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Tolkien's Faith: A Spiritual Biography Hardcover – September 2, 2023

by Holly Ordway (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 57 ratings
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Tolkien described The Lord of the Rings as “a fundamentally religious and Catholic work” and declared, “I am a Christian (which can be deduced from my stories).” Yet he insisted his writings were not allegories, and Middle-earth is loved by millions who do not share his religious beliefs. How were his faith and his fiction related? Holly Ordway answers that question biographically, focusing on Tolkien’s spiritual development, a dramatic story that previous accounts of his life have left largely unexplored. Here we find that Tolkien’s faith was hard won. His Anglican upbringing was overturned when his mother converted to Catholicism. Soon afterward, she died, leaving Tolkien under the guardianship of a Catholic priest, who forbade him to see his Protestant girlfriend, whom nonetheless he eventually married. The Great War, in which most of his close friends were killed, deepened Tolkien’s reliance on his faith, but then for a decade he “almost ceased to practise” his religion. Friendship with C.S. Lewis and success with The Hobbit were followed by another war and by turmoil in the Church that sternly tested Tolkien’s commitments. The challenges and triumphs in his religious life are reflected in his masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, that epic tale of endurance against the odds. As Ordway shows in her expertly researched and richly illustrated study, Tolkien’s faith and Tolkien’s fiction are intimately related, though in subtle and complex ways. This long-overdue spiritual biography gives new insight into his works by shedding fresh light on their author’s deepest-held convictions.
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  1. Print length
    544 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Word on Fire Academic
  4. Publication date
    September 2, 2023
  5. Dimensions
    6.3 x 1.73 x 9.29 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1685789919
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1685789916
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

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“Holly Ordway brilliantly illuminates the life of faith that was vital to Tolkien as an individual and as creator of Middle-earth. Besides giving rich insight into the implications of his belief, Tolkien’s Faith reveals the everyday rhythms of his religious life and opens up new and busily peopled vistas in the familiar biographical landscape. This is an enlightening and highly readable biography, meticulously researched and measured in judgement. I’ve learned far more reading it than I even realized I needed to learn, and I commend it to anyone who wants to understand Tolkien in the round.”
— John Garth, award-winning author of Tolkien and the Great War and The Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien



“Tolkien’s Faith is the first systematic, book-length exploration of the influence and importance of the Christian faith in Tolkien’s life. It should establish that his Catholicism, as a fundamental and pervasive presence in his life, works, and concerns, was at least as significant as were his professional pursuits and war experience, and that recognizing and exploring this influence in detail is at least as illuminating.”
— Carl F. Hostetter, editor of The Nature of Middle-earth by J.R.R. Tolkien



“The elephant in the room―Tolkien’s devout and lifelong Christian faith―has at last been fully examined: trunk, tusks, ears, tail, memory, and all. Soberly, with expert attention both to fine points and the big picture, Ordway explains Tolkien’s religious beliefs and explores how they shaped his life and work. I feel like Sam felt when he finally beheld the Oliphaunt. I see now! This is what the rumours were about!”
— Michael Ward, Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Oxford; co-editor of The Cambridge Companion to C.S. Lewis

About the Author

Holly Ordway is the Cardinal Francis George Professor of Faith and Culture at the Word on Fire Institute and Visiting Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. She holds a PhD in English from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and is a Subject Editor for the Journal of Inklings Studies. Her book Tolkien’s Modern Reading: Middle-earth Beyond the Middle Ages received the 2022 Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Inklings Studies.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Word on Fire Academic (September 2, 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 544 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1685789919
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1685789916
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.95 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.3 x 1.73 x 9.29 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 57 ratings

About the author

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Holly Ordway

Holly Ordway

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Holly Ordway is the Cardinal Francis George Professor of Faith and Culture at the Word on Fire Institute, and Visiting Professor of Apologetics at Houston Christian University. She holds a PhD in English from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and is a Subject Editor for the Journal of Inklings Studies. She is the author of Tolkien’s Modern Reading: Middle-earth Beyond the Middle Ages, which received the 2022 Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Inklings Studies. Her book Tolkien’s Faith: A Spiritual Biography is being released in time for the 50th anniversary of Tolkien’s death. Her website is hollyordway.com.

Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
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Top reviews from the United States

Karen de Foy
5.0 out of 5 stars Adds so much to the understanding of who Tolkien was
Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2024
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I've read Tolkien's books, his letters, and a number of books about him, but this one offers insight that I haven't found anywhere else. Understanding Tolkien's religious beliefs and what his faith meant to him adds depth and reality to his portrait, and a much better comprehension of the spirit that spurred his imagination. I was fascinated to learn about how difficult it was to be a Catholic in Tolkien's England, and how much Tolkien owed to the spirituality of St. Philip Neri and St. John Henry Newman. The book was a truly enjoyable read, and for me very moving at times. Thank you, Holly Ordway!
6 people found this helpful
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Lovee
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Spiritual Biography
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2024
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This is such a wonderful book! I shave never read anything like it! Don’t let the 637 pages scare you. It flows beautifully fast and the last 120 pages are reference material, including a glossary to aid readers in understanding his Faith. Read this book!
One person found this helpful
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EH
5.0 out of 5 stars Dr. Holly Ordway's Faith-Biography of Tolkien is a MUST READ for all fans of Tolkien!!!
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2023
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Dr. Holly Ordway is not only an excellent scholar but an accessible, brilliant writer. She’s a riveting storyteller!!! All fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s work should read her prose and learn a lot from her about Tolkien’s faith and how he lived his life! Her work isn’t “preachy.” She’s smart and direct. She focuses on the historical facts surrounding Tolkien’s relationship with his faith and how that helped him world-build Middle-earth.

Ordway emphasizes primary evidence from Tolkien and others who knew him and builds from there.
Her work clarifies a ton of misconceptions and myths about Tolkien’s life and reveals the true majesty of his genius as an artist. She shows how Tolkien struggled with his faith, especially in the aftermath of World War I, and how he understood his English Catholic faith in the times and places that he lived.

Ordway also highlights the discrimination and prejudice that Tolkien suffered from as a Catholic in late-nineteenth and early-mid twentieth century England and how he endured through it. She shows how Tolkien wrestled with many sufferings throughout his life, including the untimely deaths of his parents before the war and then most of his closest friends during the war, and how that suffering translates into his Legendarium.

Ordway shows her readers that Tolkien’s faith did not dismiss his suffering. His faith accepts, embraces, endures, and transcends his suffering as his eyes look onward and upward toward something greater: his faith that, in the end, the Saurons of the world will fall. Good will triumph over evil!

