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.Frodo had already fallen asleep. There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains,Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while.The beauty of it smote his heart as he lookedup out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him.For like a shaft, clear and cold,the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passingthing; there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.His song in the Towerhad been defiance rather than hope; for then he was thinking of himself.Now, for amoment, his own fate, and even that of his master's, ceased to trouble him.He crawledback into the brambles and laid himself by Frodo's side, and putting away all fear hecast himself into a deep untroubled sleep. [LotR p.901]This attitude, that the shadow is only a small and passing thing, is one that flows from hisfaith.In early manuscripts of the Lord of the Rings, Tolkien writes that after the destruction of theRing, Gandalf raised a toast to Frodo and Sam exclaiming:.I name before you all, Frodo of the Shire and Samwise his servant.And the bardsand minstrels should give them new names: Bronwe athan Harthad and HarthadUluithiad, Endurance beyond Hope and Hope Unquenchable. [The History of Middle-earth, vol.IX, Sauron Defeated: "Many Partings", p.62]This was eventually removed and never used in the final text, but continues to underline theessence and reliance on hope.Frodo and Sam epitomize the virtue of Hope.Even when the whole mission and world aroundthem seemed on the brink of destruction, they forged on.Even if they themselves have nochance of surviving after they completed the act, they continued in the quest for the sake ofothers.If Frodo was succumbing, Sam would give him strength.They hoped beyond hope.79www.mythictruth.com 80They also were the Hope of the Western world, even though few knew of the quest, theycarried on their shoulders the Fate of the World.Not only does Tolkien consider hope, but he spells out the errors of despairing, as is shownat the Council of Elrond; Despair is for those who see the end beyond all doubt, we do not.It is wisdom torecognize necessity, when all other courses have been weighed, though as folly it mayappear to those who cling to false hope.Well, let folly be our cloak, a veil before theeyes of the Enemy! [LotR p.262]Denethor despaired from what he had been lead to believe from looking into the Palantír, butthe Lords of the West continue to hope beyond hope in the Quest and the final destruction ofSauron.What is interesting here is the difference between Denethor, Steward of Gondor, despairingfrom what he sees in the Palantír, and Aragorn, true King of Gondor, acting in hope from whathe sees in the Palantír [he takes the Paths of the Dead].Gandalf also states,  I hope for victory, but not by arms. [LotR p.861]In one of his letters Tolkien makes a comment; I am only concerned with Death as part of nature, physical and spiritual of man, andof Hope without guarantees. [Letters p.237]This is also re-enforced by the comments of Men in the Silmarillion:.of us is required a blind trust and a hope without assurance. [Sil p.265] [Celebrationp.98]This notion of hope without guarantees brings into light the Catholic understanding aboutsalvation offered through Jesus.This salvation is conditional, there are no guarantees that we will persevere, thusCatholics believe that there is no complete assurance of salvation in this life unlesswe are faithful unto the end.Then there is a moral assurance of salvation.i.e.Godhas promised us and He will keep his word.Catholic belief is that there are four parts to our salvation: God's Grace,Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification.We are ultimately saved through God's Grace alone, because everything is mercifulgrace and it is He who works all things and forgives all sins and knows all hearts. Mankind will never understand the depths of My Mercy. - Our Lord to StFaustina.There is nothing we can do to merit our salvation because it has been freely given.[1Tim.2:5-7].But, He has put in place a plan and made us partners in it, so that if we accept themessage of Jesus, are Baptized, and love him as Our Lord and Saviour we becomeJustified by His Grace, through Faith in Him.But this alone is not enough; becausetomorrow we may apostasize [reject Jesus] and abandon a morally good life.80www.mythictruth.com 81[James.2:24, Rom.2:6 8, 1 Cor.3:9, Matt.25:34 40, Luke 6:46, Matt.7:21 23,19:16 21, Pet.2:20 21]After justification, comes Sanctification; this is basically faithfulness to Our Lordthroughout the long race we run through life and suffering; living the Gospel andallowing grace to work in our lives which will bear fruit, lead to good works and makeus holy; i.e.loving one another.[Gal.6:2, Gal.6:6 10, James.2:24, Phil.2:12,Hebrews 12:43-56].The action of God's Grace in us will cause purification in our livesand daily conversion.This can only happen through a healthy prayer life.We can never earn our salvation through good works but if we truly are disciples andlove Jesus, these acts of love will be present in our lives.John says if we say we loveHim and do not keep his commandments then we are liars.[1 John 2:3 4, 3:19 24, 5:3 4, John 15:5 6, Rom.11:22 23, 1 Cor.15:1 2, 1 Cor.6:9 10, Gal.5:19 21, Eph.2:8 9, Rom.9:16].Mother Teresa once said,  It is not how much we do.but how much love we putin the doing.This message is very relevant in the 21st century.This is St Therese of Lisieux' 'littleway' of doing every action in our small lives with the greatest love.[St Therese]After this, comes Glorification where God welcomes us into his Kingdom and weshare in His paradise.For those who have never known Jesus [God alone knows each soul], they will bejudged on love i.e.their charity.Thus, we have immense hope in God through what He has promised to us in Jesus[and God always keeps His promises], but there is no guarantee, because we havefree will and could reject him later in life.We don't know what we may do; therefore itis conditional upon our faithful response.Tolkien talks of his story being about,  & Hope without guarantees&  which continues toremain in line with the Order of Grace and the Catholic doctrine about our salvation.It alsoreflects the Christian struggle in this world that each believer faces.The heroes in the Lord of the Rings carry a hope without any guarantees.They struggle intheir fight without any assurance that their efforts will be successful, but this makes their Hopeand Trust in Providence all the more meritorious.In the end their efforts bear fruit and the Quest is fulfilled and their Hope is consummated.Frodo decides to depart over the seas to find rest.[LotR p.967]There is great joy and peace in Middle-earth but the end of the story is tinged sorrow andsadness as Frodo leaves Sam and his friends [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]