Sander

April 24

MC Name:

Sanders_Name

Character's Name:

Gilondir

Character's Age:

479

What feat(s) will you be learning?

Alchemy

Teacher's MC Name:

WhatASithuation

Teacher's RP Name:

Athri'annyer Tinuviel

Do you agree to keep Story updated on the status of your feat app?:

Yes

Have you applied for this feat on this character before, and had it denied? If so, link the app:

No

Are you aware that if this feat is shelved, it will be unavailable to use?

Yes

February 26

Spoiler

OUR FATHER...

The Empty Chair of Saint Daniel (Reprise)

By the time Sixtus crossed St. Daniel’s Crossing back into Aaun again he’d already been tired, sore from sitting in the saddle for much of the day. As Sixtus arrived back at the Apostolic City, he concluded a lengthy trip to the cities and churches of Petra, Numendil, Haense and Hyspia. It’d been a busy few days for the aging priest who was nearing 70. After stabling his horse he much looked forward to settling down in his apartment for the night and reading the tome he’d picked up before he left, having intended to read it on the way. He’d met a self-proclaimed ‘bookman’ in Numendil however - a poet or librarian he assumed - who had made an endearing impression on him and who had thus received the High Pontiff’s copy of the Scrolls of Virtue & Spirit as a gift. Looking forward to reading the Scrolls though now that he’d returned home, he mustered the energy to walk back down to Saint Daniel’s Square and the Canonist Library to get a new copy before he retreated into his home.

The lower levels of the Apostolic City were quiet at that time of the evening aside from the cooing of pigeons. Most people were probably preparing dinner or eating already. Ah! He had those cakes the farfolk in Hyspia had given him to look forward to for dessert, Sixtus reasoned with a smile - a bit of sweetness wouldn’t hurt once a while. But as he exited the library again, something caught his attention. The flock of pigeons were spooked, flying up to the top of the Cathedral, as a figure entered the Apostolic City through King Edmund’s gate. The High Pontiff would call out to the visitor with a hesitant ‘Bonjour’ as he eyed the masked person with tattered robes. Was it another one of those atronachs or constructs that had been bothering him lately because of his denouncement of the Xan cult? In hindsight the Pontiff had naught to fear from the paladins however, this person practiced a different kind of magic.

The newcomer came to the Holy See to speak to the men of God, so he informed Sixtus as he drew closer. ‘How wonderful, pilgrims are always welcome!’ His Holiness had replied, holding the copy of the scrolls under his arms. What was that book? Perhaps the figure's lack of knowledge was a sign he wasn’t a pilgrim - but potential converts were still welcome of course! However the atmosphere of the exchange was... off to say the least. Something about the way this masked man spoke was unnerving to the Pontiff, especially combined with the fact that while Sixtus passively tried to maintain a few steps of distance between the two, the masked man kept getting uncomfortably close, slowly but surely backing the Pontiff up against the walls of the library as they spoke about various surface-level facets of the faith. Was he carrying a sword? The question was sudden, not fitting with the rest of what they were talking about, the answer was therefore a ‘Non’ that was spoken with distrust. Then how would he defend himself? The masked figure had asked him, his hands concealed in his ragged cloth garbs.

While Sixtus’ eyes momentarily darted towards the corners of the square, hoping to perhaps catch a glimpse of someone like Gerard, Alrisha, Mattia or Alexander - all in vain - he soon focused his attention back towards the masked figure standing mere feet away. ‘We trust in GOD to defend and protect us, he is our shepherd.’ While he meant what he said, he could tell by the figure’s posture and body language that it didn’t come across. Perhaps his words were more of an admission of being unarmed than being fearless, as he could not help but feel a sense of fear - or rather a deep inner dread as he saw the figure’s eyes begin to glow.

If there had been a split second chance to escape the corner Sixtus had been backed into, that chance was lost as the ragged figure withdrew from its robes a femur bone that had been fashioned into a long and sharp dagger, using it to block the High Pontiff’s passage in escaping. As the masked figure taunted the trapped priest and revealed itself to be a lich by sending Gashadokuro’s regards, Sixtus began to zone out, muttering prayers as he stood with his back against the wall and his eyes on the dagger. After what felt like not seconds but hours, the first blow did not come from the dagger, but from the figure’s other hand. As a fireball was suddenly thrown at the Pontiff, the only thing that guarded His Holiness from having his face scorched was the copy of the Scrolls that Sixtus had instinctively held up like a shield. When the attack with the femur dagger followed though, the blade stabbed right through the charred leather, the lich piercing the Pontiff’s last line of defense. Moments later, the Vicar of God laid dead in Saint Daniel’s square, stabbed repeatedly, charred, smoldering. When the ordermen and priests would find him, they’d find the dagger as a call sign and his aurum lorraine to have been torn off his neck. But the Virtue and Spirit - while damaged and blackened, were still in the dead man’s clutches, held close to his chest.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

Spoiler

Thus ends the character of Sixtus VI, AKA Arnaud Novellen. It's been a blast playing the character for well over a year now, from a young kid fleeing Petra to a stint as High Pontiff - something I'd always aspired to do on lotc one day. I've had a blast playing the character for this past year, through all the ups and downs that came with it! I'd especially like to thank Tilly and Eddy for letting me play the character, Andustar for being the supportive (read: annoying ;) ) older brother to my forgotten middle child, and all the various people both inside the church community and outside it that made my pontificate what it was.

