Abstract. The following paper analyzes how fantasy literature addresses the topic of religion. The discussion of the genre's dependence on myths, supported by Mircea Eliade's claims about the sacred and profane spheres of human life, offers an answer to the questions why religion is one of the most prominent themes in fantasy fiction. The analysis of a selected group of fantasy novels (the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, C. S. Lewis, Guy Gavriel Kay, Celia S. Friedman, Jack Vance, Poul Anderson, Philip Pullman, Dave Duncan, George R. R. Martin, and Brandon Sanderson) presents various ways in which a fantasy narrative may approach religious themes: by inventing secondary religions that enrich the imaginary realm, by reworking particular religious themes and turning them into an axis of the narrative, and by supporting, promoting, or criticizing a certain faith through the means of fantasy fiction.Keywords: fantasy literature, religion, secondary religion.The debate on the relationship between fantasy literature and religion has greatly developed after the immense popularity (and box-office success) of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series (Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code also significantly added to the growing controversy, but since Brown's novel is not a pure fantasy narrative -perhaps only the author's fantastic perspective on certain religious dogmas -it will not be included in this article). Suddenly, when the entire world was watching the screen version of Tolkien's trilogy and children around the globe were Potter-fans, people realized how greatly a work of fantasy can capture human imagination and this recognition was followed by general questions about the fantasy genre. Several of those questions were and are concerned with the spiritual and religious qualities of fantasy narratives. Readers and viewers of all backgrounds (people of different faiths, religious authorities, atheists, even those who consider themselves neo-pagans, as well as scholars and academics) expressed their thoughts and concerns about the transcendent nature of fantasy literature. Are books containing magic, witches, demons and generally "the supernatural" suitable for religious (Christian) people who fear that such works might lead them and their children to the occult? Do works of fantasy really possess the power to waver people's faith or lure them to the occult? Where is God in the fantasy worlds? -if there is any God at all. What values are promoted by fantasy novels? The fact that people are raising such questions and have become so involved in the discussion is evidence of fantasy literature's ability to transgress the borders of imagination and touch upon issues that people consider important, in this case religion and spiritual life.Of course, The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter have become the center of the debate, but the treatment of these two works has been remarkably different. In the case of Tolkien's trilogy, most people generally agree that despite the lack of God's d...