In A Short Cut To Mushrooms Frodo’s desire to evade the Black Riders leads he and his companions directly to another danger: Farmer Maggot! All the while Samwise Gamgee illustrates faith and faithfulness in this chapter of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings.

Short Cuts Make Long Delays

The morning after their encounter with Gildor and the Elves finds our hobbits enjoying a breakfast left behind by the former. The plan for the day is to “walk to Bucklebury as quickly as possible.” Frodo is certain that they will indeed see more of those Black Riders, and he desires to minimize the risk with a shortcut. This bright morning had not banished the fear of pursuit, and now he wishes to deliver his friends safely to Crickhollow, and from there to immediately leave for his quest alone.

‘It is one thing to take my young friends walking over the Shire with me, until we are hungry and weary, and food and bed are sweet. To take them into exile, where hunger and weariness may have no cure, is quite another – even if they are willing to come.’

The Lord of the Rings, A Short Cut To Mushrooms, pp. 86-87

Faith Mushrooms Into Faitfulness

As Frodo is in the midst of this inner-dialogue he looked over to Sam only to discover that Sam was watching him. “I’m leaving the Shire as soon as ever I can,” he said. “Very good, sir!” Sam replied. Frodo understands that Sam has already included himself in that plan, and that he is indeed aware that it is very likely neither will ever come back.

‘If you don’t come back, sir, then I shan’t, that’s certain,’ said Sam. ‘Don’t you leave him! they said to me. Leave him! I said. I never mean to. I am going with him, if he climbs to the Moon; and if any of those Black Riders try to stop him, they’ll have Sam Gamgee to reckon with, I said.’

Ibid., p. 87

Sam Gamgee is illustrating to us what faith and faithfulness look like in the real world – even if that world is Middle-earth. The Elves seemed to know that Frodo is going away, and so they charged Sam to go with him and stay by his side; care for him. Sam does not know where that path (Paths! Refer to the the previous episode: Three Is Company) will lead. This is why he resorts to the hyperbolic, “to the Moon!”

Sam walks by faith, not by sight. Faith is of things hoped for a confidence, of matters not seen a conviction (Heb. 11:1 YLT). Faith mushrooms into faithfulness; and this is visible, as the apostle John wrote to Gaius:

Dear friend, you are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God.

3 John 1:5-6 NLT

A Short Cut To Mushrooms

This shortcut leads to Bamfulong, the home of old Farmer Maggot – another terror of Frodo Baggins. It turns out to be a delightful little adventure which we wish had been included in the Peter Jackson films. Farmer Maggot is a warm, open, kind, and giving person – unless, of course, you are pilfering his mushrooms! And Frodo regrets never having known this of him:

I’ve been in terror of you and your dogs for over thirty years, Farmer Maggot, though you may laugh to hear it. It’s a pity: for I’ve missed a good friend.

The Lord of the Rings, A Short Cut To Mushrooms, p. 95.

Song: A Shortcut To Mushrooms from the album Second Breakfast by The Lonely Mountain Band.

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us each week as we continue the adven...

Bilbo told Frodo that the path from Bag End goes through Mirkwood to the Lonely Mountain and even further to worse places. Perhaps, even, to Mordor. Are there roads that lead to another door? On this episode we examine the third chapter of The Lord Of The Rings and see what we can learn from Three Is Company.

Covered In The Dust Of Bilbo Baggins

It has been two or three weeks since Frodo made the decision to leave the Shire with the ring, but he had made no sign of getting ready to go. Gandalf, noticing this, tells him that he ought to go both quietly and soon. Frodo hesitates but has an idea:

‘What about the autumn, on or after Our Birthday?’ asked Frodo. ‘I think I could probably make some arrangements by then.’

The Lord of the Rings, Three Is Company, p. 65

Though he was indeed reluctant to leave, it was following after Bilbo which was uppermost in Frodo’s mind. Only this thought made leaving Bag End tolerable. The old hobbit was his family, friend, teacher, and guide. Frodo learned every wonderful thing he knew from Bilbo. He followed Bilbo so closely that he was – figuratively, if not literally – covered in his dust. That is the relationship of a disciple to a teacher: he or she follows in their footsteps so closely that the dust from the road is kicked up and lands on the disciple.