Do I feel like I've done all I wanted to do? No. Would I have wanted to do some things differently? Yes. So why must this come to an end then? Well as some of you might've noticed, I started not one but two jobs at highschools in december and january, working as a history and geography teacher now - which has meant that I have a lot less time to rp now compared to when I was a bachelor student or just a gap-year bum. Also, while being Pontiff was definitely a lot of fun, it was also incredibly stressful... Seriously, thank you for everyone who helped me and who had my back, there's a LOT of stuff both irp and ooc that comes with this. Those of you who I might've disappointed or pissed off during this time (yes, I DO in fact know you exist lol), I often had to pick sides or take decisions that were unpopular but I felt necessary, sorry for that. No hard feelings oocly I hope, not on my end at least!

But yeah long story short; I've got little time nowadays between work and my social life, and sadly lotc's been feeling like kind of a chore with how stressful it sometimes has been, and I don't want to keep spending my free time on a chore. Hope y'all understand. I've tried to finish things up somewhat, but stuff just kept piling on faster than I could deal with it, so I wish whoever succeeds me as pontiff the best of luck. As for where this pk leaves me in terms of lotc in general; I've hinted at this once or twice with a few people, but I'll probably be taking a step back from the server. I'm not leaving, but I probably won't be playing any major characters anymore. Like I said, I don't have the time, and I don't think I could use any new commitments. I will however probably be playing some minor characters from place to place, just for fun! Gonna take a break first though, with work starting again tomorrow, so take care guys! Love y'all! DM's are always open!

February 25

PEACE AND BLESSINGS
QUARTUS AUREA BULLA APOSTOLICUS
Fourth Golden Bull of the Apostolic City

6th of Owyn’s Flame, 1969 F.A | 6th of Malin’s Welcome, 173 S.A.| 6th of Jula and Piov, 522 E.S.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Archbishop of Visigia, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Sovereign of the Apostolic City, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD does decree…

TABLE OF CONTENTS

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER
SECTION II - DIOCESAN APPOINTMENTS
SECTION III - COLLEGE APPOINTMENTS
SECTION IV - CURIA APPOINTMENTS
SECTION V - THIRD EDITION OF THE CODEX IURIUS
SECTION VI - THE SYNOD ON HOMOPHILIC MATRIMONY
SECTION VII - ORDER OF THE BLACK SEPULCHRE
SECTION VIII - MARRIAGE DISSOLUTIONS
SECTION IX - CANONIZATIONS
SECTION X - PRO THRONO GODUINI
┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose word lasts into the eve of the world, Your will be done. We see Your flock once again united in peace, and we pray that You continue to bind them in this great pacific matrimony, that You will bless their hearts with love, brotherhood and appreciation. We ask also that You fill their minds with virtue and righteousness and that You may turn their attention back to Your miracles with eyes full of wonder. We ask that You keep us amongst ourselves in unity, as we have kept You in unity inside our hearts and minds. Amen.

SECTION II - DIOCESAN APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we appoint the following members of the priesthood to shepherd and be pastor of the Church’s Dioceses:

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS
To be shepherded by Archbishop Mattia Cardinal Artorus

DIOCESE OF TYRIA
To be shepherded by Bishop Belisarios

SECTION III - COLLEGE APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the College of Cardinals. We decree the College to be thus:

TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Josef Cardinal Jorenus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Frantzisko Cardinal St. Godwin
TMR, Her Eminence, Mr. Rhosyn Cardinal Casica
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Mattia Cardinal Artorus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Villorik Cardinal Westerwald

SECTION IV - CURIA APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the Curia. We decree the Curia to be thus:

Vice Chancellor, His Eminence, Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
Auditor of the Tribunal, His Eminence, Mattia Cardinal Artorus
Secretariat to His Holiness, His Eminence, Josef Cardinal Jorenus
Prelate of the Priesthood, Her Eminence, Rhosyn Cardinal Casica
Pontifical Chamberlain, His Eminence, Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard, His Eminence, Villorik Cardinal Westerwald
Palatine of the Apostolic City, His Eminence, Frantzisko Cardinal St. Godwin

SECTION V - THIRD EDITION OF THE CODEX IURIUS

It is through our position as the Supreme Pontiff of the Priesthood of Clement and Evaristus that we hereby announce the third edition of the Codex Iurius Canonici Danielus Pontifex. The rewriting of the book of Canon Law is done and has since been published before the writing of this Golden Bull. We thank the Curia for assisting us where they did in writing this monumental modernization of the Church’s legal code and we thank our predecessors High Pontiffs Daniel VI and James II for being the giants on whose shoulders we stood.

