I suppose that one needs to be able to appreciate this sort of logic in order to understand the "Catholic" symbolism of Lord of the Rings.
You need to read the books with understanding. God is all through the books, and the appendices and subsequent works by Tolkien. I don't mean to be rude, but if you don't see God in these works, you aren't paying attention.
Your ad hominem arguments have somehow failed to convince me.
the Christlike symbolism is all through the books: Frodo the Deliverer, Gandalf the Resurrected, Aragorn the Returning King.
These could just as easily be Hindu or Zoroastrian symbols. Next I'll be hearing that "Gilgamesh" is also a Catholic work. It has a hundred times more symbolism that could be interpreted as being "Christ-like."
You bring up an interesting point. Tolkien was a great admirer of northern European folklore, in particular Beowulf. The anonymous author of Beowulf wrote the epic poem at the time Christianity was slowly spreading throughout England. It is almost certain that this author was a Christian himself. He used the poem to sanctify the best of the old pagan ways. This sanctification is in the tradition of St. Augustine's argument that Christianity could be compatible with a post-Roman world. Clement of Alexandria also argued along these line when hed said that the pre-Christian paganism of the Greco-Roman world was a "prepatory teaching for those who [would] later embrace the faith."
Just because something is pagan doesn't automatically mean it is evil.
It is hardly an ad hominem argument to point out that you don't understand something.
These could just as easily be Hindu or Zoroastrian symbols.
Only in the sense that Hinduism and Zorastrianism are perversions of the truth of the Gospel.