This is how the world can identify a disciple. Who’s dust are you covered in?

Home Looks Better When You’re About To Leave

Of course, following a trusted teacher and guide necessitates a path; the path from the door of Bag End joins other paths that feed into a larger road as tributaries do to a river, just as Bilbo would often say after a walk:

“Do you realize that this is the very path that goes through Mirkwood, and that if you let it, it might take you to the Lonely Mountain or even further and to worse places?”

Ibid., p. 74

Aren’t all stories about paths? They are about the paths taken and choices made. We all must take a path. There is no avoiding it. To chose not to take a path is in itself taking a path. Frodo, though reluctant, choses to follow the path set before him. He doesn’t know exactly what he’ll meet along the way, but he knows that there is danger on this path; it could lead all the way to Mordor!

On the night Jesus was betrayed, while in the upper room, he was preparing his disciples for what was on the very cusp of happening: he would be turned over to the Jewish authorities by one of them, Peter would deny even knowing him, and he was going where they could not yet follow. They could not follow their beloved teacher? Why, this is terrible! Jesus offered them words of reassurance:

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.”

“No, we don’t know, Lord,” Thomas said. “We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

John 14:1-6 NLT

Jesus is the way. He is the path that leads past Mordor.

Three Is Company

Frodo does not have to travel this path alone! Sam Gamgee and Peregrin Took are happy to walk with him and to help carry part of his load. Or in the case of Sam, to even carry much of his load. He will not allow Frodo carry that burden by himself. This is indeed a forward to things further down this road that Frodo is travelling. It is also a picture of the church – which was originally called the Way. I prefer to call it the Way because of the very lessons we have gleaned from Three Is Company, a fantastic chapter in The Lord Of The Rings.

It has been seventeen years since Bilbo Baggins left the Shire. Now Frodo must face The Shadow Of The Past and decide what to do with the time given him. How will Gandalf and Sam Gamgee help bear this burden? Join us as we explore J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord Of The Rings.

The Shadow Of The Past: Controlling Rings And Controlling Themes

If the first chapter of The Lord Of The Rings acted as the passing of the baton between Bilbo and Frodo, this chapter – The Shadow Of The Past – acts as an advanced course of the history of the One Ring and how it has come to Frodo Baggins. From the War Of The Last Alliance to Sméagol’s murder of Déagol, and the singular event which Sauron could never have anticipated: the One Ring ends up in the hands of the most unlikely creature of all, Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit of the Shire.

Has Some Power Chosen Frodo For Just Such A Time As This?

Gandalf is clear: besides Sauron, some Other power is orchestrating events in Middle-earth:

Behind that there was something else at work, beyond any design of the Ring-maker. I can put it no plainer than by saying that Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, and not by its maker.

– The Lord Of The Rings, Fellowship Of The Ring, The Shadow Of The Past, p56

When discussing the history unfolding in Middle-earth – which stretches all the way back to the song of the Ainur, by whom Ilúvatar created all of Eä – Kent Bruner and Jim Ware follow Gandalf’s plain statement backward to the very beginning:

And so Ilúvatar, after the pattern of the biblical Jehovah, produces a drama performed in the theater of time. Its story will become the visible expression of the Ainur’s chorus, including the song of a simple hobbit and the discord of an evil rebel. And somehow, the former will resolve the latter.

– Kurt Bruner and Jim Ware, Finding God In The Lord Of The Rings, Loc. 209, Kindle version

Queen Esther And The King’s Decree

After hearing this terrible tale Frodo has but one thought: he wishes that this ring had never come to him. And Gandalf sympathizes. Neither would have chosen this, but the wizard tells Frodo plainly that all that matters now is what he choses to do. The Old Testament story of Esther must have been an influence on J.R.R. Tolkien, a devout Catholic.

The parallels are uncanny: terrible things are progressing to the slaughter of countless Jews, and one person is in the right place at the right time to carry a burden on behalf of others. Queen Esther knows that it could cost her her life if she approaches the king unbidden. Her cousin Mordecai wrote her the following in response to her objections:

“Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”

Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die.”