Notable changes and additions to this new third edition of the Codex Iurius include sections on Defrockment, the Diet of Bishops and the Synod, a new Order of Canonici with the honorific title of Canonicus for particularly learned priests, a complete overhaul of the section on the Ordering of Pastoral Authority to make it clearer and more complete, as well as various other changes pertaining to the likes of Canonist Empires, Patriarchates, Non-Gendered language when it comes to laws about priests and more.

SECTION VI - THE SYNOD ON HOMOPHILIC MATRIMONY

Recently, international debate encompassing all of Canondom was sparked by the rulers of Petra, Balian, Numendil and Hyspia when they published a missive called “Four Canonist Princes on Marriage”, in which they argued for the legalization of same sex marriage, known in theological terms as Homophilic Matrimony. They also declared they would make the secular laws of their nations fit this reform. More recently we have met with Queen Sybille of Balian to discuss the topic, as we felt these four princes had gone behind the Church’s back on a matter pertaining to the sacraments. We are happy to inform the Canonist flock that this was not the intention of the four princes and things have been smoothed over.

For the time being, the secular laws of these nations will not cater to supporting homophilic matrimony, as currently such a practice is still forbidden by Canon Law and the four princes are bound by the oath of their rulership to rule in a manner that adheres to Canonist religious doctrine. We have however, for those who may have missed the declaration, declared that there is to be a Synod on the topic of whether or not to allow Homophilic Matrimony. This Synod will be held next year at the Holy See. Every ordained priest is invited, though as to prevent the Synod from being hindered by political advocacy, laymen attendees and spectators will not be welcome. On a similar note, the sacrament of ordination is temporarily prohibited as to prevent radicals advocating for either side on the issue of Homophilic Matrimony from hastily joining the priesthood for the mere purpose of voting in the Synod. Ordinations will be opened up again after the Synod has concluded. In the meantime priests and laymen alike are urged to engage in public discourse on the subject.

SECTION VII - ORDER OF THE BLACK SEPULCHER

The Order of the Black Sepulchre is the oldest holy order still in existence. Its purpose was to serve as an acknowledgement of exceptional service by laymen to the church, an honor to be bestowed upon worthy canonists. And an honor it is indeed to be a member of the order, with the name of the order referring to urns with ashes of Sainted and Blessed individuals that the order's members are entrusted to carry with them and protect.
Sadly however, much of this is mere theory at this moment in time. The Order of the Black Sepulchre currently has only one living member, as the last time that people were bestowed its knightly honor was under High Pontiff Pontian IV. This last living member, Cardinal Brandt - who was knighted while he was still a Duke, is still holding steadfast to showing exceptional service to the church, but there are none other than him to carry on the order’s legacy.

Needless to say it would be a shame to let such a historic and honorable order of the Church fall into obscurity and for that reason we have tasked our newly appointed Cardinal Villorik with doing something about this. Cardinal Villorik had been given the Curia position of Commandant of the Pontifical Guard, and as part of his duties, he is entrusted with organizing and managing the Church’s orders of knighthood. Cardinal Villorik will therefore be looking for suitable candidates to be inducted into the Order of the Black Sepulchre - honorable and virtuous laymen who have shown exceptional service to our Faith. Any monarch or head of a knightly order may write to the Cardinal to nominate individuals whom they deem suitable candidates.

SECTION VIII - MARRIAGE DISSOLUTIONS

Matrimony is a most Holy sacrament, granted by GOD through his clergymen that serve the flock. However while the union created between a man and a woman through the sacrament of Matrimony is meant to be an eternal one, sometimes the situation causes the Church to have to intervene, for one reason or another, through an official dissolution of the pair’s union.

Today, We perform such once more, as it is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we officially dissolve the union of Cassian Reyes and Sandra el Khoury. We do this on grounds of the breaking of marital vows made by mister Reyes - not taking the name el Khoury as promised, as well as his apparent unfaithfulness to his wife, miss el Khoury. Additionally, miss el Khoury was found in recent years to be a vampyre, which has further broken the bonds of this holy matrimony despite her having been forcefully cured since then. As the couple has tried in vain for many years to make their sacred union work, we hereby dissolve it.

We also perform another matrimonial dissolution, as we officially dissolve the union of Ivan Arpa and Mathilda Augusta of Stassion at the request of Lady Mathilda. We do this on the grounds of Lady Mathilda fearing for her own safety with her claiming both her soul and body to be in mortal peril - a situation exactly outlined as grounds for dissolution in Canon Law - with her accusing her husband of being part of a heresy called Aurelianism in which they perform a kind of ritual sacrifice. In addition to this being grounds for dissolution of the couple’s holy matrimony, we task our Auditor with investigating the accusations of heresy.

We pray that GOD grants mercy to these separated couples, and we request that they seek our approval before once again receiving the sacrament of matrimony.

SECTION IX - CANONIZATIONS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these canonizations, recognizing the miracles of these following men and raising them to the status of Saint;

SAINT HIGH PONTIFF EVERARD VI
Patron Saint of Female Priests and Penance, Symbol: Shepherd’s Crook

MIRACLES

During the time of short-lived Michaelite Schism, High Pontiff Everard VI sought to address the Canonist flock of Haense in the city of Karosgrad. There, during his speech, many reported that after a failed attempt on His Holiness’ life, the High Pontiff levitated up into the air for some time while he was speaking.
A Haeseni knight by the name of Ser Vlad is reported to have prayed to the by then blessed High Pontiff Everard VI in the middle of the square in the Haeseni capital of Valdev. Upon doing so, Ser Vlad began to temporarily levitate and fly much like the High Pontiff himself did during his life at the time of his first miracle.

