Book Fourth

[LoLzboi 661]

Book Fourth

Concerning Religion

 

Saint Jude of Cyranium giving a sermon to the Orcs, before their mass conversion

 

Penned By High Pontiff Siegmund I

 

1st of Owyn’s Light, 1694

 

 

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Throughout my thoughts upon the false gods, GOD, and Faith, I find myself drawing nearer to the question that many have sought to answer for themselves, if not to be fed the answer by their spiritual leaders then, through their own reasoning.

 

As such, I shall build upon my thoughts of Faith in the most recognised institutions across all peoples and cultures, the very religions that espouse to be the true religion, or perhaps the many religions that espouse to be the one true multi-faced religion. Yet, I have little time to delve into each separately, and in doing so would most assuredly bore some, and anger others, so I shall restrict myself to simplistic examples of them.

 

Now, for those who read on to find offense as most assuredly some have in my previous works, I extend a hand to you. For I wish not to confront, nor demean, but to shed light upon areas most dark and murky, revealing to us some modicum of understanding.

 

 

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Upon the question of the necessity of Religion

 

From the darkness of the past, the atrocities, the glories, the mediocre, we look back upon the world we once knew from that which we now know, and ask ourselves as to where we shall go forth into? This has been the recycled occurrence across all peoples, and shall continue across all peoples until the end of time.

 

Yet, what do we look back in hopes of finding? Perhaps the history of great wars, the development of art, great musical composers, legends in tales, the glory of a nation, or the humble life of our grandfather, or grandmother. From these we take many lessons, and we look upon these as cautionary stories of error, or glorious stories of victory.

 

But yet there is one thing that has united all of these things for countless centuries, one thing that binds these peoples together not by the colour of their hair, nor the wealth they have accumulated. It is not the land upon which they stand, for many have bled upon it, broke it, and rebuilt it in their image, nor is it the cultures by which they identify themselves from one another, it is the Faith that binds them together, straddles all divides, and assures them of hope in the most terrible of times, and reminds them of humility in the most blessed of times.

 

It is Faith, kept pure of corruptions, and miscarriages, and envious deeds. Their lives revolving around it, whether they embrace it, or deny it, or reject it they are defined by it, and through this definement we see the eternal presence of it.

From this, then, we know of Faith through our fathers, forefathers, mothers, daughters, sons, and communities. All bound upon its teachings and guided by its hand through the spiritual world.

But then why are we bound so deeply to it? What separates it from all other aspects of our lives, yet allows it to permeate throughout them thoroughly?

 

It is the fundamental of our very beings, the unquestionable, the unalienable, the rock from which our communities, our families, and ourselves are built upon. Faith is the stalwart defender of all we have known, now know, and will know, with itself tethered to us through both tradition and Religion, the institutions from which exude the judgements of GOD passed down to us through the ages, and through the many faces of His servants.

And so, the institutions of tradition and Religion is the absolute way in which we descendants connect ourselves to our forefathers, Malin, Urguan, Krug, Horen, and from them to the first man and woman, and ultimately GOD Himself, with all the lessons, teachings, guidance, and otherwise offerings they had received at His behest until the date in which I write this sentence.

 

Thusly, tradition combined with Religion was, and is, and will be the absolute necessity of we, the descendants of GOD, forevermore upon this plain, and within the Skies themselves.

 

Upon the question of corruption in Religion

 

Yet, there are those who would point to any given Religion and decry it, for they point to the individuals who espouse it, to the nation that upholds it, to the race that abides by it, and fundamentally ignore that which it is, the foundations it is built upon, and the teachings it professes to be true and unaltered.

 

They point to the knot in the tree and state with great confidence within themselves that, due to the existence of an imperfection, the whole of the tree must be weak, and frail, and ready to collapse, and must be taken down, chopped apart, removed, refined, and remade by our hands, instead of removing the knot of the tree so that it might mend and bear bark once more. These same would say that, the existence of a cut upon the hand necessitates the removal of the arm, for it has been utterly ruined by that damage, while they neglect that the removal of the arm is more detrimental to the wholeness of the person.

