Tolkien never intended for LOTR to be an allegory in the sense that Pilgrim's progress or the Narnia books are. He didn't like it when people would claim that it was a Christian allegory or, as many people claimed when LOTR was first published, an allegory to WW2. What Tolkien did say about the subject is that although he didn't intend anything he felt that the book could be applied to things such as Christianity. In other words, if when you read LOTR you see, as I do, the ring representing temptation/sin then Tolkien would be ok with that because it's my own personal application of the story. He however did not have that or any other comparisons intended when he set out to write LOTR. However, he was a devout catholic and did serve in WW1 and I think it's clear that both those things did have influence on his writing. Especially in the Silmarillion. The opening scenes remind me a lot of Paradise lost and the first chapters of Genesis. Either way the books are brilliant regardless of what you see in them. Sometimes when I read I see my faith reflected strongly in the story. Other times I'll notice the themes of courage and finding out who you are as a parallel to everyday life. It's a book about everything in many ways. A book about faith, a book about life, a book about how things change (the scouring hits me so hard every time), a book about hope, courage and friendship, and so much more. That's what makes it so awesome. It can be about anything you want it to be and that's why no other novel has ever lived up to it's standard. Truly an awesome read.