One more question about the background of LotR. It has been years since I read the apendix and bible of middle earth. Isn't there a part in the Silmarillion that says soemthing along the lines that everything that happens in all of the books is actualy part of some divine plan set by the main diety. The one that created everything. That even the good gods were scared when he finally was pissed at melkor and raised his voice to put the smack down on him at one point? Something along the lines that everything comes from him, and all that happens only happens from his will. Part of the reason humans were mortal and death was actually a gift to humans because their was some special purpose to humans from everything else?

Eru, the Iluvatar, also known as the One.

Iluvitar made the Valar from parts of his mind, and in the nothingness before creation they composed a song as a great choir, which was to be the destiny of all things to exist.

In the Silmarillion I read, Melkor tried to dissent and create dischord in the choir, but Iluvitar overrode him and even his dissent became a harmonious part of it.

Everything is bound to the music of the Ainur in the LoTR world except Men, who set thier own destinies. Elves are greater than men and do not die, but are bound by thier fate.

more or less what Maradon said. Ea made everything, including the "gods" (who conveniently, if you don't want to think polytheistically fit into roles as the heads of the assorted choirs of angels in Christianity), one of them was tempted, sang discord that threatened the others, then Ea squished the discord and all was well in the end. The song was the "model" for everything, and everyone knew what would happen (IE the discord of the world) but they didn't know how and when it would occur.

So they got sent down and had to live through the story they'd wrought, more or less.

I think it's an important theological note that the dischord wasn't eradicated, Iluvitar merely goaded Melkor into believing that he was causing dischord, and then reveals to Melkor that his dischord has been made a part of the harmony.