intentional and accompanied

Musings on The Return of The King, part 2.1

A bit more about the Paths of the Dead…
The animals are restless and antsy , Gimli, of all people, balks at going underground. But that is about the extent of the fear and apprehension portrayed in the movie. In the book, Gimli is terrified. He is so afraid that he thinks if he can’t escape immediately, he will turn and run back into the shadows that are the source of all his fears. Reading the book, I conjured the image of the Cowardly Lion turning and bolting down the corridor and diving out the window. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. We as Christians often become so frightened of the world that it breaks us and we become the very thing that frightens us.
The irony in the story is that Gimli was there with the company to summon those of whom he was afraid to follow Aragorn. While in their midst, he was terrified of them. They were following Aragorn, and so as long as Gimli stayed with Aragorn, he was safe. Gimli had to remember why he came. If he had lost focus, and turned and run, he would have been destroyed because the dead were devoted to Aragorn. Only by association with him was the whole company kept safe.
If we go into the shadows with the king, for his purposes, he will keep us. If we go alone, or become so afraid that we forget our assignment, we will be swallowed.