SAINT HIGH PONTIFF TYLOS II
Patron Saint of the Blind, Chaplains and the Lechian People, Symbol: Olive Branch

MIRACLES

When serving as Cardinal within the lands of Savoy, Tylos II - then known as Fiodor Jazloviecki - prayed over the ailing Duke of Drusco, Remus Lucien Ashford de Bar, and in doing so helped cure him of his blindness and bedridden state. Said duke would later commit himself to the service of God and the Church, and himself be known and venerated as the Venerable Remus Lucien of Savoy.
Following the relocation of the reposed High Pontiff’s earthly remains to his family tomb at Warsovia, it was discovered that the bodily remains of High Pontiff Tylos II were incorruptible.
Once, when the relics of the blessed High Pontiff were being moved from Merryweather to Warsovia by the local Chaplain and a group of monks, they were beset by ravenous orcs and forced to flee into the local chapel, which was then promptly surrounded and broken into. Left with little else to do as they were backed into a corner, the monks venerated the relics of the blessed High Pontiff as the Chaplain prayed to him, whereupon a bright light appeared that scared the raiders and sent them running off, after which the door was miraculously slammed shut.

SECTION X - PRO THRONO GODUINI

For a long time now, the Kingdom of Aaun and the Holy Mother Church of the Canon have held a special relationship of close cooperation. Aaun as a nation has shown incredible loyalty to the church in recent decades, proven in part by the Donatio Edmundi; the donating of a sizable plot of land outside its capital for the creation of our Apostolic City. Additionally, Aaun of course has its origins in ancient times as the kingdom of Saint Godwin and the Exalted Owyn, cementing its long-held ties to our religion, as it was Owyn - a King of Aaun, who founded our very priesthood.

Ever since a member of said priesthood, Father John became but a deacon and King John of Aaun, Aaun has wished to cement this legacy and its character as a Kingdom dedicated to our Faith. For this purpose, we wish to grant King John and future Kings of the throne of Godwin a special honorific to signify their loyalty to the faith and their perpetual commitment to the Church and the Creator. We therefore grant King John of Aaun the title of Apostolic Majesty, and allow Aaun to bear the title of Apostolic Kingdom, in the sense that this Kingdom and their King have earned the honor of being deemed latter day apostles of Canondom. We also grant the title of Apostolic Majesty to King Edmund II posthumously. The Kings of Aaun will be allowed to use this title as long as they find themselves in good standing with the Church.

THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH OF THE CANON

Under GOD maintained by His Holiness Sixtus VI

THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Patriarchate of Jorenus

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Archdiocese of Lotharia

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Archdiocese of Albarosa

MATTIA CARDINAL ARTORUS
Archdiocese of Artorus

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL ST GODWIN
Diocese of St. Godwin

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Diocese of Casica

VILLORIK CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Diocese of Westerwald

THE CURIA

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Vice-Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

MATTIA CARDINAL ARTORUS
Auditor of the Tribunal of the Church of the Canon

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Pontifical Secretary of the Church of the Canon

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Prelate of the Priesthood of the Church of the Canon

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Pontifical Chamberlain of the Church of the Canon

VILLORIK CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL ST GODWIN
Palatine of the Apostolic City

CANONIST DIOCESES

THE HOLY SEE
Encompassing the entirety of the Apostolic City State, to be shepherded by High Pontiff Sixtus VI

PATRIARCHATE OF JORENUS

Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Patriarch Josef Cardinal Jorenus

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV, encompassing all the lands east of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Amleth Bishop Andrikev.

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD, encompassing all the lands west of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Villorik Bishop Westerwald

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA

Encompassing the eastern region of Aevos, including the lands of the United Kingdom of Aaun, the Commonwealth of Petra, and the surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF ST GODWIN, encompassing the entirety of the United Kingdom of Aaun as well as surrounding parishes not incorporated in other Dioceses. To be shepherded by Bishop Frantzisko.

DIOCESE OF CASICA, encompassing the entirety of the Commonwealth of Petra, to be shepherded by Rhosyn Bishop Casica

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS

Encompassing the central region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Númendil, the Midlands, and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Mattia Cardinal Artorus

DIOCESE OF AQUILA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Númendil, to be shepherded by Callahan Bishop Aquila

DIOCESE OF ST. ARPAD, encompassing the entirety of the Midlands, to be shepherded by Alexios Bishop St. Arpad

ARCHDIOCESE OF LOTHARIA

Encompassing the south-western region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Balian and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Matthias Cardinal Lotharia

DIOCESE OF TYRIA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Balian, to be shepherded by Belisarios Bishop Tyria.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