– Esther 4:13-16 NLT

Just like Esther, Frodo decides to do the hard thing. And thus the controlling theme takes over: he will leave the Shire and bear the burden of the ring for the benefit and love of others, whatever it may cost him.

What stood out to you in the The Shadow Of The Past? Let us know in the comments below.

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us each week as we continue the adventure on the Arkenstone server in

Bilbo Baggins is celebrating his eleventy-first birthday by throwing a long expected party. Gandalf the Grey will be there with plenty of spectacle because the most important thing in Middle-earth is about to take place. We’ll explore that on this episode of The Secret Fire Podcast.

A Long Expected Party

Eleventy-one years is quite a respectable age for hobbits. After all the Old Took only reached the age of one-hundred and thirty. Also, his nephew (technically his cousin) Frodo was to celebrate his own thirty-third birthday – his coming of age – on that same day, September 22. Naturally, this was cause for much celebration, and the wizard Gandalf wouldn’t miss it for anything in Middle-earth.

Though he wasn’t sure why, Gandalf the Grey knew that this was the most important place for the servant of the Secret Fire to be. Bilbo was using the occasion of this long expected party to leave Bag End and everything else to his adopted heir and to go on a permanent adventure. Everything including his magic ring. Gandalf was there to ensure that said ring did, in fact, pass from Bilbo’s possession.

Bilbo Must Decrease, Frodo Must Increase

Like Christian in Pilgrim’s Progress Bilbo Baggins carries a burden that he cannot quite identify (Pro Tip: we will draw parallels to John Bunyan’s magnum opus often on this show). He confesses suspicions about the ring to Gandalf after his uncharacteristic outburst:

“It has been so growing on my mind lately. Sometimes I have felt it was like an eye looking at me. And I am always wanting to put it on and disappear…”

The wizard encourages him to stop possessing it, leave the ring behind, and break free of its hold.

Bilbo’s part in the story of the ring is at an end, but he does not want to step out of the starring role. That is exactly why Gandalf is present at this exact time (chronos) and place. It is time (kairos) for Bilbo to stop possessing the ring. And it is time (kairos) for the ring to stop possessing Bilbo Baggins. It is time (kairos) for Frodo to continue the story of the ring; it is Frodo’s time (kairos) to bear the burden.

A Long Expected Party was the event which signaled this fact: Bilbo must decrease, but Frodo must increase. Each has a role in this drama, but it is all for the glory of someone greater. In Middle-earth that One is Eru Ilúvatar.

I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.

1 Corinthians 3:6 NASB

Song: Bilbo’s Farewell from the album Don’t Go Drinking With Hobbits, by Marc Gunn

Join Us On An Adventure

Next week: The Shadow Of The Past.

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us each week as we continue the adventure on the Arkenstone server in Lord Of The Rings Online. We meet at the Three Farthing Stone in the Shire.

Please join our Fellowship on our Facebook and Twitter pages for even more fun from Tolkien’s Legendarium.

You may listen to the podcast by using the audio player at the top of this post, or use the links below for other convenient ways to subscribe and listen.

ITUNES |

On this episode we look at the prologue to The Lord Of The Rings and pay particular attention to the section titled Concerning Hobbits. What can we learn about Hobbits from this primer? What can we learn about ourselves? All that and much more on this episode of The Secret Fire Podcast.

Prologue As A Primer

A prologue serves as a means by which pertinent information is provided for the purpose of assisting the reader or audience to better understand the story that follows. It provides context and background information.  Often these details are taken from earlier tales and serves as a vehicle to relate the old and new. The fancy seven-dollar word for this is intertextuality, and J.R.R. Tolkien is a master of this craft – as we see here.

Concerning Hobbits

The bulk of the prologue to The Lord Of The Rings is – to borrow from the text – concerning Hobbits. Readers loved The Hobbit. Tolkien’s publishers, Allen and Unwin, practically begged him to write a sequel. In fact Stanley Unwin wrote to the Professor in October, 1937 that a large public would be “clamoring next year to hear more from you about Hobbits!” Here was his response:

“I cannot think of anything more to say about hobbits. Mr Baggins seems to have exhibited so fully both the Took and the Baggins side of their nature.” – Letter 17

Thankfully, J.R.R. Tolkien’s muse came to him bearing bountiful gifts! What wonderful glimpses we get into the history of Hobbits in this prologue. And what a primer it is for the tale that follows it. We explore some of them on this episode of The Secret Fire Podcast in order to lean more concerning Hobbits.

