Hobbits? What can those small folks teach us?A lot actually!
Lord of the Rings is one of the greatest fantasy novels ever written. And it was written by a devout Catholic, J.R.R. Tolkien, who was also a friend of C.S. Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia. The Lord of the Rings is full of Christian symbolism and lessons. So let us dig in.
So what can we learn from our little hairy-footed friends?
Hobbit Habit #1: Cheerfulness.
Hobbits are a cheery bunch of Halflings. They like to drink, eat and be merry, which typically translate to singing and dancing. But their cheerfulness is unlike ours. Theirs is simpler and therefore merrier. They don’t need a big event to celebrate. Being together is enough reason to be merry.
Most of us are miserable because we have forgotten to be merry in small and simple things. We modern people want our celebrations big, bold, and gimmicky and attended by the famous. No wonder we do the most stupid things just to say we had fun. We have forgotten that we are celebrating because we are among friends who are sharing our joy.
Hobbits does not really need too much reason to be merry, they just simply do because they like to. Their simple life, their simple hearts makes them easy to please. For the most of us, our lack of the virtue of simplicity is the source of our discontent. Our discontent leads to frustration, which leads to misery.
The Hobbits can sing and dance because they know how to get caught in the moment. They are not self-conscious of what others would think of them. They are more absorbed in enjoying the moment than looking good. Because they are caught in joy, they become heralds of joy to others. When hobbits start singing and dancing on top of tables, everybody joins in. They are the life of the party because their heart is alive with joy.
For us Christian, Jesus is the source and reason of our joy. Pope Benedict XVI writes in his book Jesus of Nazareth (II), “In faith we know that Jesus holds his hands stretched out in blessing over us. That is the lasting motive of Christian joy.”
They say that the sign that the Holy Trinity is dwelling in you is joy. Joy is a sign of a true Christian who is in love with God.
Be a good cheer, Jesus has overcome the world and everything in between.
Written by Daxx Bondoc
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