February 23

CODEX IURIUS CANONICI DANIELUS PONTIFEX

CODEX OF ECCLESIASTICAL LAWS OF THE CHURCH OF THE CANON

AS FIRST PENNED AND COMPILED BY

THE RIGHT REV., MSGR. IDE HARRACUS, AUDITOR OF THE TRIBUNAL

AS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AND PROMULGATED WITH THE IMPRIMATUR OF

N5D-M4qq9OwRxon_M_2X0mP19yk6q1_j-gfj52ds99xv-HeSmpxqCYi8Atfdf7XnhbEztsfy-iEX0A1pWfWKSmeAcfwO3PqDWoP1xpQKKjWXZW-tx2S1u7p9HtX63bIyLFRG8f3L

HIS HOLINESS THE HIGH PONTIFF DANIEL VI

WITH REVISIONS BY

HIS HOLINESS THE HIGH PONTIFF JAMES II HIS HOLINESS THE HIGH PONTIFF SIXTUS VI

EXORDIUM

BOOK I. APPLICATION OF LAWS

TITLE I. FOUNDATION OF LAW

CHAPTER I. THE HOLY SCROLLS

CHAPTER 2. THE CHURCH OF THE CANON

CHAPTER 4. THE DEUTEROCANONICAL TEXTS

CHAPTER 5. THE RECEIVED TRADITION

TITLE 2. ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICES

CHAPTER 1. PROVISION OF ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICE

CHAPTER 2. LOSS OF ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICE

CHAPTER 3. DEFROCKMENT

BOOK II. PEOPLE OF GOD

TITLE I. THE CANONIST FAITHFUL

CHAPTER 1. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF ALL CANONISTS

CHAPTER 2. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF THE LAITY

CHAPTER 3. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF MONASTICS

CHAPTER 4. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF THE CLERGY

TITLE II. HIERARCHICAL CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER 1. THE HIGH PONTIFF

CHAPTER 2. THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

CHAPTER 3. THE CURIA

CHAPTER 4. ECCLESIASTICAL SUPERIORS

CHAPTER 5. THE DIET OF BISHOPS

CHAPTER 6. THE SYNOD

TITLE III. THE ORDERING OF PASTORAL AUTHORITY

CHAPTER 1. PASTORS AND ECCLESASTICAL REGIONS IN GENERAL

CHAPTER 2. THE HOLY SEE

CHAPTER 3. ARCHDIOCESES

CHAPTER 4. DIOCESES

CHAPTER 5. PARISHES

CHAPTER 6. VARIATIONS

TITLE IV. ASSOCIATIONS OF THE CANONIST FAITHFUL

CHAPTER 1. ORDERS OF HOLY KNIGHTHOOD

CHAPTER 2. MONASTIC ORDERS

CHAPTER 3. LAITY ASSOCIATIONS

CHAPTER 4. THE ORDER OF THE BLACK SEPULCHRE
CHAPTER 5. THE ORDER OF CANONICI

BOOK III. THE SANCTIFYING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. THE SACRAMENTS