 

Yet, such is the case with those who attack Religion for the conduct or beliefs of its individual members or institutions. For although they might serve the Religion, they too are but mortal and may find themselves straying apart from Faith as any mortal being might do. But because they fall astray, it does not equate to them sullying the Religion they serve, nor corrupt the Faith they hold, for to corrupt the Faith or sully the Religion requires a much more sinister devotion than the lack of abidance by its principles with which they might be guided back to goodness should they be shown their error.

 

So then, we might look upon those that fall astray of Religion and Faith as we do a lost child, for in their journey they have lost the sight of their mother and call out, and wail, and cause commotion, but they have not lost the love for their mother, and cease to fuss when she finds them once more.

 

Then what constitutes corruption in religion, if it is not the individual members? What can be shown to be a falseness from GOD's word, a changing of His teaching handed down as truth, and ultimately a corruption in His Faith?

 

Upon the question of what is meant by Religion

 

To find that which it is, we might then utilize the tool of definement for clarification.

 

First, a Religion is defined by its bedrock foundation in a Deity or Deities, for without a Deity or Deities does it not but become a cult of personality, or worship of a mortal man or woman equal to that of worship to the Deities? If it has no Deity or Deities, can it even be referred to as a Religion, and not simply a cultural custom? And of this Deity or Deities, as previously explored in my first work, can they be held as the Creator of creation and not simply a part of creation?

 

Second, all Religions that hold high a Deity or Deities build upon that foundation with the teachings of that Diety or Deities. For without harmonious word to guide, or writings to hold how then can any Religion be formed? And further, if none of these exist, how can the Deity or Deities even be known to exist, or if they showed themselves and yet did not give any of these then how can the Deity or Deities be worthy of worship if they have no care for us as we do them, and violate that which we found to be true concerning God?

 

Third, all Religions are molded upon this foundation from the teachings they have received. For if they do not mold themselves to the teachings, and then work to abide by them, how then might they be a Religion defined and not be but the likes of a cherry picker who takes only the best fruit to market, or none at all?

 

Fourth, all Religions have succession amongst their spiritual leaders. If there is no succession, then how can it be known that the teachings they hold are truly those handed down and not but the works of a mortal who wishes to bend the will of all to their thought of mind by carrying themselves as equal to they? If there is no succession, how can the Religion draw itself back to the four brothers, from which we all came from, the father and mother, and ultimately GOD Himself as we found to be true?

 

All of these must exist in turn and as layered as they are, for if the teachings come before the Deity, then can one trust they are from them? If the Religion comes before the teachings, can one then trust they are giving truthful teachings of the Deity? If succession is lost, can one yet draw themselves to Deity and their teachings? If there is no Deity or Deities, as some espouse, then how can there be teachings, and Religion, and succession of these at all?

 

Upon the question of false Religions

 

With these we turn ourselves to the multitude of Religions that grace this earth on which we stand, and from which espouse all manners of Gods, teachings, Religions, and successions. For how can there be so many across the world giving so many contradictory statements upon originalities, if all are true? How can there be endless numbers of Deities all claiming creation of their own making, through distinct and disunified chorus? How can there be new and old Gods, some of which have only recently been worshipped, while others have existed for millenia, with all being true?

 

The Elves have their own Gods, the Dwarves the same, the Orcs, and Men alike to these too. Yet, from this plethora might we take examples of each, to give clarity to the thought of what is false, how it is false, why it is false, and finally how this falsehood has brought not but destruction the likes of which Saul wrought on Horen's tribe.

 

Upon the question of falsity within Elvenkind

 

So let us begin with the Aspects, Cerridwen, and Cernunnos, as taught by the Druids and Worshippers of they, are thought to be the ultimate Gods within Elvenkind, their dominion stalwart. Thus the Elves have worshipped them for centuries, yet what are they exactly?

 

In brief, Cerridwen, said to represent fertility, the cycle of life, and the harvest, concerns itself with the growing of the natural world, and its ultimate reaping end.

 

Cernunnos, said to represent the hunt, and general predation, concerns itself with violent acts and revels in death, whether it be from necessity of an animal to eat or an elf to cause plunder it seems.

