The Lord of the Rings is one of the best-selling books ever written, with over 150 million copies sold. It originally appeared as a massive one volume work, and since then has also been published as a trilogy. It began as a sequel to the 1937 children’s book The Hobbit, but developed into a much larger work, written in stages between 1937 and 1949. In recent years it was made into three hugely successful movies.
The author was Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973). His books are called “epic fantasies,” and he has been popularly identified as the “father” of modern fantasy literature. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential authors of all time. Tolkien was a Christian and a good friend of C. S. Lewis. Tolkien was the greatest single influence on Lewis in his conversion from atheism to Christianity.
The Lord of the Rings is a story of good and evil, and of people who knew the difference. It has heroes and villains; the heroes are not perfect and the villains all have a story, a story that never excuses them, but might sympathetically explain some things. The characters are all tempted; some give in to evil, others respond with courage and goodness. The powerful evil forces must be defeated, or everything will be destroyed. There is much fighting and warfare and death in The Lord of the Rings.
Tolkien knew all about fighting and warfare and death. He served as an officer in the first World War, going to France in 1916, just three months after his marriage. He went to the front lines where he said “junior officers were being killed at a rate of a dozen a minute.” Tolkien survived, but only after enduring all the horrors of that terrible war—combat in the trenches, bombings, gas attacks, exhaustion, disease, and the death of many of his friends. Soldiers lived in constant filth, and if they did not get killed or wounded, they were often sick. Tolkien got trench fever from lice. Weak and emaciated, he was moved to a hospital in England. His fighting days were over, but eventually he recovered.
The Lord of the Rings is a work of fantasy, but it tells a realistic tale about the threat of evil, and the sacrifice and courage it takes to defeat it. Tolkien knew what he was writing about. He was a reluctant soldier. He wanted to have a family, read books, write, and teach. But he went to war.
In The Lord of the Rings, Faramir is a man of peace. He has been at war, but now he just wants to be a gardener, growing food to feed his family. However, the wicked empire of Mordor is threatening his homeland, as it seeks to make the whole earth its slave. Faramir must, reluctantly, become a warrior again. He says:
War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all. But I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
Today, we might say we do not love the fifteen-ton bombs, but we do love what they protect and defend. I am relieved that Iran’s nuclear ambitions have been put on hold. There are not many people in the world that would like to see that regime have nuclear missiles. Even MSNBC, no fan of the current administration, reported that most Arab nations, at least privately, are probably pleased with the success of the recent destruction of Iran’s nuclear production facilities.
The Fifth Commandment “Thou shalt not kill” is stated as a negative prohibition. The positive side of that command is to protect life when and where we can. To resist an evildoer intent on killing or doing harm is a part of obeying this commandment.
Romans 13:4 says, “Rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.” This is just a small part of a much larger discussion. There must be all kinds of clarifications, and good, honest Bible-believing Christians will disagree on all the details. But most Christians, in most places, most of the time, have agreed that the government does have the divine right to restrain evil to protect life.
The lives protected in this situation include the lives of millions of Iranian people, now hopefully spared from the ravages of a wider, far more destructive and deadly war. Iran, by the way, has the fastest growing percentage of people coming to faith in Jesus Christ of any nation on earth. Accurate statistics are hard to come by in Iran, but I have read many reports of this. This is percentage of population, not total people coming to faith. The leading nation in total numbers is probably still China.
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“We sleep soundly in our beds, only because rough men stand ready in the night to do violence on those who would harm us.”
–George Orwell
(and now also women; Orwell was writing 80 years ago)
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Psalm 144:1 — Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
Matthew 5:9 — Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
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O God, I hold before you the rulers of nations– Kings, Queens, Presidents, Prime Ministers– all who are in positions of supreme leadership.
I can be quick to criticize: help me, Lord, to first enter their dilemma. On most issues of state I have the luxury of withholding judgement, of not committing myself, of sitting on the fence. Even when I have an opinion, it has little influence and seldom any consequence. Not so with the rulers of the nations. To the extent that they really lead, they must make decisions.
Help these leaders, O God, in the loneliness of their decisions. Put wise counselors around them.
Take, I pray, the bits and pieces of virtue that are in each ruler and cause that virtue to grow and mature. And take all destructive motives and cause them to vanish like smoke in the wind.
Lord, I know that many– perhaps most– rulers do not know you, nor do they seek you. But you seek them. Help them to make good and right decisions. And when decisions must be made that are not in their own interest, deepen their sense of duty. Let them see your light, and give them the courage to walk in that light. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
–Richard Foster, Prayers from the Heart, 1994, page 105 (adapted).
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