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR ALL SACRAMENTS

CHAPTER 2. MATRIMONY

CHAPTER 3. ORDINATION

CHAPTER 4. CONSECRATION

CHAPTER 5. ABLUTION

TITLE II. THE SACRED CEREMONIES

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR SACRED CEREMONIES

CHAPTER 2. MASS

CHAPTER 3. EXORCISM

CHAPTER 4. FUNERARY RITE

CHAPTER 5. ABLUTION IN EXTREMIS

CHAPTER 6. CONFESSION

TITLE III. ECCLESIASTICAL AUTHORITY OVER SACRED BONDS

CHAPTER 1. ANNULMENT

CHAPTER 2. DISSOLUTION

TITLE IV. VENERATION OF RELICS AND THE DEAD

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR VENERATION

CHAPTER 2. EXALTED

CHAPTER 3. SAINTS

CHAPTER 4. BLESSED

CHAPTER 5. VENERABLE

TITLE V. SACRED PLACES AND OBJECTS

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR SACRED PLACES AND OBJECTS

CHAPTER 2. CHURCHES

CHAPTER 3. CATHEDRALS AND BASILICAS

CHAPTER 4. ORATORIES

CHAPTER 5. SHRINES

CHAPTER 6. ALTARS

CHAPTER 7. CEMETERIES AND CRYPTS

CHAPTER 8. HOLY LANDS

CHAPTER 9. THE CROSS

CHAPTER 10. THE STAR OF ARCHANGEL MICHAEL

CHAPTER 11. RELICS AND ICONS

CHAPTER 12. THE RIGHT OF SANCTUARY

TITLE VI. SACRED TIMES

BOOK IV. THE PURIFYING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. THE JURISDICTION OF CANON LAW

CHAPTER 1. COMPETENCY

TITLE II. THE TOPICS OF CANON LAW

CHAPTER 1. CRIMES AGAINST VIRTUE

CHAPTER 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER 3. CRIMES AGAINST ECCLESIASTICAL AUTHORITY

CHAPTER 4. CRIMES AGAINST TRUTH

CHAPTER 5. CRIMES AGAINST THE COVENANTS

TITLE III. PENANCE

CHAPTER 1. PRAYER AND STUDY

CHAPTER 2. PUBLIC PIETY

CHAPTER 3. CHARITABLE ACTS

TITLE IV. ECCLESIASTICAL PENALTIES

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR ECCLESIASTICAL PENALTIES

CHAPTER 2. PENANCE

CHAPTER 3. PERSONAL INTERDICTION

CHAPTER 4. PROVINCIAL INTERDICTION

CHAPTER 5. EXCOMMUNICATION

CHAPTER 6. ANATHEMATIZATION

TITLE V. FAMILY AND RACE

CHAPTER 1. MATRIMONY AND INHERITANCE

CHAPTER 2. GUARDIANSHIP

CHAPTER 3. DESCENDANT RACES

CHAPTER 4. NON-DESCENDANTS

CHAPTER 5. DETERMINING RACIAL STATUS

CHAPTER 6. NATURAL MARRIAGE

TITLE VI. MAGIC

CHAPTER 1. ANGELIC VENERATION AND INTERCESSION

CHAPTER 2. MORTALITY AND JUDGEMENT

CHAPTER 3. SPIRITUAL APPARITIONS

CHAPTER 4. FORBIDDEN MAGICKS

CHAPTER 5. ALCHEMY AND NATURAL PHILOSOPHY

BOOK V. THE PRESERVING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. PROMULGATION OF CANON LAW

TITLE II. ECCLESIASTICAL DECREES

CHAPTER 1. GOLDEN BULLS

CHAPTER 2. PONTIFICAL LETTERS

CHAPTER 3. MINOR BULLS

CHAPTER 4. RULINGS OF ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS

TITLE III. TEMPORAL AUTHORITIES

CHAPTER 1. RECOGNITION OF TEMPORAL OF AUTHORITIES

CHAPTER 2. INTERACTION WITH TEMPORAL AUTHORITIES

CHAPTER 3. CANONIST PRINCES

CHAPTER 4. CANONIST EMPIRES

CHAPTER 5. JUST WAR

CHAPTER 6. TITHES

CHAPTER 7. ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICIALS WITH TEMPORAL AUTHORITY

BOOK VI. PROCESSES FOR TRIAL

TITLE I. THE JUDGE

TITLE II. PARTIES

CHAPTER 1. PETITIONER

CHAPTER 2. RESPONDENT

CHAPTER 3. ADVOCATES

CHAPTER 4. WITNESSES

CHAPTER 5. EXPERTS

TITLE III. THE PENAL PROCESS

CHAPTER 1. PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATIONS

CHAPTER 2. DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 3. TRIAL

CHAPTER 4. RULING AND SENTENCING

CHAPTER 5. APPEAL

CHAPTER 6. REDRESS

BOOK VII. LEXICON

EXORDIUM

From the very beginning of the World, when God did blow His breath into the Aenguls and the Daemons (Gospel 1:6), he created Law. He bestowed upon his creation rules to obey, objectives to seek, and bound them to obedience. The Law given to the Aenguls and the Daemons, which is unknown to us, was the first institution of Divine Law.

In his transgression of this law, Iblees committed sin and made God exceeding wroth, for God rebuked the Daemon: “Why have you done that which I have forbidden?” (Gospel 1:21-22). God demanded Iblees’ repentance, which the Daemon refused. Thus law was broken, and punishment delivered to the transgressor.

It is by Divine Institute, granted by the Exalted who are our prophets, that the Mother Church is structured. By the will of God, a single High Pontiff is chosen as His shepherd, and provided with instruction to guide His flock. Canon law derives from these Divine Institutes, which teach the ecclesia how to govern the Church to which they give their lives.

The sun has risen at the zenith of empires and set at their bloody destruction; tyrants have abused and persecuted their people; and schismatics and heathens have clamored for the destruction of the faithful. Yet, governed by her laws, the Mother Church has stood indivisible.

DEO GRATIAS.

High Pontiff Daniel VI

Helena, 1735

With the blessing of venerable centuries, the Mother Church receives a reliquary of wisdom and doctrine written in holy obedience to God’s law. Through the devoted efforts of the High Priests and High Pontiffs, the priesthood, and the laymen, this reliquary has grown, documenting our triumphs and our defeats, and providing the wisdom of ages to its inheritors.

God tells us there is no innovation in faith (Spirit 2:17). Thus, for the better instruction of virtue, we are called to catalog and harmonize these treasures, ensuring our interpretations are guided by the Received Tradition and never stray from the Holy Scrolls. Herein, through the execution of our office and with the approval of the priesthood, we may seek to definitively settle all extant matters of law and governance in the Church, in accordance with God’s will. In time we pray that our successors shall do the same, elaborating upon our work as necessary, and providing the virtue and justice of God to all.

DEO GRATIAS.

High Pontiff James II

Providence, 1799

For many of the Lord’s summers come and winters gone, the Codex Iurius has stood as a great institution of Canon Law and a practical application of God’s wisdom that has seen use by the priesthood of Owyn and the wider Canonist faithful on a daily basis. It has become recognized by the shepherds and the flock alike as one of the key documents of our faith; a testament of descendant intellect built upon the foundation laid by God and His Exalted Prophets.

