J. R. R. Tolkien
1892-1973 20th century
Recognising the light at the heart of the world's story, hope that holds out against the dark.
Who was J. R. R. Tolkien?
An Oxford philologist, orphaned and raised by an Oratorian priest, a devout Catholic all his life. The maker of Middle-earth, he wove his work into a long tale shot through with grace, sacrifice and stubborn hope.
In their own words
Out of the darkness of my life I put before you the one great thing to love on earth: the Blessed Sacrament.
It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set.
I am a Christian, and indeed a Roman Catholic, so that I do not expect history to be anything but a long defeat, though it contains some samples or glimpses of final victory.