Religion and worship in Kalderesh

Theology in Kalderesh is identical to that in Malanthea, which in turn is the same as that in Shaar and, indeed, elsewhere on the continent. The praxis, however, differs across nations, sometimes remarkably. Nubanon, for instance, was once a theocracy, which devolved into multiple ruling clerical houses. On the other hand, there was a strong divide between clergy and rulers in ancient Ursinica.

In Kalderesh, the custom is for the clergy to inform both the state (the royal ruler) and jurisprudence, but not to dictate to it. As set out in the Lex Libri, Kalderesh is a kingdom, and ultimate authority resides with the King.

Unlike in Malanthea, Kalderani churches own land and legally collect taxes from the inhabitants, as well as oversee to the welfare of these people.

Religious structure and hierarchy falls across two tiers in Kalderesh: the ecclesiastical ranks and the clerical ranks. The former spells out the abilities, duties and powers of those who have managerial, academic and administrative authority within the church. The latter codifies the spiritual development and degree of divine power wielded by an individual.

The ecclesiastic wields the power and authority of the Church as an organization; the clerical deploys divine power. Their relationship is similar to that between sages and magic users. The following table contrasts and compares these rankings.

Table: Formal class titles

level	ecclesiastic	cleric	level	ecclesiastic	cleric
1	Under Priest	Acolyte	16	Serif, 1st order	Arch Priest
2	Priest	Aspirant	17	Serif, 2nd order	Arch Priest
3	Prior or Abbot	Novitiate	18	Serif, 3rd order	Arch Priest
4	Officiant Priest, 1st order	Curate	19	Senior Serif	Arch Priest
5	Officiant Priest, 2nd order	Liturgist	20	Serif	Grand High Priest
6	Senior Officiant Priest	Under-Priest	21	Consul	Grand High Priest
7	Officiant Priest	Priest	22	Consul	Grand High Priest
8	Junior Captal	Officiant Priest	23	Consul	Grand High Priest
9	Captal	High Priest	24	Consul	Grand High Priest
10	Senior Captal	High Priest	25	Pater	Patriarch
11	Junior Rees	High Priest	26	Pater	Patriarch
12	Rees	High Priest	27	Pater	Patriarch
13	Senior Rees	High Priest	28	Pater	Patriarch
14	Junior Wotten	High Priest	29	Pater	Seriphage
15	Wotten	Arch Priest	30	Pater	Prelate

Within Kalderani theology, and as clearly set out during the first Conclave of Clerics (2036 AC) during which the Libri Septorum was collated, the Seven are equal in importance. They oversee and illustrate all facets of life, all of which are needed for a healthy, integrated existence. Thus, the guiding facets of the Seven are sought in all actions – child rearing, gardening, conducting business, preparing the family meal, and so on.

There is no struggle or competition between followers of different Gods on a theological or ecclesiastical level. They can and do differ on purely secular grounds, but this doesn’t occur outside the halls and temples of power, and beyond the dizzying heights of philosophical theology.

The everyday person worships the Seven because the Gods are manifest in the world. Merchants may debate taxation policy, disagreeing about what should be taxed, and how much. But there is no debate about the superiority of one God compared to another. Everyone worships – there are no sane atheists – but no one is zealous. Religion and the Seven are germane and deep-seated in our world view.

The values the Seven represent provide a template for thought, a framework within which to think of the world. These aspects directly and indirectly influence all walks of life. The default position of the average Kalderani is equal emphasis on the ideals the Seven engender.

It isn’t unusual for a reasonably well-educated person to know fragments from the Book of the Seven, such as:

“We play a role in history, we are not the shapers of history.
 The Seven play no role in history, they are the shapers of history.”

“Evil is ordinary and always human, and eats at our table and shares our bed.”

Most will be familiar with the Path of the Followers:

Don’t confront when you can walk away.
Don’t restrain when confrontation will do.
Don’t hurt when restraint is enough.
Don’t wound when hurting will do.
Don’t cripple when wounding is enough.
Don’t kill when crippling will do.
And do not destroy when killing will do.

Certain individuals, however, feel a personal calling to a particular God, a strong urge to devote themselves to furthering a specific work. Why this is, is unclear. But the outcome is that such an individual will devote more time and resources to a particular God’s interests, and either become a lay preacher, a monastic brother or sister, a member of the Ecclesiastical Order, or a fully-fledged Cleric. Whatever the specific religious pathway any one person is on, the broader context is always the ultimate harmony of the Seven.

Interviews

Interview with Horayce Neeps, Poet Laureate, Pai
“Who are the Gods, really?”, you ask. It isn’t complicated. The Seven are the Gods, and the Gods are the Seven. They existed before time and space and created the Cosmos and everything within it. They made the world, its living things, and its inanimate things. After their nature, the living things did as they would, and the inanimate things behaved according to their qualities.
"Some of the creations asked for the help and advice of the Gods, others just yearned for it, and yet others tried to be as independent and headstrong as only a child can be. Some grew up, others became childish old fools. This is the way with all parents and children. All a parent can do is provide the nourishing truth in youth, and trust that in the fullness of time, it was enough. And to quote an ancient writer: “Enough is a feast”."