 

From these, we immediately see that which cannot be true of these Gods. Neither is the Creator for neither concerns themselves with anything but the natural world and Elvenkind. Thus, how is it possible for these to be worshipped the same as the Creator, with the Druids and Worshippers rejecting wholly the truth of the Creator through their worship of these, if they cannot be the Creator and thus the true GOD? So then these must be not but caretakers of the Creators creation, mistaken for himself at best, taken to replace the Creator for the sourness Elvenkind bears at the thought of Him at worst.

 

And to what teachings do these Druids point to to hold high their religion? For they speak and speak upon the laws that govern all Elvenkind, yet their great and omnipotent Gods could not have the power, foresight, or ability to codify these laws into written form? Or, perhaps, these laws were spoken to the Druids, yet for lust for their own authority they did not write them down to bolster their own position within Elven society. But if that is true, then how is it possible that these words passed down so many centuries without alteration, abbreviation, addition, or subtraction, at the hands of a lazy teacher, or one not capable of full explanation? And further, how then might we be able to tell if change has occurred within the word and law if there is not to compare it to? Perhaps the Druids seek only to protect their authority, or perhaps they do truly pass on the word, but how might we distinguish between the two?

 

And from these laws, what governs the conduct of the Druids, or all Elves for that matter? Is it the simple nay or yay saying of one particular Druid upon one particular question? Perhaps they hold council and all give their guidance, or worse yet give their guidance only to be forced to repeat it for they lack the will to write down the laws and make them available easily. And what of the Druids that reject these teachings and make known changes in them? Are they brought to reasoning through the words of a Druid solely, or a council of Druids? Do the Druids but speak and speak on the error for they have naught to list but their own recollections of these laws? Worse still, perhaps the Druids live in absolute of the laws passed to them by their Aspects, does this mean each Elf must reside within a Grotto doing not but speaking words and laying with one another for centuries?

 

And what of these teachers, as before their teachings may be incomplete, changed, or otherwise revised to fit their personal preference upon the ideas or what they remember from their own learning, for do they trace themselves to the first Elves that heard from the Aspects, or do they continuously hear from them and must remember each word spoken for a quill is but too unworthy of conveying them to parchment? And from the Aspects that cannot be the Creator, how can these words spoken be known to be true and not the fancies of a higher creation to themselves? Perhaps these Aspects play with their bumbling wards, seeking never ending praise for the nothing they provide. For surely out of love these Aspects would at least care for these peoples, yet they have permitted them to be subjugated beneath great races, brutalized and slaughtered in masses, oppressed and repressed over centuries, and ultimately must lie to them of whatever afterlife they say exists as they have lied about their love. For they take more care in the plants and the lesser animals than these people.

 

Upon the question of falsity within Dwarvenkind

 

Unlike the Elves who have two Gods, the Dwarves hold many Gods within them. A great Pantheon helmed by one they call Yemekar, their Creator, and thusly the one from which all lesser Gods pay homage to. Yet, he is perhaps the most outwardly exclusive God in known existence, plainly stating that he is Creator over Dwarvenkind and solely Dwarvenkind;

 

“Yemekar is the father and creator of the dwarven race.”

- The Dwarven Religions: Yemekar, The Maker

 

So openly the High Prelates of the Ar Yemarin Anaros say these words it puts the efforts of writing upon them to utter uselessness when discussing if he is the true Creator. For he does not claim to be the creator of all, and in the truth of that there is honour to be found. But even as it is, why do the Dwarves then not worship the one that is the Creator of all if not but for their own self indulgence at the thought of being the perfect creatures, born from a God separate from all others, then for what other purpose do they resign themselves to he that claims creation over them? Perhaps it is the same as those held by the Elves, that of sourness towards the true Creator of all. And the same might be said of the Pantheon that surrounds Yemekar, for each devotes themselves to an aspect of the Dwarvenkind yet none ventures beyond,  as they too declare themselves Creators, yet not as grand as that of Yemekar.

