix well.)

You see, here's the problem. Faith and Logic should mix well. They should harmonize. That they don't means that Christians aren't thinking clearly. We really need to stop that.

Just as works were absolutely essential to Niggle, so they are for Niggle's readers. Check out that letter from James sometime.