Fans of epic adventure, rejoice!

I’m cleaning up my drool after watching the new trailer for The Hobbit, which will hit theaters in December 2012. If you haven’t read the book yet, the release date gives you a plenty of time to finish it before seeing the film.

“I’m looking for someone to share in an adventure….” – Gandalf

The Lord of the Rings is a fundamentally religious and Catholic work.” – J.R.R. Tolkien

If you want to understand the Catholic symbolism within the The Lord of the Rings, the best source is Joseph Pearce’s series of lectures titled, “The Hidden Meaning of the Lord of the Rings”. You can download the whole series for free from Catholic Courses, but be sure to use the code FirstCourse at checkout (as per the instructions here.)

Another great talk is Peter Kreeft’s “Christianity in the Lord of the Rings”. Up until a couple months ago it was free, but now it costs a paltry $0.99. At that price, it’s more than worth it.

UPDATE: Steven Greydanus has some great analysis of the new Hobbit trailer.