I recently watched the epic trilogy and a favorite series of mine, 'Lord of the Rings', with a couple of good friends, one of which shares a love for the movies with me and one of which had never seen any of the films before. In addition to having seen the movies I have also read the books and am a huge Tolkien fan for a number of reasons, so of course I was very intent on my friend being enlightened to the world that is Middle Earth in some form, whether by reading the novels or watching the films, so after a few days of planning, all three of us sat in my living room from eleven a.m. till ten-thirty p.m. and had an all day movie marathon, only pausing for food breaks and to change from one disc to another. Needless to say my friend is now a Tolkien fan. Anyway, while we were watching the series I was reminded by the symbolism within the characters, themes, and plots, furthering my admiration for Tolkien (as well as Peter Jackson for a good book-to-movie adaptation) and his writing skills. Now, when asked, Tolkien stated that his writings were not for preaching purposes. However, he did admit that many of the characters and themes were written in the Christian tradition and full of symbolism and reflective of the human race, and I would say the human race is very much involved in the story of Christianity, so I see the symbolism as reflective of the nature of God and Jesus Christ, and because I am so fascinated by the representation (whether it's intentional by Tolkein or not) I decided to blog about it as I interpret it. Now, there are quite a few themes and symbols and I don't want to write an entire novel, so I will only blog about how I see the nature of Jesus represented by Tolkien's characters.Throughout the story of, 'Lord of the Rings', three characters embody the character of Christ to me: Gandalf, Aragorn, and Samwise Gamgee, each addressing a different aspect of Jesus.
1) Gandalf: The Wanderer and Savior of Middle Earth- Having been sent from the Valar (one must read the, 'Similarion', for clarification of this), a place of bliss and perfection, to save Middle Earth from evil and destruction, he changed from spirit to become flesh (also details gathered from the, 'Similarion') so that the people of Middle Earth could relate to him and find it easier to trust him. Similarly, Christ was sent from a place of bliss to a place that is fallen, taking on the form of flesh to relate to all of humanity in order to save and redeem the people of the world. Later, when Gandalf is fighting the Balrog in the Mines of Moria, he knows that the only way for his friends to escape the devil is for him to sacrifice himself to the evil. As Jesus once said, 'Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend (John 15:13)'. Even though he slays the Balrog, Gandalf is still killed in the last exertion of power. However, he later comes back as Gandalf the White, rising from the dead with power that can not be defeated and more glorious than before. Christ died, defeated the ultimate evil, and rose from the dead with a true power that is incomprehensible.
2) Aragorn: The Lone Ranger and True King-Tolkien describes Aragorn as someone that no one would really be attracted to in chapter ten of the Fellowship, “All that is gold does not glitter”, which, when compared in meaning, is very similar to the passage in the Word describing Jesus, 'He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him (Isaiah 53:2)', and in this way both Jesus and Aragorn are lone and different from others around them, as well as unexpected kings. Aragorn also displays humility all the way until his coronation as the true King of Gondor (the kingdom that, though originally good, was fallen until the true king returned , and when the city was restored it held a peace that was second to none) and beyond that, which reflects on the very nature of Jesus Christ. Aragorn’s coronation signaled the restoration of the ancient Kingdom of Gondor, and began a time of unparalleled peace, a scene that could not be more reflective of the revelation story in the Bible. Aragorn represents the part of Christ that is a liberator and coming king. When Christ returns and all of earth is restored to it's intended original state, it will truly be the return of the King.
3) Samwise Gamgee: The Faithful One and the Ultimate Friend- Christ is the true example of faithfulness through His actions and life, and He is also the best example of how to be a real friend. He carries us and with us our burdens, just as Sam did for Frodo. Sam alone travels with Frodo into the darkness of Mordor, and at one point he even carries Frodo following the famous line, 'I can't carry it (the ring) for you Mr. Frodo, but I can carry you'. Christ carries us and with us our sin and burdens, helping us to overcome them. Without Jesus, we would be crushed under the weight of our burdens, just as Frodo without Sam would have been. Another analogy is this: we reject Christ often or try to take on our sin alone, but Christ does not quit trying for us. He loves us so much that He continues to the cross to overcome our burdens. When Frodo rejects Sam and tells him to leave, Sam realizes that he can not abandon Frodo. Sam loves Frodo so much as a dear friend, that even after Frodo has mistreated him and rejected him, he turns back around and decides to rescue Frodo from whatever terrors may lie before him. Christ did and does this for all of humanity. He is the ultimate friend and the example of faithfulness.
These are just a few ways that I see Christ and the story of Christianity represented with J.R.R. Tolkein's trilogy, 'Lord of the Rings', and of course anyone is free to disagree, but my hope is that if you agree then you are reminded of the beautiful character of Christ and of our God.
In the words of Gandalf, 'Farewell my friend, until our next meeting'.
