Editing Noldor (section)

=== Sub-creation ===
{{further|Christianity in Middle-earth}}

Shippey writes that Tolkien was himself fascinated with artefacts and their "[[sub-creation]]". He comments that in ''The Hobbit'', ''The Lord of the Rings'', and ''The Silmarillion'', Tolkien consistently chooses to write about the "restless desire to make things". This is not quite, he notes, the same as the Christian sin of [[avarice]] or possessiveness. This made sense in the case of the Noldor, as for consistency their besetting sin ought not to be the same as [[Adam and Eve]]'s, which was [[Seven deadly sins#Pride|pride]]. In Valinor, Shippey writes, the equivalent of the [[Fall of man|Fall]] "came when conscious creatures became 'more interested in their own creations than in God's'", with Fëanor's forging of the Silmarils.<ref name="Shippey 2005 p273">{{harvnb|Shippey|2005|pp=273–274}}</ref> He adds that the smith-Vala Aulë is not only the patron of all craftsmen but the Vala most like Melkor, the first Dark Lord. The kinds of craftsmanship he encouraged among the Noldor was not only of physical things, but "'those that make not, but seek only for the understanding of what is' — the [[Philology|philologists]], one might say", writes Shippey, including Tolkien's profession along with the Noldor's skill with letters and poetry.<ref name="Shippey 2005 p273"/>