While, as reminded to us by His Holiness James II, there is no innovation in faith, the world that God once brought about in his role as our Creator is ever changing. With it, this rich tradition of ecclesiastical law given to us by our ancestors must change alongside it to reflect the new realities of the world and better serve the priesthood in its sacred mission. For this purpose, the Codex, as an application of God’s law, is like a compass. It does not matter where one stands in time or place, what matters is the direction in which they are moving, and as the compass will ever point north, God's law will ever guide us towards Virtue and Salvation.

DEO GRATIAS.
High Pontiff Sixtus VI
Apostolic City, 1965

BOOK I. APPLICATION OF LAWS

TITLE I. FOUNDATION OF LAW

§1. A law is established when it is promulgated by the High Pontiff.

§2. Laws provide for the future only, unless expressly provided.

§3. The canon law binds those that have been baptised into the Church of the Canon, unless expressly provided.

§4. The laws of the Canon are universal, and bind all men for whom they were issued.

§5. Ignorance of the law of the Canon by a subject of those laws is never assumed.

§6. Canon laws must be understood in accord with their proper meaning; any doubt or obscurity must find recourse through parallel places in canon law.

§7. Later laws harmonise with earlier. The revocation of a previous law is not assumed unless expressly provided.

§8. All books, titles, and chapters within this codex are canon law.

§9. This codex is definitive and binding. No power shall contravene or alter it, unless it be instituted in ecumenical council.

§10. The Church shall endeavor to preserve a single codex of canon law, amending it as necessary.

CHAPTER I. THE HOLY SCROLLS

§1. The Holy Scrolls, comprising the Virtue of Horen; the Spirit of Owyn; the Gospel of Godfrey; and the Auspice of Sigismund are the foundation of all law and morality.

§2. It is the right of the Church through the High Pontiff to interpret and apply the commandments of the Holy Scrolls.

§3. Nothing is assuredly the command of the Exalted unless it be written in the Holy Scrolls, they being divinely inspired.

CHAPTER 2. THE CHURCH OF THE CANON

§1. The Church is the body of the entire faithful, led by the High Pontiff.

§2. The purpose of the Church is the instruction of virtue and guardianship of the Holy Scrolls.

§3. The spiritual authority of the Church is derived first from the conferral of the High Priesthood by Ex. Owyn upon St. Evaristus and St. Clement and second from the conferral of the laurel of Horen by Ex. Godfrey upon the pontifex. Thus all authority in the Church is conferred and justified by the High Pontiff.

§4. All laws issued by the Church of the Canon are considered to be valid and harmonious with the Holy Scrolls unless there is later found to be flagrant and generally indisputable conflict between them.

§5. Interpretations of the law by higher spiritual authorities supersede those by lower authorities.

CHAPTER 4. THE DEUTEROCANONICAL TEXTS

§1. The deuterocanon comprises those texts which, though not divinely inspired as the scripture, are found by the High Pontiff to have a trustworthy connection to the words of the Exalted in their lifetimes, and which lack any contradiction with the teachings of the Church and the Holy Scrolls.

§2. The Church shall preserve the distinction between the Holy Scrolls and the deuterocanonical texts, always giving greater credence to the Holy Scrolls, and interpreting the former in context of the latter.

§3. The Church shall preserve a codex of the deuterocanonical texts, setting them apart from the Holy Scrolls and from other documents of the Church.

CHAPTER 5. THE RECEIVED TRADITION

§1. The Received Tradition is the body of writings, beliefs, and practices concerning Canonism which are inherited through the years.

§2. The Church shall endeavor to preserve the Received Tradition, favoring traditional interpretations of the law above novel ones, unless there be flagrant conflict between the Tradition and the Scrolls.

§3. Nevertheless, it is the right of the Church to validate or invalidate a traditional practice if this is judged expedient for the promotion of virtue.

§4. More popularly held traditions shall take precedence over obscure traditions, regardless of age.

§5. As the Exalted were several yet co-equal, rites and practices may be mutually exclusive so long as they do not bring disharmony or harm the virtue of their practitioners.

§6. No legal or moral penalty shall be levied for disharmony with a mere tradition, unless expressly provided for in law.

TITLE II. ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICES

CHAPTER 1. PROVISION OF ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICE

§1. An ecclesiastical office within the Church of the Canon cannot be acquired without provision of the Church.

§2. The provision of the office is also the provision of the competency that it holds.

§3. To hold an office within the Church of the Canon, one must be in full communion with the Church as well as be deemed suitable spiritually and intellectually.

§4. The promise of an office has no legal effect.

§5. It is for superior authorities to provide for offices within their jurisdiction.

§6. It is for the High Pontiff to provide offices within the Church entire.

CHAPTER 2. LOSS OF ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICE

§1. Anyone responsible for himself and of sound mind may resign from office.

§2. A resignation made under duress is not valid.

§3. A resignation must be made to a superior authority in order to be valid.

§4. A resignation may be revoked by the resigning party if it has not yet taken effect.

§5. A person may be removed from office by decree of a superior authority.

