What forms can religious experience take in a world without cult or creed? Organized religion is notably absent from J. R. R. Tolkien's Secondary Universe despite author's own Catholic faith. Contributors to Light beyond All Shadows probe both the mind of the maker and the world he made. These essays examine the full sweep of Tolkien's legendarium plus Peter Jackson's film trilogy. They propose that Tolkien's Catholic imagination was shaped by his iconography, its meditative techniques, and St. Philip Neri's 'Mediterranean' style of Catholicism. They identify Tolkien's Biblical typology and broader mythic resonances. They defend his work as neither occult nor Manichaean and analyze the Inklings as supportive friends. They show that within Tolkien's world, water, music, poetry and the life-giving Feminine point towards transcendence. Light stands for sub-creation, the power diffusing from Deity. Light beyond All Shadows aids appreciation of what is real, meaningful and truthful in Tolkien's work.
