The Ring and the Cross Christianity and the Lord of the Rings

by Kerry, Paul E.; Agoy, Nils Ivar; Birzer, Bradley J.; Boffetti, Jason; Burns, Marjorie; Holloway, Carson L.; Holmes, John R.; Hutton, Ronald; Madsen, Catherine; Mooney, Chris; Morillo, Stephen; Pearce, Joseph; Tomko, Michael; Wood, Ralph C.

• ISBN13: 9781611470642
• ISBN10: 1611470641
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-12-10
• Publisher: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press

Summary

The conversation, sometimes heated, about the influence of Christianity on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien has a long history. What has been lacking is a forum for a civilized discussion about the topic, as well as a chronological overview of the major arguments and themes that have engaged scholars about the impact of Christianity on Tolkien's oeuvre, with particular reference to The Lord of the Rings. The Ring and the Cross addresses these two needs through an articulate and authoritative analyses of Tolkien's Roman Catholicism and the role it plays in understanding his writings. The volume's contributors deftly explain the kinds of interpretations put forward and evidence marshaled when arguing for or against religious influence. The Ring and the Cross invites readers to draw their own conclusions about a subject that has fascinated Tolkien enthusiasts since the publication of his masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings.

Author Biography

Paul E. Kerry is an associate professor of history at Brigham Young University and the Ann and Herbert W. Vaughan Visiting Fellow at the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. 7
Introduction: A Historiography of Christian Approaches to Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings	p. 17
The Ring
The Pagan Tolkien	p. 57
The Christian Tolkien: A Response to Ronald Hutton	p. 71
Can We Still Have a Pagan Tolkien?: A Reply to Nils Ivar Agøy	p. 90
The Entwives: Investigating the Spiritual Core of The Lord of the Rings	p. 106
ôLike Heathen Kingsö: Religion as Palimpsest in Tolkien's Fiction	p. 119
Confronting the World's Weirdness: J.R.R. Tolkien's The Children of Húrin	p. 145
Eru Erased: The Minimalist Cosmology of The Lord of the Rings	p. 152
The Ring and the Cross: How J.R.R. Tolkien Became a Christian Writer	p. 170
The Cross
Redeeming Sub-Creation	p. 177
Catholic Scholar, Catholic Sub-Creator	p. 193
ôAn Age Comes Onö: J.R.R. Tolkien and the English Catholic Sense of History	p. 205
The Lord of the Rings and the Catholic Understanding of Community	p. 224
Tracking Catholic Influence in The Lord of the Rings	p. 234
Saintiy and Distant Mothers	p. 246
The ôLast Battleö as a Johannine Ragnarök: Tolkien and the Universal	p. 259
Bibliography	p. 283
Contributors	p. 302
Index	p. 305
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