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Interview with Dr. Alirez Carcola, External Tutor, Department of Practical Philosophy, Division of Metaphysical Philosophy, University of Pai
In our department at the University, we concentrate on the ethics of magic, technology, and theology, as applied to the real world. For instance, we address questions such as: “Just because we CAN Resurrect a person, does that mean we SHOULD?”

In my division, however, we focus on theology and metaphysics. The most curious cases we consider relate to atheism and neotheism. The former is the belief that no Gods exist. The latter is the belief that other Gods exist. Despite their apparent polar contradictory natures, we will show that they follow identical thought patterns. To phrase it crudely, “no gods” is the same as “infinite number of gods”. From a logical perspective, both of these are tenable theses. There could be zero, one, two, three, …, seven, …, ad infinitum, Gods.

There are additional theses that should be considered, in order to be complete. These have been reviewed by Broglie (Quarterly Bulletin of the Malanthean House of Philosophy, volume 118, 4222) who found them to be either wholly irrational or marginally solipsistic. The only thesis that might warrant comment is Broglie’s “Minds in Mugs” scenario, in which reality does not exist in a material, externally-verifiable sense and that we are merely figments of the imagination of some supra-being or beings. This category of thesis is not tenable, because a statement that is put forward as a true premise also needs to be provable, and “Minds in a Mug” is, by definition, not provable, since anything offered as proof could be included in a larger model (a bigger mug, if you will) within which that proof is also a figment. It is perhaps instructive to recall that Broglie received his early training at a Magic User Guild, where he specialized as an Illusionist, before turning to the study of pure metaphysics. With this barren thesis out of the way, we turn our attention to the dual hypotheses of atheism (no Gods exist) and neotheism (there are more Gods than the Seven). 

Previous scholars have approached these ideas from different perspectives, treating them as separate concepts to unpack. However, we propose here that they are both false, for the same reasons. There are two objections that maybe be raised against this pair, either of which render them false.

The most straight-forward is based on empiricism: repeated observations, by many observers, across many time spans. It is not only the congruence of experiences of the many, but also the nature of the experiences. These experiences and observations are not mysterious and ambiguous – they are public and obvious. The Gods are manifest in the same way that the King, the Plains of Nubanon, the market where you buy bread, and the nose on your face, are manifest.

In addition to these public faces of the Seven, are the testimony of the experts. All clerics, priests, paladins, and druids, have publically testified that the Seven are the Gods, and that the Gods are the Seven. Most significantly, followers of D’Aad, the God of Justice, have testified to this truth, spoken in the voice of D’Aad. Famous manifestations of D’Aad on Tem have reaffirmed the truth of D’Aad, and of the Seven. It is impossible, in the face of God, to deny God.

A second, perhaps more interesting, approach, is to consider the explanations for why a mortal being would believe in either atheism or neotheism. What follows is a typology of non-standard theism, in other words, the reasons why a person may believe either that the Gods do not exist, or that there are more (or less) than the Seven. The typology recognizes two broad dimensions: intrinsic to the believer, and extrinsic to the believer.

Factors Intrinsic to the Believer

1. The believer suffers from insanity. Some people have a mental fragility or psychosis, which renders their testimony unreliable.

2. The believer follows a conspiracy theory. While not seriously mentally damaged to the point of insanity, the person may be of the opinion that there is “secret knowledge” known only to the select few – and that they are one of these special few. This is indicative of some non-ideal mental state or process but is not a sign of pathology. It is usually accompanied by incomplete information (see point 4 below).

3. The believer is sincere in their actions and intentions, but have made a reasoning/philosophical error. A mistake can be corrected, but this can sometimes be challenging to do because the person may be very defensive and not wish to admit having erred.

4. The believer is sincere in their actions and intentions, is not making a reasoning/philosophical error, but lacks information. It is in principle possible that a very isolated person, or a very young individual, may not have witnessed the Gods yet. Such a person, upon encountering a cleric performing a “miracle”, may logically conclude that clerics are just wizards casting spells. Since both mages and priests use magic, it is easy for the ignorant to confuse the two.

Factors Extrinsic to the Believer

5.The believer is a victim. Wrong belief can happen if the victim is  under some magical influence (accidental or otherwise), is subject to a Curse, or has been infected by a malicious agent possessing the believer.

6. The believer has been duped. A charlatan is actively misleading the individual, with or without the use of magic, usually as part of a covert scheme to gain power, wealth, or both. Intrinsic factors of the individual are often leveraged to enhance this deception. For instance, the manipulative charlatan may claim secret knowledge that dragons or demons are real, and that the believer has been selected for greatness.

7. The believer has witnessed a real but extremely rare or disputed event, and has over-interpreted the experience. It is theoretically possible, within the Janee theological framework, that a devout follower may be granted sainthood, exceptional abilities, demi-god like status, or ascent to immortality. A naïve observation of such an event could be misconstrued.

8. The believer is being divinely misled. This scenario is purely theoretical and is included here only for logical completeness. Technically, any of the Seven have the ability to mislead an individual, but as we pointed out at the beginning of this discussion, just because something CAN be done does not mean it SHOULD be done. Actions are driven by both ability and motive, and it is obviously not within the nature of the Seven to be malicious.