Jokien with Tolkien

1 week ago | jrrjokien.com | JRR Jokien

‚ÄėThere was once a little man called Niggle, who had a long journey to make. He did not want to go, indeed the whole idea was distasteful to him; but he could not get out of it. He knew he would have to start some time, but he did not hurry with his preparations‚Äô. J.R.R. Tolkien,‚ÄúLeaf by Niggle‚ÄĚWhat in our lives and our world is truly of value? How can we best spend our time on this earth? What is the real impact of a single act of kindness or creativity? And does heaven exist?

2 weeks ago | jrrjokien.com | JRR Jokien

What makes a human being change and shapes us into who we are? Is it our innate biology? Or is it the result of our own conscious choices? Is it nature? Or nurture? In a letter replying to W.H. Auden's review of The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien shares his view of human nature and provides his answers to many of the above questions by comparing a human being at once to a seed and to a gardener:I do not feel that a journey in space is a useful comparison for understanding these processes.

3 weeks ago | jrrjokien.com | JRR Jokien

RIVENDELL—After a heated council meeting that lasted long past midday, Half-elven Lord of Rivendell Elrond was overheard lamenting to fellow Elves that he regretted not solving the issue of Sauron’s magical Ring three thousand years ago at the end of the Second Age of Middle-earth. “It would have been so simple,” he allegedly mused. “I urged Isildur to do the right thing and destroy the Ring. ‘Cast it into the fire!’ I yelled. Can’t be much more direct than that, right?

4 weeks ago | jrrjokien.com | JRR Jokien

Hello all! Mae govannen! In today’s newsletter I’ve got both a review of a recent release on Tolkien’s liturgical imagination and a roundup of recent Tolkien Treasures, or Tolkien-related content that I’m currently enjoying and want to share with you all. Let's get right to it!The debate whether The Lord of the Rings is a Christian story has a long history, with passionate and eloquent arguments on both sides.

1 month ago | jrrjokien.com | JRR Jokien

The hands of the king are the hands of a healer. The first time I played Dungeons & Dragons, I created a character who‚ÄĒat least initially‚ÄĒmay or may not have borne a striking resemblance to a certain Strider (including ‚Äúin a pale stern face a pair of keen grey eyes‚ÄĚ).