The Ring and the Cross: Christianity and the Lord of the Rings [Hardcover]

As a contribution to aif not thepolemical area of Tolkien studies, The Ring and the Cross is commendable not only for looking at both sides, but also for reflecting those many shades in between where most opinions fall. The collections civility and single-volume format more than likely belie the true friction and disparity of opinions on its topic, but the willingness to publish together is at least a willingness to engage one another, and that can never be a bad thing.To a reader who is more a Tolkien fan than a Tolkien scholar, Kerry appears to have been successful in both his aims. . . .This book will be enjoyed by most of those who don't mind prospecting for literary nuggets in broad fields of scholarship.Not only does the collection capture the theological traditions and complexity of Tolkiens written world, The Ring and the Cross further promotes the cross-pollination of religious studies and literary criticism, aptly showing both disciplines more than merely interrelated. Indeed, what The Ring and the Cross demonstrates is that the theological underpinnings of a literary work are indispensable to thoroughly responsible criticism. In the case of Tolkiens chef-doeuvre, if Kerrys diagnosis of contemporary Tolkien scholarship is correct that all signs seem to indicate that Tolkiens writing will continue to provoke, inspire, and provide rich food for thought about its relation to religions and spirituality generally, and Christianity in particular.then The Ring and the Cross should continue to carry the Ring into even deeper recesses of religion-literary criticism.Professor Paul E. Kerrys ambitious project  to bring together leading academic voices in the burgeoning area of Tolkien Studies to debate and explore the influence of Christianity on Tolkiens works is a success. Fourteen scholars of literature, theology, history, political science, and philosophy have contributed to Kerrys volume, lending it an interdisciplinary (and inter-confessional) rlS?