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Originally Posted by bill_mchale
I don't think that Tolkien denies Christian themes, rather he denies overt Christian symbols and allegories.
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Actually he denied all of those in at least one published interview and never said anything later to retract or contradict it. I can't remember where or by whom it was published, it being a good 25 years since I read it, but I remember the denial quite well.
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Indeed, from what I have read he intended this work to develop a pre-christian world that was consistent in morality and belief with Christianity (in the same way Christians would hold that the Prophets of the old Testament held beliefs consistent with Christianity).
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Bill
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I don't think this is correct at all. Tolkien lamented the fact that England, unlike Ireland, Wales and (to a lesser degree) Scotland, lacked a national mythology and it was this that he sought to (sort of) amend. In his search for inspiration he went in particular to Norse mythology and the Finnish Kalevala, which influences are very clear througout his works to anyone familiar with them. Neither, obviously, is Christian, but like all religions and mythologies they contain the themes of light vs dark, etc, etc. Because the theme can be so easily attributed to Christianity, Christians have attempted to claim LotR et al for their side for decades, but in fact there is no basis at all for doing so. Quite simply, all the evidence is to the contrary.