The bearded old wizard who leads the mishmash party out of Rivendell fulfils nearly all the criteria of being a Christ figure. In a group comprising the squabbling races of elves, dwarves and men, Gandalf is the benign, venerable figure who peacefully brings them all together. He is also a teacher and a prophet, imparting his wisdom about the ways of Middle-Earth on the Fellowship. He may not be shown walking on water or turning water into wine (some use that would be in the Misty Mountains!), but as a wizard he is capable of magic that would be deemed miraculous in our world. The most Christ-like aspect of the grey wizard is unquestionably his death and subsequent resurrection in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Facing his demise at the hands of an ancient evil, the Balrog, Gandalf stands firm; in so doing he sacrifices his own life to save the Fellowship and descends into the hellish darkness below. Gandalf isnt the only Christ figure in Lord of the Rings. Frodo Baggins the Ring Bearer is understood as being analogous to the son of God as he symbolically carries the sins of mankind on his shoulders (indeed, the Rings of Power were born of the greed of mankind). The young hobbit has been nominated as the sacrificial lamb of Middle-Earth, though he lives to tell the tale missing only a finger. Even good old Samwise Gamgee is sometimes interpreted as holding Christ-like qualities cmon Tolkien, there can only be one Jesus! Without doubt the one with most relation to Christ is Gandalf though the sacrifice and subsequent resurrection he optionally submits himself to echoes the Christian parable greatly.
Hailing from South East London, Sam Heard is an aspiring writer and recent graduate from the University of Warwick. Sam's favourite things include energy drinks, late nights spent watching the UFC with his girlfriend and annihilating his friends at FIFA.
