Holiness

Catholics and Evangelicals alike agree on the call on Christians to live a holy life.  (See the 2005 statement by Evangelicals and Catholics Together, The Call to Holiness.)  However, I find, when I raise this topic with my Christian friends, they tend to view the terms holy, or holiness, negatively.  At least they are being honest.  They know they are sinners and so they do not feel holy, or, at least, they do not feel those terms should be applied to them.  They know God is holy; they believe, or at least hope, their priest or pastor is holy; they know others who might qualify as holy; but they feel uncomfortable if those terms are applied to them.  They often hold to no hope of becoming holy.

The New Testament seems to hold a different view.  It uses the word "saints" over 60 times, usually to refer to any believer who is "in Christ" -that is whom Christ dwells.  Some New Testament versions translate the Greek word hagios, as the holy ones.

Fra Angelico.
The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs
 (about 1423-24)

The New Testament writers did not employ a rose colored filter.  They knew well that all believers are sinners.  Yet they did not shy away from using the term saints (holy ones) broadly to apply to all believers.  Why?

St. Paul asserts, in his Epistle to the Romans that God applies the righteousness of Christ to us sinners through faith. In other words, though we deserve punishment, since Jesus Christ completely lived a holy life, and because He fully paid for our sins by His death at the Cross; when we fully place our faith in Christ as paying the price for our sins, God looks at us as though we lived as holy a life as Jesus did.  (Romans 3:21-31)

St. Paul goes on to clarify - this teaching does not mean we can simply sin all we want.  Instead, he asserts we are dead to sin, but alive in Christ.  (Romans 6:11)

No doubt, we all sin.  So John says if we claim to have no sin, we are not truthful.  (1 John 1:8 & 10)  Instead, he urges us to confess our sins.  (1 John 1:9)  John goes on to urge all of us to live a holy life.

St. Peter sums this up when he recalls what God says in the Old Testament, But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;  for it is written: Be holy, because I am holy. (1 Peter 1:15-16 - referencing passages in Leviticus)  Peter addresses this to all believers, not just to a select few.  He urges all of us to live a holy life.

Probably the best way to think about holiness is as a journey.  Isaiah refers to a highway called a way of holiness (Isiah 35:8).  As sinners, we embark on a journey where God, through His Holy Spirit, transforms us, step by step, into holiness.  Though we never quite arrive, we embarked on that journey and hopefully progress on that highway.  Though we may sin, we confess it, receive God's forgiveness, and continue on that journey.

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

I watched the final part of The Hobbit film trilogy by Peter Jackson: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, released in 2014.  It covers the portion of The Hobbit book from when the dragon Smaug leaves the Lonely Mountain to attack Lake-town, to the end of the book.

Galadriel

In my favorite part of the movie, Galadriel (played by Cate Blanchett), accompanied
by Elrond and Saruman, rescues Gandalf, and battles with and defeats Sauron, along with the Nazgul (the Ring-wraiths), banishing them to the East.  She expends tremendous power in this effort, which explains why she seems somewhat diminished when we get to The Fellowship of the Rings.  However, Tolkien does not explain this in The Hobbit, where Gandalf mention he was detained on a mission longer than he expected without explanation.  Apparently Tolkien explained this in the appendices to The Fellowship of the Ring.  So I appreciated that Jackson included this aspect of the story in the film.

Smaug attacks Lake-town - Bard takes aim

I also liked the scenes where Smaug attacked Lake-town - brought down to his death by Bard the Bowman.

However, Jackson dragged out the battle scenes too long.  The battle does not take up much length in the book, and Jackson seemed to want to get every ounce he could out of the battle scenes, and then more.

Still I enjoyed the film, as well as the film trilogy, and recommend watching it.

The Hobbit (the book)

The Lewis Tolkien Friendship

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (film)

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (film)