Middle-earthly Good

One characteristic not only concerning Hobbits, but is concerning about them, is that they are – for lack of better word – isolationists. The ease and comforts enjoyed within the Shire dulled their concern about anything outside of it. In fact, as Tolkien wrote, “there in that pleasant corner of the world … they heeded less and less the world outside where dark things moved, until they came to think that peace and plenty were the rule in Middle-earth and the right of all sensible folk.”

In essence, the Hobbits of the Shire were hiding their lights under a basket. Their salt had lost its flavor. They were being no Middle-eartly good.

You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

– Matthew 5:14-16 NRSV

But something is about to change. And that is the grand adventure we want you to have with us!

Sent To Burn At The Heart Of The World

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us each week as we continue the adventure on the Arkenstone server in Lord Of The Rings Online. We meet at the Three Farthing Stone in the Shire.

Please join our Fellowship on our Facebook and Twitter pages for even more fun from Tolkien’s Legendarium.

You may listen to the podcast by using the audio player at the top of this post, or use the links below for other convenient ways to subscribe and listen.

ITUNES | GOOGLE PLAY MUSIC |

On this episode of The Secret Fire Podcast we’ll tell you what to expect from this new show where we will take a closer look at J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth through Christians lenses. We invite you to join us as servants of the Secret Fire – sent to burn at the heart of the world!

What Is The Secret Fire?

In The Fellowship Of The Ring as Gandalf the Grey battles the terrible Balrog of Morgoth at the bridge of Khazud-dûm, he tells the foul creature, “I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Arnor. You cannot pass.” What is this Secret Fire, and is it mentioned anywhere else in Tolkien’s legendarium?

Indeed it is!

In The Silmarillion we have recorded in the first paragraph of Valaquenta this statement:

Therefore Ilúvatar gave to their vision Being, and set it amid the Void, and the Secret Fire was sent to burn at the heart of the World; and it was called Eä.

We see that the Secret Fire was sent by Ilúvatar (the One). It originates from him. And there is more that could be guessed about the Secret Fire, but we have the advantage of the Professor’s (Tolkien) own confession: In Tolkien and The Silmarillion, author Clyde S. Kilby recounts a time when, asked directly what the Secret Fire was,  Tolkien confirmed that it is the Holy Spirit.

The Secret Fire sent to burn at the heart of the World – that same Flame Imperishable which Gandalf claimed fidelity and service to – was the Holy Spirit!

Brand New Show: The Secret Fire Podcast

We are so pleased to begin our long expected show, The Secret Fire Podcast. This has been in the works for quite some time. Michael and Brenden from Great Commission Transmission Network’s  Finding Christ In Cinema podcast are joined by Michael’s son (and old podcasting partner) Micah for a weekly journey through Middle-earth. We will be going chapter-by-chapter, book-by-book and taking it all in through Christian lenses.

We shall begin with The Lord Of The Rings and, Lord willing, continue on from there. In this introductory episode you get to meet the hosts and learn a bit about them and what they will bring to the round table each week, including:

* Examining the craft of storytelling

* Highlight favorite scenes, dialogue, and interactions in the story as it progresses

* Sound clips from film and audio sources

* Music from favorite Middle-earth inspired bands and musicians – such as Lonely Mountain Band

* Follow the character’s footsteps in the Lord Of The Rings Online game

* Discuss Christian themes as we go along

* Much more.

The Lord Of The Rings

Brenden has never read LOTR, but he wants to! Being a storyteller and Theater Arts Major will give him some unique insights as he finally reads this masterpiece. This in itself gave rise to the Secret Fire Podcast. What a great opportunity to experience the wonder of someone going on a journey with with Fellowship for the first time, and that someone with the education and background that Brenden has.

Next episode we will be taking a look at the prologue to The Lord Of The Rings. So read those 15 or so pages and be ready to join us here on the Secret Fire Podcast.

Intro song: Old Toby from the album Second Breakfast by The Lonely Mountain Band.

Artwork by David Gaddy of The Theonauts podcast.

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