In our latest issue of The Ivy Bush, we published a review of Anne Marie Gazzolo’s book Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings, followed by an interview with the author. Read it below, and be sure to subscribe to the magazine so that you never miss an issue!
Links to purchase Ms Gazzolo’s books can be found beneath the review, in the author biography.
Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings | Anne Marie Gazzolo
WestBow Press, 2012 | $17.99 USD
BOOK REVIEW
“The Lord of the Rings is a fundamentally religious and Catholic work,”[1] wrote J.R.R. Tolkien, and innumerable authors have essayed to prove the truth of Tolkien’s statement. One such author is Anne Marie Gazzolo, a self-avowed ‘Tolkiendil’ who has published a number of articles on the Catholic themes of Tolkien’s works. Further, Gazzolo is the author of Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings, a book on the themes of divine providence and spiritual battle evident throughout Tolkien’s magnum opus.
Moments of Grace opens with an introduction detailing the presence of God in Middle-earth. “At the most profound level,” Gazzolo asserts, “the tale is a love story between [God] and His Children”[2] and the latter’s acceptance or rejection of God’s love. Tolkien’s characters undergo a constant struggle in spiritual warfare. Frodo in particular endures a long battle against the temptation of the Ring, suffering much before good finally wins out. Gazzolo does an admirable job of connecting Tolkien’s mythology to the Christian life, quoting an abundance of scholars such as Joseph Pearce, Verlyn Flieger, and Tom Shippey.
Following the introduction, the reader is treated to a chapter describing God’s will at work in The Hobbit. Gazzolo is especially meticulous in outlining how Bilbo’s apparently random choices and adventures turn out to be critical to the success of Frodo’s mission years later. It was so unlikely that Gandalf should choose Bilbo, or that Bilbo should find the Ring at the perfect moment, or that Bilbo should survive the adventure to bring the Ring safely home to the Shire, that it is impossible to believe divine providence was uninvolved. The only explanation for this perfect conglomeration of events, suggests Gazzolo, is “the Writer of the Story, who has carefully placed everything and everyone exactly where needed for their parts in the Music”[3].
The remainder of Moments of Grace is dedicated to a step-by-step analysis of how nearly every word and action in The Lord of the Rings works together to bring about the ultimate triumph of good over evil. It does not matter whether the incident was deliberately intended by a character, accidental or ‘coincidental’, or even a sinful blunder. God, writes Gazzolo, inspires many of the characters to act as they do. And when they stumble or cross His will, He takes their mistakes and reorders them towards the greater good. For this reason, nothing that happens can accurately be labelled ‘coincidental’. The War of the Ring, in Gazzolo’s view, occurs mainly in the spiritual realm. Its physical manifestation is more a symbol of the battles each character is fighting within himself.
For myself, I found most gripping the chapter “Mercies Given”, which talks about the Scouring of the Shire. This part of The Lord of the Rings has always been a favourite of mine, and I have strong opinions on its oft-unacknowledged significance in the story. Gazzolo contends that the war in the Shire is a continuation of the spiritual War of the Ring. After his great sufferings, Frodo has a deeper of understanding of spiritual warfare. “He has… become aware that the real battlefield is in the soul… He knows, because of the violence done to his own soul, what hatred, anger, and vengeance would do to the souls of his fellow hobbits”[4] The Scouring has typically been seen by critics as an unnecessary appendage to a tale which has already stretched on too long. Rather, it is the culmination of Frodo’s journey. He takes what he has learned and applies it to saving the home he loves best, using the weapons of compassion and forgiveness.
In Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings, Anne Marie Gazzolo takes her understanding of the spiritual battles we daily face in real life and recognises the same struggles in the characters of Middle-earth. Her book is an indispensable source for the enthusiast hoping for a deeper grasp of religious themes running through Tolkien’s work.
– Reviewed by Benita J. Prins
AN INTERVIEW WITH ANNE MARIE GAZZOLO
- Tell us about your first encounter with Tolkien.
I suppose you could say it was in high school when a beloved French teacher left because she adopted a baby. I said “May the Force be with you.” She responded with a fervent “Frodo lives!” I had no idea what she was talking about. It would be many years before I found out. I have wondered why I still remember her voice so vividly saying something that meant nothing to me at the time. My first real, substantial encounter with Middle-earth was when my mom wanted to see The Fellowship of the Ring movie. We had no idea about the story, but she wanted to see it because Tolkien was a Catholic author. I thought it was a good movie but not as good as the Star Wars fandom, which was still my obsession. Little did I know in time Mr. Underhill would curl up in my heart and stay there. - What caused your interest in the spiritual dimension of Tolkien’s works?
I was set to take a class about finding your writer’s voice, but it was canceled due to low enrollment. I saw some books about the spirituality of The Lord of the Rings and decided to use my refunded money to buy some of these. I still remember where I sat when I started reading my first one. It inspired me to write my own. I had a lot of help from the Secret Fire to get it done! - Who is your favourite Tolkien character, and why?
Frodo! His inspiring example to fearfully but completely embrace the cross of his vocation; to remain true to it under the most horrific duress; to love with such totality of his being, it gives him the strength to endure unbearable torment within himself to keep others from suffering; to agree to be a conduit through which grace could flow; to do all this without even knowing Who called him out of the Shire. And also because he is a scribe and a bookworm like me. Sam is a very close second for many of the same reasons. Faramir is my favourite man, a gentle man and a gentleman, a hobbit in a man’s skin. Éowyn is the luckiest lass in all Middle-earth. - Do you read other fantasy authors? Who are some of your favourites?
In the past, Katherine Kurtz, Barbara Hambly, David Eddings, Raymond Fiest, Kenneth C. Flint. I have not read all they wrote, but I loved many of their books. More recently, I have so totally loved Lisa Bergren’s River of Time series, a time-travel tale set in medieval Italy before and during the Black Death; Hawk of May by Gillian Bradshaw, about who would become the Arthurian Sir Gawain; Guy Gaveriel Kay’s The Fionavar Tapestry books, especially the second and third of the trilogy with its strong Arthurian elements; and Lloyd Alexander’s The Chronicles of Prydain, which I read for a class in Celtic children’s literature. I’ve started to read and enjoy Dennis McKiernan also.
ABOUT ANNE MARIE GAZZOLO
Anne Marie Gazzolo came out of the womb writing. She is the author of Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings (WestBow Press, 2012). She has also appeared in Beyond Bree, Silver Leaves #3, #4, and #5, Mythic Scribes, Amon Hen, and StAR (St. Austin Review). She has contributed papers to several Tolkien Society Seminars, as well as to Mythcon 41 held in Dallas, TX in 2010. Her next book, Chosen: The Journeys of Bilbo and Frodo of the Shire, is due out later this year on their birthday. A book of poems about a heroic Quest is also in the works. Two original fantasy series await their turns as patiently as they can. Visit her at annemariegazzolo.com.
Purchase Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings:
Footnotes
[1]Tolkien, J.R.R. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Humphrey Carpenter (London: Unwin-Hyman,
[2]Gazzolo, Anne Marie. Moments of Grace and Spiritual Warfare in The Lord of the Rings (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2012), xvi.
[3]Gazzolo, 11.
[4]Gazzolo, 189.
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