Every Tolkien fan must read this book!!! ---> Especially if they want to get to know the real Tolkien as a human being and a great writer! I cannot recommend it enough!!!
15 people found this helpful
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Trish
5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative and enjoyable to read
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2024
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I really enjoyed this book. It gave me new insights to Tolkien and his spiritual life that I never knew about and I particularly enjoyed the spiritual references to the LOTR books.
One person found this helpful
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testtesttest
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Book
Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2024
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This is a must read book of Tolkien’s life. He was a man of great faith and a learned scholar. This book captures both sides of this great man!
3 people found this helpful
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Judy Zela
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining book about a great author
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2023
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I loved the story of his life! It was an easy read, & also found the references to his books & explanations helpful! I also liked the timeline at the end! Thank you!
5 people found this helpful
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Gregory A Cook
4.0 out of 5 stars Mostly Great, But Stumbles Badly on Vatican II
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2024
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Tolkien captured me when I was about thirteen, and he never let me go. Little did I know that as I read, and re-read, his works, I was also imbibing a thoroughly Catholic worldview. I attribute to him a significant part of the currents which eventually pushed me into the faith in my early 50s.
Tolkien’s Catholicism has not been a secret, and some biographers and scholars have referred to it in their writing: Joseph Pearce in his solid biography, Tolkien, Man and Myth: A Literary Life; Bradley Birzer in his Tolkien’s Sanctifying Myth; and Philip and Carol Zaleski in their group biography The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings. But only recently did we get a much-needed comprehensive examination of the Lord of the Ring’s author by scholar Holly Ordway: Tolkien’s Faith: A Spiritual Biography. Ordway has done Tolkien aficionados, as well as an even broader audience, a great service by showing us how the Faith shaped and guided the Oxford professor’s life and career.
The themes of fragility and resilience figure strongly in our time. Tolkien, orphaned at a young age not long after he converted to the Catholic Faith, might have seemed destined to a life of fragility, yet he rose to the heights of popularity as well as success in academia. That, despite struggles with his religion. Ordway helps us understand Tolkien’s path through the challenges of life by explaining the content and practice of Catholicism experience by the author and Oxford don.
Ordway shines at describing Tolkien’s friendships with figures like his guardian, Fr. Francis Morgan; fellow writers like (Anglican) C.S. Lewis; his students; priests such as Fathers Ronald Knox and Louis Bouyer; and others, Catholic or not. We also are treated to insights into Tolkien’s thinking as it relates to literature, culture, and fantasy. And over and over again we witness Tolkien in his humanity and basic decency, his truthfulness and dedication to doing the right thing.
This book also delves into Catholicism as Tolkien practiced it, and the author wisely includes an appendix with some of the texts (in Latin and English) Tolkien memorized. But as a knowledge of Church history teaches, the 1960s were a time of change in Catholicism, and Tolkien seemed to be ill-at-ease with those changes, especially the loss of Latin and wholesale liturgical reconstruction. It is here Ordway stumbles, and badly, in trying to enlist Tolkien in the ongoing post-conciliar project. While it is true that Tolkien does not fit the current definition of Catholic traditionalist, neither was he a promoter of aggiornamento. Ordway uncharacteristically sounds a false note by portraying the struggles of Vatican II between opening up the Church versus a “primitivism,” when in fact “reformers” like Bugnini cloaked themselves in a fabricated return to the sources. Ordway omits mention of the group of council fathers like Cardinal Ottaviani and Abp. Marcel Lefebvre who objected to the repudiation of previous Church teaching on, for instance, other religions, ecumenism, and duties of the nation-state toward truth and religion. Skeptics on that matter would do well to read any book by Michael Davies for a thorough corrective.
We should not be surprised by Ordway’s misstep, given that this book is published by Word on Fire, the brand of Bishop Robert Barron. His Excellency, alas, is a very smart man but a company man, and one who has seemingly suspended his critical faculties regarding the manifest failures of the post-conciliar project.
That one major caveat aside, this book is a great addition to the field of Tolkien studies. It can be read with profit by those familiar with Tolkien’s background but also serve as a teaching resource for those who may have read Tolkien but are unfamiliar with the Catholic Faith; it can even be a refresher for Catholics who are deep in the Faith. In any of these cases, the divine gift of Middle Earth to us will become more accessible. Deo Gratias.
11 people found this helpful
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Doreen J. Takisaki
5.0 out of 5 stars A Thorough and Important Book
Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2023
I have never written a review before, but this book has touched me in a profound way:
I have been thoroughly enjoying the magnificent book: Tolkien’s Faith.
The research, writing and expertise is stunning throughout the book, yet at the same time, is written as an engaging and readable work. I am finding a “kindred spirit” as such in the pages, and am looking forward to sharing Tolkien’s story with others.
Well done Holly!
7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Juan María Carreño Díaz
5.0 out of 5 stars Una joya sobre Tolkien, su obra y su Fe
Reviewed in Spain on November 17, 2023
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Una verdadera joya en forma de libro para cualquier tolkiendil e imprescindible para los tolkiendili católicos. Una lectura que se disfruta de la primera a la última página, mientras se profundiza en la forma en que la Fe sustentó la vida y la obra de Tolkien, suscitando una profunda y sensible reflexión en el lector.
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Peter Worthington
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent biography!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 30, 2023
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I really enjoyed reading this page-turning biography. I learnt so much about Tolkien's faith.
It reveals a clearer picture for me of his achievement in terms of the spiritual roots that
nourished his creativity. I now understand his literary masterpieces better and his personality.
I have always found his books inspirational and ultimately hopeful. Now this is even more the case.
This book is full of treasure to fascinate and admire. It is a really rewarding read!
4 people found this helpful
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J Whitgift
1.0 out of 5 stars Poor both as biography (vitae and spiritual)
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 2, 2023
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I will first acknowledge that I believe Carpenter's biography of Tolkien to be the best, with all overs coming second. Some come a good second, others like this offer a very poor showing.

Whilst Ordway does give us the facts of Tolkien's vitae, they come across as bland and insipid, lacking any real depth or analysis. It's the same with Tolkien's spirituality and theology,her descriptions are obvious and tediously pedestrian. (Lembas = the Eucharistic Sacrament, who knew!? 🤷🏻 Actually everyone, it's the oldest and most basic reading of how Tolkien's spurituality informs his writing.) There are whole libraries pertaining to Tolkien's theological and spiritual vision, and at least one Systematic Theology, but these depths of analysis are missing here.

There's also no sense of history, or significance. We get more on the Godparents of his children, and the Priests of the Birminghan Oratory than we do on WW1, WW2 or the Inkilings! Yet these events and groups are of profound importance to Tolkien's development as a writer, Catholic, and as a person. (I think Ordway has misunderstood the nature if Spuritual, concentrating on it as the numinous Other, rather than as having an impact on the material world.)

This is a book that will appeal to a particular type of reader, one who wants to understand Tolkien as a Catholic theologian who uses mythopoeia to express his theological and spiritual vision. Unfortunately it will fail even in this basic task, being fit only for the remainders bin, or the bookstall in your local garden centre.

- I bought my copy from Amazon.com, it arrived sticky and smelling of strong disinfectant, pleasant neither to the touch, nor the nose!
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