 

The most interesting aspect, set aside from the Pantheon, is that the Ar Yemarin Anaros do in fact carry traditions, teachings, and laws down from Yemekar. This being interesting in that, as admitted by themselves within the Third Holy Mandate, the Ar Yemarin Anaros had dwindled to the point that it was necessary for High King Garrond Frostbeard to appoint a High Prelate from nothing, for even the Prelate Council had fallen to abandon. And from this appointment came a great flurry of works, such as the Prelates of Yemekar, which have yet to be completed. So then, from this, how might a High Prelate, a Council, and the Religion of Ar Yemarin Anaros then be seen as the continuation of itself if it ceased to exist for a period of time? Perhaps within this lack of teachers some aspects of the Faith were lost, perhaps some aspects changed from recollection, perhaps some left aside, perhaps some created from nothing, who is to tell if there are none who were capable of carrying on the teaching? For if the Council had fallen to ruin, then surely there were none beneath that Council that still practiced the Religion absolutely, and thus an appointment to the High Prelates station in hopes of reviving a dead Religion placed it in the hands of a potential corrupter from which any published works regarding the Religion should be questioned for accuracy of their content. But then who is left to question its accuracy?

 

To this the Ar Yemarin Anaros point to the belief their traditions are passed down through craftsmanship, trade, and everyday works, and so long as the trade is plied the truth of Yemekar shall remain. Yet, what this does not account for is the gradual adjustment and refinement of these things, for a craftsman that works in the ways of the ancients produces inferior quality to that of what we produce now, much the same as the younger painter is much worse a painter than to himself that is older who has adjusted his painting. And what of those craftsmen who do poor work, or those uncaring enough to improve, or those that abbreviate or lengthen their processes to achieve a better outcome? To this, it is plain to see that perhaps some of the Faith is kept, but it is not absolute. For if the Faith was capable of being passed this way, then what need is there in the Ar Yemarin Anaros at all, for the people of Yemekar are already being guided through their own trades. Here, lays the great falsity that lays open to those who look, for in that same work, that being of the Third Holy Mandate, it is specifically said that;

 

“Since the landing of our people on these lands our religious leaders have been mostly absent, with no one stepping up to take the official mantle of High Prelate except Thoak of Clan Goldhand for a brief period of time during Hamnil Frostbeard’s reign. Since then all dwedmar have suffered from a lack of knowledge in the ways of the Brathmordakin and a general decline of culture has taken place as a result.” - THE THIRD HOLY MANDATE

 

And so, there is ultimately no traditions, teachings, or unaltered Faith that can be handed down to the descendants of Urguan from Yemekar through craftsmanship, trade, or everyday works as described in that same work from which this premise was born from;

 

“Due to the common occurrence of traditions being contorted through misconceptions, the Prelates of the Brathmordakin are responsible for leading, and ensuring that their respectable clergy does not succumb to chaos, and heresy” - AR YEMARIN ANAROS: CLERGY OF THE HOLY TRUTH

 

And with the aforementioned lack of clergy to keep the traditions, and teachings from contortion of misconception, it only follows that this new clergy that has been appointed due to the absence of itself can surely not be held to be a clergy not ripe with contortions of the Faith through misconceptions itself. Thusly, their own Faith is undone by their own laxness in application, and from this the other devices have fallen away to leave but a shell of what it was. And so the Dwarves have been led astray both by a false God, and their failure to uphold what beliefs they had, reducing themselves to the perpetual oblivion they shall find once they pass on, for nothing Yemekar has promised might be true now for their lack of Faith has taken it from them.

 

Upon the question of falsity within the Orcishkind

 

Seperate to these others are the Orcs who host great worship to their ancestor Krug, from which they recognise their descent from, and a great plethora of Gods that even the Dwarves are placed to shame for their paltry number in comparison to those of these folk. From these many Gods, none stands above another in a most easily discernible sense, for it seems all the Gods of the Orcs stand alone over their own realm and answer to no other. Yet from these, Krug stands above all in his strength, even in death. And so, as perhaps akin to that of the Dwarves Yemekar, the Gods of the Orcs have not claimed creation over all, but only parts of it to which they devote themselves to in the same regards as their worshippers devote themselves to the God of a particular part. Even Krug, as authoritative and powerful as he seems to be, is admitted to being the first of the Shamans, his power being derived from others as all Shamans are bound to. So in this regard it is evident that, although as flamboyant and energetic as these Gods do tend to be, these Gods are not the Creator.

