:Golem:

A Golem in Jewish folklore is an artificial human being given life by supernatural powers. A Golem is also an automaton, a robot that moves automatically. Source: WordNet As a modern acronym, G.O.L.E.M. means Genetically Organized Lifelike Electro Mechanics. When the US (really just us - wizard) landed on the moon (maybe?) and drove the L.E.M. (Lunar Exploration Module), the wizards of scientism cheered "GO! L.E.M.!"

Golem as a noun comes from the Hebrew word gelem, as in the modern Hebrew term: xomer gelem, meaning "raw material". Golem is an ancient Hebrew and Medieval term for a metaphysical creation or alchemical man, such as the "Homunculus" of Paracelsus: an image or form made of clay or stone that is animated for beneficial purposes by a spiritually advanced Rabbi (teacher) or Wizard using magic, a religious inscription, scroll, parchment or a charm. Ancient stories of Golems tell of resurrection of the dead by putting a Shem, a name of God, such as Emet or Emeth ('truth' in Hebrew), on a clay tablet under the tongue, or written on the forehead or arm. A golem is a mixed blessing, since it lacks intelligence, but can repeat simple tasks ad infinitum, like a computer. In fact, Israel's first computer was named Golem. The problem is stopping Golems, as they tend to grow into Beasts.

Life size Statue of a Golem in Prague

Golems have great strength for tasks like lifting and defense, they feel no pain, and they are practically indestructable so they are low maintainance. Golems are mute servants who follow the instructions of their master without question. Golems are incapable of speech, because they are made in the image of man, not in the image of God. Because golems are the creation of man and not of God, golems do not have souls. Golems are thought of as genderless and typically referred to as male, although there was one female golem created by Rabbi Shelemo ben Gabirol. If something goes wrong and the golem begins destroying the village, destroy it by (1) removing or erasing the first letter alef (Hebrew "a", the first letter of the aleph-bet) in Emeth if that is written on it's forehead to change it to meth (death), (2) by removing the name of God if that is in it's mouth, or (3) by reciting the words of creation backwards, if it was created through a verbal incantation. It is crucial for golems to observe the Sabbath. In one case, the Rabbi temporarily deanimated the golem each Sabbath, so the golem would stop working, and all was fine. But one day, the Rabbi forgot and the golem became uncontrollably violent, rampaging through the village, destroying half of the homes. The Rabbi had to destroy the golem. Source. A Golem is a servant of his creator, but tends to develop dangerous powers, growing day by day like a governmental organization or a crime syndicate. To keep the Golem from taking over the estate from the living, the Golem must be returned to dust. The unrestrained power of the elements (power, greed, love of money) can bring about death, destruction and war. The Golem may have supernatural prescience, and may follow the orders of his Cabalistic creator with alertness, like a well-paid agent. Today's government schools and television programming perform a related, but diabolical feat, making spiritually and intellectually dead automatons, Golems, out of intelligent children instead of clay directly from the earth.

A modern day Golem was created at Montauk on Long Island by an underground black operation of the US government that grew out of the Philadelphia Experiment. When the Golem began destroying the base, it could not even be destroyed by smashing the massive computers used to help create it from the mind of the experimental subject. Electrical power being drawn from as far away as Connecticut had to be shut down completely. The most powerful Golem today is probably the cabal of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Living human beings, in a sense, are like God's Golems: dust, clay or earth-minerals animated spiritually by His breath and inscribed in our hearts with His laws. The Golem is outwardly a real person, yet he lacks the human dimension of personality and intellect. He is created from the ground, as was the first man. When his mission is over, the name of God is removed from him and he returns to the ground. Without God, we are nothing. Only with God's grace do we hope to overcome the mortal nature of our body vessels, and achieve the eternal life of the soul.

Golems are used in metaphor as entities serving man at times, but doing harm to man at others. In Yiddish, Golem is an epithet for someone who is clumsy or slow. A Golem is essentially an ancient name for an android and is now the name of a major project in robotics. In Discworld, Golems are a sub-type of troll (as in: Pa-trolling the world for the ruin of souls -wizard). Role-playing games have Golems of clay, stone, iron, wood, rope, straw, flesh and other materials. In Dungeons and Dragons, golems are giants 7-12 feet tall and are granted life by spells cast by a magician or priest. Legends.

Golem is in the Talmud and the Bible as a hapax legomenon (a single occurrence). Golem means an embryonic or incomplete substance. Psalms 138:16 (Protestant versions: 139:16): The Hebrew has the Psalmist David saying '"Thy eyes did see my imperfect being (Latin Vulgate: informem), and in thy book all shall be written: days shall be formed, and no one in them."' Informem means without form, unformed, shapeless, or to shape, mould, or fashion. The informem is an embryo, unformed shape or unfinished form before the spirit of life is breathed into it by the Creator. The book is Sefer Yetsirah: the Book of Formation, in which the secrets of creation are encrypted. The Midrash puts this verse in the mouth of Adam. In his "pre-formed" state, God showed Adam all of future human history.

The related verb: gaalam is in 2 Kings 2:8 in reference to the mantle of Elijah. '"And Elias took his mantle, and folded (Latin vulgate: involvit) it together, and struck the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, and they both passed over on dry ground."' Involvit means to roll, roll upon. Elijah wrapped, rolled or folded his mantle together. The noun Golem applies to anything folded up or undeveloped such as a fetus. Before our embryo has any distinct form, we are known by God.

Idel, Moshe. Golem: Jewish Magical and Mystical Traditions on the Artificial Anthropoid (SUNY Press 1990)

Kaplan, Aryeh. Sefer Yetzirah: In theory and practice.(Weiser, 1990)

:Gollum:

How to handle a Gollum: Sting with Divine Love.

An artifact from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy universe of Middle-earth, Sting was an Elvish knife made of mithril [myth-real] in Gondolin in the First Age. It was used as a sword by Bilbo, who found it in a troll-hoard together with Glamdring and Orcrist. Bilbo gave Sting to Frodo, just before the Fellowship of the Ring set off from Rivendell.
It has the magic ablilty to detect an orc presence near it. When this presence is felt, it glows blue, as it did before the fight in the mines of Moria when the orcs attacked the Fellowship.
Gollum is afraid of Sting (one meaning of which is a pang of conscience, another is to catch doing wrong -wizard). This fear helped Bilbo when confronting Gollum under the mountain in The Hobbit . It also helped Frodo tame Gollum (temporarily) in The Lord of the Rings. Source: Wikipedia

Tolkien's focus on mercy and grace, especially apparent in the kindness Frodo shows to Gollum, is Christ like, as is Gandalf's self-sacrifice in Moria (Mor = Death; Moria = land of the dead at law; prison -wizard) and his glorious return evoke Christ's death and resurrection.