Post by Lucius on Oct 9, 2007 20:25:55 GMT -5
The Holy Church
The Holy Church, or as the priests of this certain religion call it, 'the True Faith' came to Manzanare across the Great Ocean, from the Empire of Nehekhara beyond it, around five centuries ago. It first arrived to the city-state of Manzanare, which became the True Faith's capital in the west - and from there it has ever since spread the word of True Faith, with the acceptance of the Kings and later the Stewards - for all the rulers of Manzanare have been known as faithful followers of the word of the True Faith.
As the religion that the Kings and Stewards have always followed, the Holy Church has significant power in both spiritual and mundane world - from each town that there is a church of True Faith the priests gain a certain percentage of the income of every farmer and merchant - these taxes are known, by some, as "showing your true faith" - most of those who say so are of the Old Blood.
What is the most notable about the True Faith is that it is aggressive towards other faiths, unlike the Old Blood or hathian religion - they believe that they are the only true religion that there is, and that the other religions are simply blasphemy. Due to this belief, priests of Holy Church have been responsible for many acts, such as burning old, sacred groves of the Old Blood, as well as supporting those who are known as Witch Hunters.
The leader of Holy Church in the Kingdom of Manzanare is known as the Archbishop of Manzanare, and he is the one who holds the mass in the Cathedral of Manzanare.
The Old Blood
Only little is known of the belief of the Old Gods, or the Old Blood as they are more commonly known, as a result of the persecutions of the Holy Church.
Some of the Old Gods are still well known - Sathrak, lord of the Nine Hells, who has become the image of the Darkness in the True Faith in West, for example - and their names are most commonly used by the old nursemaids and mothers to keep their children in order. To the public the Old Blood seems distant and hard to comprehend, due to the principles and beliefs of the Holy Church being heavily rooted in their minds, but some bloodlines have maintained their beliefs of the Old Blood through centuries.
Due to being always persecuted by the Witch Hunters and priests of the Holy Church, and even lynchings of the angry mobs, the Old Blood have grown secretive in their habits and have a sophisticated web of information - everyone always knows someone who knows someone, and in that way the information travels surprisingly fast from one corner of the Kingdom of Manzanare to another - which is most likely the cause for the fast gathering of the Old Blood rebels in the Drakkius Forest.
For some reason the Old Blood have a deep faith in their gods, deeper than one of the True Faith - there are numerous tales about how they declined to save themselves from the hands of an angry mob just by bowing to the picture of the True God, as the True Faith calls their own god, or by just claiming that they weren't of the Old Blood. Some believe that they couldn't do so even if they wished.
Some priests of the True Faith claim the Old Blood to participate dark magics, and in events such as if complete herds die of some unknown plague the blame goes often on the Old Blood.
Hathian Faith
Hathian Faith is quite bizarre in the eyes of those who come from the southern lands, for their mythology is odd and long - one couldn't hear all the tales of Hathian mythology in one night around a fireplace, it is said - and their gods seem to be odd, dangerous and strange for those who come from southern lands.
But still, in the Duchy of Hess most of the people of Hess still believe in these Gods and the Holy Church has only a small foothold in Hess - majority of the hessians despises the Holy Church and only few have adapted the new faith from the south.
Due to this fact - the believers of the Holy Church being only a minority in the north - persecutions haven't been able to take place in Hess, and those of the priests who have tried to declare the holy men of the Hathian Faith to be witches or other blasphemous participaters of dark magics have either been forced to flee Hess nor have been killed by angry mobs.
It is unsure whether Duke Lucius von Hess has adapted the Hathian Faith nor the True Faith, which was the religion in which his mother belonged to - it is said that the religion of his father runs thicker in his veins, and he has been seen to pray on the altar of God of War along with his men.
The Holy Church, or as the priests of this certain religion call it, 'the True Faith' came to Manzanare across the Great Ocean, from the Empire of Nehekhara beyond it, around five centuries ago. It first arrived to the city-state of Manzanare, which became the True Faith's capital in the west - and from there it has ever since spread the word of True Faith, with the acceptance of the Kings and later the Stewards - for all the rulers of Manzanare have been known as faithful followers of the word of the True Faith.
As the religion that the Kings and Stewards have always followed, the Holy Church has significant power in both spiritual and mundane world - from each town that there is a church of True Faith the priests gain a certain percentage of the income of every farmer and merchant - these taxes are known, by some, as "showing your true faith" - most of those who say so are of the Old Blood.
What is the most notable about the True Faith is that it is aggressive towards other faiths, unlike the Old Blood or hathian religion - they believe that they are the only true religion that there is, and that the other religions are simply blasphemy. Due to this belief, priests of Holy Church have been responsible for many acts, such as burning old, sacred groves of the Old Blood, as well as supporting those who are known as Witch Hunters.
The leader of Holy Church in the Kingdom of Manzanare is known as the Archbishop of Manzanare, and he is the one who holds the mass in the Cathedral of Manzanare.
The Old Blood
Only little is known of the belief of the Old Gods, or the Old Blood as they are more commonly known, as a result of the persecutions of the Holy Church.
Some of the Old Gods are still well known - Sathrak, lord of the Nine Hells, who has become the image of the Darkness in the True Faith in West, for example - and their names are most commonly used by the old nursemaids and mothers to keep their children in order. To the public the Old Blood seems distant and hard to comprehend, due to the principles and beliefs of the Holy Church being heavily rooted in their minds, but some bloodlines have maintained their beliefs of the Old Blood through centuries.
Due to being always persecuted by the Witch Hunters and priests of the Holy Church, and even lynchings of the angry mobs, the Old Blood have grown secretive in their habits and have a sophisticated web of information - everyone always knows someone who knows someone, and in that way the information travels surprisingly fast from one corner of the Kingdom of Manzanare to another - which is most likely the cause for the fast gathering of the Old Blood rebels in the Drakkius Forest.
For some reason the Old Blood have a deep faith in their gods, deeper than one of the True Faith - there are numerous tales about how they declined to save themselves from the hands of an angry mob just by bowing to the picture of the True God, as the True Faith calls their own god, or by just claiming that they weren't of the Old Blood. Some believe that they couldn't do so even if they wished.
Some priests of the True Faith claim the Old Blood to participate dark magics, and in events such as if complete herds die of some unknown plague the blame goes often on the Old Blood.
Hathian Faith
Hathian Faith is quite bizarre in the eyes of those who come from the southern lands, for their mythology is odd and long - one couldn't hear all the tales of Hathian mythology in one night around a fireplace, it is said - and their gods seem to be odd, dangerous and strange for those who come from southern lands.
But still, in the Duchy of Hess most of the people of Hess still believe in these Gods and the Holy Church has only a small foothold in Hess - majority of the hessians despises the Holy Church and only few have adapted the new faith from the south.
Due to this fact - the believers of the Holy Church being only a minority in the north - persecutions haven't been able to take place in Hess, and those of the priests who have tried to declare the holy men of the Hathian Faith to be witches or other blasphemous participaters of dark magics have either been forced to flee Hess nor have been killed by angry mobs.
It is unsure whether Duke Lucius von Hess has adapted the Hathian Faith nor the True Faith, which was the religion in which his mother belonged to - it is said that the religion of his father runs thicker in his veins, and he has been seen to pray on the altar of God of War along with his men.