 

Yet, the line of Shamans that guide the horde through the rituals needed to gain favour of one God or another remains an unbroken chain, each having been taught by another, with their origination being Krug, and so in some sense the Orcs are not as barbarous as many of the other descendants would attest. For without the Shamans, the knowledge of Ritual would be lost, and without Ritual, the Gods of the Orcs would remain mute to their devoted worshippers.

Yet, to what do these Gods speak upon to the throngs of these tusked men? What great wisdom might be garnered from them? For, in their seemingly endless number, the Orcish Gods in all their Ritualistic behaviour still stumble upon the thought of a creed for themselves. What teachings do the Gods pass down but the indulgence of slaughter that they find so necessary to be conversed with, and from this slaughter a fleeting benefit to not all Orcs, but of a select few or one, with only they garnering abilities or knowledge even with these being degrees below that of a Shaman. So select are these gifts, that the very totems erected in observance of these Ritualistic needs are built by the hands of the Orc that shall receive them, so then we cannot say these are truly teachings for they are not retained upon the masses by the Shamans who profess to know of the Gods so well, or by the general populace of Orcish peoples.

 

So by what then do the Orcish peoples observe the wants of their Gods if not by the mindless and endless Ritualistic slaughter of innocents, for they sacrifice other descendants and themselves, unless that is the sole of the purpose of these Rituals. If that is the case, then are these not Gods but twisted and malignant spirits sent by Iblees to complete the utter corruption of the Orcish peoples for all time? In digressing upon this thought, it is plain to see that the Orcs embrace falsity not in the form of Religion, for what one might call their Faith in the Gods, but in the very Gods, or to be specific, the spirits, from which they obtain the corrupting energies of the impure and boast of them as a great gift to be sought.

 

Thusly, although the Orcs carry on the traditions of their Gods as guided to do so by the Shamans who hold a succession, no teachings of these Gods can be, or are abided by in unison with another, for no universal creed of the Gods teachings exists making such demonstrations impossible, especially when devotion to one God is favoured over devotions to many. And further, what teaching does exist exudes the horrific nature that is bloodlust which is not a mark of the Creator, for the Creator does not wish upon His own creation undue punishments, but the mark of Iblees. So then, the Orcish peoples worship, in their totality, that which is not God, the Void, and from it pull what they can, that being corruption of themselves through what they call gifts, into this plain in defiance of the Creator. Their worship being the destruction of all things good, and the hedonistic embrace of things other to this world.

 

Upon the question of falsity within Mankind

 

Unique to the others, stand the men and women of Humanity, their teeming masses sprawling across all the world. Within them, many languages, and cultures, which birth many false Religions. For we might speak then upon the men and women of the Red Faith, who espouse the All-Father to be the true God over us all, and Creator of all for one such belief. Yet, separate to the Elves who draw themselves to Malin, Dwarves who draw themselves to Urguan, and Orcs who draw themselves to Krug, who do these men draw themselves to but Thoromor Ruric who lived about the year thirteen hundred, and was the first to hear of this God not but over a millenia after all the other descendants heard of theirs. So then, we know that whatever this God might be, he cannot then be the Creator for he did not show himself to Horen in the time he lived, nor Malin, nor Urguan, nor Krug for no history leading to that of the year thirteen hundred records any being known as the All-Father. And so, if he cannot be the Creator out of simply drawing of a line to the four brothers, and the first man and woman, then how can any teachings of his be true and worthy? For Malin, Urguan, Krug, and Horen all heard of teachings from GOD, knew the first man and woman as father and mother, and passed down their teachings to their tribe and children all before this original prophet was born. So then, was the All-Father but a creation of the Creator after over a millenia, with his purpose being that of shining a light to one mortal man as was recorded in the first documents of this Faith?

