Today is the 130th Birthday of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE, FRSL. A devout Traditional Catholic, and a patriot who served in 11 (Service) Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers on the Western Front during the 1914-18 War, he was one of, if not the greatest writer of the 20th century.. May he rest in peace as he continues to bring joy to new generations of readers! Memory Eternal!
A memory related by his grandson, Simon Tolkien, on his attitude toward the New Mass:
I vividly remember going to church with him in Bournemouth. He was a devout Roman Catholic and it was soon after the Church had changed the liturgy from Latin to English. My grandfather obviously didn't agree with this and made all the responses very loudly in Latin while the rest of the congregation answered in English. I found the whole experience quite excruciating, but my grandfather was oblivious. He simply had to do what he believed to be right.
An interview with him, from 1964, with subtitles so his rather eccentric speech can be understood.
He studied art as a boy. Here's a look at some of his original paintings.
And here's a video about his service with the Lancashire Fusiliers during the Great War. (The age restriction is only because the subject is war. There is no moral objection to the video.)
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