So much of Tolkein is about betrayal from within. About Judases in high places. The very leader of the Wizards Saruman the White , turns to the Dark Now who does that remind you of in Rome?
Thanks Mmary! I'm a Tolkien fan from way back. Makes me want to pick up Tolkien's masterpieces once more. The key in our lives always is to ask what my role is in pushing back against the demonic endgame. Perhaps this book will help me better understand what that demonic endgame is. We each have our role, not in fleeing from the battle or simply talking about the current chaos, but in resisting JoeJerk and living the Gospel. Wisdom is needed, but most importantly: gumption. That could mean a contemplative prayer life, or visibly on the battleground at an abortion mill, or...? Certainly, helping to impact others at our local parish is key. I must enlist in Our Lady's army and receive whatever marching orders pertain to me individually. Souls are being lost and I must not dally.
The gist of Paul List's thesis is that Tolkien wrote a extremely sophisticated "fairy-tale" to make orthodox Catholic truths about good and evil, virtues and vices, as well as the development of the interior spiritual life, available and palatable to the masses. (A trojan horse of the good kind...) He was a contemporary of Alan Turing, a warped (SSA) fellow code-cracker during WW2, considered the originator of computer binary operating systems. Tolkien could see where the development of such soulless computer sciences, and Artificial Intelligence would take humanity. The author is extremely well read--philosophy, Church fathers, Aquinas, Augustine, and has credibly mapped the subtleties of Tolkien's prescient uber-Catholic allegory.
Here is a fantastic interview with the man himself - Paul List promoting his book. I will read LOTR again with a whole new understanding and try getting this book. He also agrees with Padraig's assessment of Our current Pope around 1hr + mark but the interview is so engaging, time just flew.
I would love to see JR Tolkein's cause for canonisation going forward . He was a daily communicant and was a kind of super Catholic, his Faith meant everything to him. But if he were declared a saint the best thing would be that it would be a kind of a blessing on, 'The Lord of the Rings'. One fun thing to do with the book is to ask people what Character is the Book they would most like to have been? The answer tells so much about the spirituality and character of the person who answers. If we ask the question of ourselves it is a good mirror to our souls.
Viewing figures are way way up at the moment. No surprise there I suppose. There will be lots of new members for us all to welcome.