 

And of the teachings of this God, which were passed to Thoromir Ruric through some method unknown for the light that proved this Gods existence in Thoromir’s eyes did not speak, remake that which is known by all the descendants, with such passages from those who seek to become professors of this Faith espousing;

 

“All beings that are man or are not man were created from man. They were created from man who’s sin and lack of devotion twisted their bodies, souls, and minds into what they are now. Forever cursed with a body and faith that forces them away from the All-Father and his followers.”

- ON THE CREATION OF BEINGS, Author Unknown

 

To great chorus. For man is the progenitor of himself through some method, and all others, those being of the descendants, being made from man as well. Perhaps the pupil of the Keepers did not fully grasp that which they believe, perhaps he reports exactly what they believe, in both it draws the question of who, or whom they believe this man to be? Is it but one individual, with themselves holding Horen above his brothers, or many individuals, with themselves holding Horens tribe above the tribes of Malin, Urguan, and Krug? And in this same passage from this same pupil it declares that the Elves of Malin come from senseless slaughter, the Dwarves of Urguan come from greed, and the Goblins, not even those of the Orcs, of Krug come from sin in general, and had the Men of Horen not sinned these other races would not exist today.

Further, another pupil describes the state from which all descendants come as;

 

“As the scrolls tell us, menfolk came from what some perceive to be clay body’s with souls of fire.”

- ON LIFE, Magnus Ironwood

 

A perception of the scrolls, not even the words themselves. So then, to take the perception of that of the teacher of this pupil, the Creator did not create the first man or woman but, or rather, husks of clay filled with fire, which they take to be souls, and called them creatures. If this was the case, then the great Elven Magi could equal GOD in power, for they bring to life beings made of stone, metal, and clay as described with their powers with somewhat regular efficiency. This pupil goes on to muse upon the thought that these bodies were not ready to take the land which the All-Father has created, if this was true, then why would he give them souls to bring them to that of life like we currently hold?

And the last of these pupils I will delve to present, is that of one who discusses salvation;

 

“We are told as Arthas has written, that men and women of the All Father will have our Salvation. Our doom will come, but then a man born of human flesh blessed by the Dawnlord will come to us. He will ignite the pyre of the mortal soul.” - ON THE HOPE OF MAN, Harry Ragnarson

 

From this, then, we must take that only those of Man might enjoy salvation through the lighting of the mortal soul. Yet, if the souls are said to be of fire then how might they be ignited? Is this perhaps a contradiction amongst teachers of these pupils, for should they accurately portray the Faith then the teachings it abides by are false, yet if they make error in their explanation then what teaching might be passed to the next generation of Keepers if these become their teachers?

 

So then, the Red Faith shows plainly the contradictions and false beliefs openly upheld by themselves. For their God is not that of the Creator for he came after the first of creations, his teachings are flawed and corrupt from the contradictions found in his own scrolls, the Faith is then further corrupted by compounding errors, or by virtue of the teachings being corrupt, and succession to the first man and woman of these teachings is broken, for they came thirteen hundred years after the first man and woman.

 

Upon the question of the summation of false Religions

 

And so, we find that these Gods, and those not mentioned, are all equally false, their teachings therefore being incomplete and spontaneously inspired by the will of mortal or spirit hand. Thusly, any Religion formed upon them is, by virtue of the foundations it is built upon, false, with any succession after that being entirely irrelevant for if the foundations it is built upon are rotten, twisted, and infirm, how can any build a grand and glorious house to GOD upon them without itself becoming rotten, twisted, and infirm as well?

 

With this in mind, we then find ourselves to understand further the necessity of Religion in our lives, a guiding force of truth, and goodness to the ultimate salvation at the hands of the Creator when our time upon this mortal plain ends.

 

 

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[WuHanXianShi14 0]

Artimec squints when reading some human’s interpretation of elven gods.

 

 

[_Sug 2809]

St. Jude smiles within the Skies as he rereads the writing of the Pontiff.

[osumanduas 1442]

Moved to The Great Library. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.

 

If you feel this is a mistake, please contact myself or any FM and we'll restore it.