§6. A person is automatically removed from ecclesiastical office if they have:

Lost the clerical, monastic, lay, or celibate state required for the office.
Publicly defected from the Church.
Accepted another office expressly stated as incompatible with the ecclesiastical office.
Evaded ecclesiastical authority

CHAPTER 3. DEFROCKMENT

§1. Defrockment refers to deprivation of pastors, clerics, or monastics from their ecclesiastical status.

§2. A case for defrockment is made through an ecclesiastical court proceeding as outlined in Book VI.

§3. Only a person of superior authority may judge a trial for defrockment.

§4. A person is eligible for defrockment if they have:

-Lost the clerical, monastic, or celibate state required for the office.

-Publicly defected from the Church.

-Acted indecently.

-Adhered to heresies, heathenism, apostasy, or forbidden arts.

-Evaded ecclesiastical authority.

§5. Only the High Pontiff may appeal a case of defrockment.

§6. Only the High Pontiff may issue a refrockment.

BOOK II. PEOPLE OF GOD

TITLE I. THE CANONIST FAITHFUL

§1. Communion with the Church is obedience to its spiritual authorities and acceptance of its laws.

§2. When there is personal disagreement with a particular ruling of the Church, it is not commanded that one deceive others concerning one’s opinion. It is nevertheless required that one accept the effect and authority of the ruling.

§3. Personal disagreements with particular rulings of the Church may still, depending upon the subject, indicate a lack of communion with the Church prima facie.

CHAPTER 1. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF ALL CANONISTS

§1. The faithful, through every manner of acting, must retain communion with the Church.

§2. The faithful must direct all efforts to leading a holy life and instructing others in virtue, in every age and land.

§3. The faithful are free to make known their spiritual needs and failings to their pastor.

§4. Those in the parental role must build up their family in the teachings of the Canon and the worship of GOD.

§5. All Sons of Horen, called humans, are obliged by the Covenant of Purity to maintain the Canonist faith.

§6. The faithful are obliged to make all efforts to regularly attend Canonist service and to obtain penance, and likewise the Church is obliged to make all efforts to provide these to them. All faithful are obliged to obtain penance at least once in each year, where it is in any manner possible.

CHAPTER 2. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF THE LAITY

§1. Laymen who are deemed capable and qualified are permitted to assist with ecclesiastical offices.

§2. People who have attained the age of reason and are of sound mind may be admitted as an acolyte of the Church.

§3. People who have attained the age of majority, are of sound mind, and who have met all requirements for the clerical state, may be ordained as a priest of the Church.

CHAPTER 3. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF MONASTICS

§1. Monastics are bound by a vow of chastity, prohibiting them from the marital state and all carnal knowledge.

§2. Monastics are bound by a vow of poverty, prohibiting them from the ownership of personal property, and all they own upon acceptance of this vow shall be used for the common good.

§3. Monastics are bound by a vow of obedience, prohibiting them from public or notorious conflict with superior authorities or ecclesiastical officials.

§4. The material needs of monastics are provided for by the Church where at all possible.

§5. Monastics who have not attained the clerical state remain laymen as well as monastics.

§6. Monastic vows are sworn in the form of a consecration celebrated by a cleric.

CHAPTER 4. OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS OF THE CLERGY

§1. Clerics are those who have received a valid sacrament of ordination, and are also called priests.

§2. Clerics are bound to show reverence and obedience to the High Pontiff and their ordinary.

§3. Clerics are united through the brotherhood of working for the divine purpose of the instruction of virtue and guardianship of the Holy Scrolls, and so must strive for harmony among the faithful.

§4. Where the practice of common life exists for clerics, it is to be practiced and preserved as far as possible.

§5. Clerics are to foster simplicity of life and not to exhibit vanity.

§6. Clerics may not spill the blood of another Canonist except in self-defense. In these cases, violent force is permitted only insofar as necessary to preserve the life of the cleric, and they are further prohibited from intentionally entering circumstances where it is likely this shall be necessary.

§7. It is the duty of a cleric to foster peace and justice in accordance with the laws of the Church.

TITLE II. HIERARCHICAL CONSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH

CHAPTER 1. THE HIGH PONTIFF

§1. By virtue of his office, the High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon possesses full, supreme, and immediate power in the Church entire, and it is his divine right to exercise this according to his conscience.

§2. A person elected to the office of High Pontiff assumes this power at the moment of election.

§3. The High Pontiff is ex officio the Archbishop of Visigia.

§4. No appeal is allowed against a legitimate decree or judgement by the High Pontiff; it is the word of GOD.

§5. Nothing is to be altered in the church should the office of the High Pontiff be vacant.

§6. No authority of the High Pontiff may be exercised without his consent.

§7. Only the power of rebuke exercised licitly and validly by the College of Cardinals shall remove a High Pontiff from office.

§8. The High Pontiff is elected to his office by the majority of the College of Cardinals and no other.

CHAPTER 2. THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

§1. The cardinals constitute a college which provides for the election of the High Pontiff in a conclave, variously called the College of the Cardinals or the Septarchy.

§2. The cardinals further assist the High Pontiff in matters of importance or through their other offices within the Church.

§3. The High Pontiff freely selects celibate individuals as cardinals, these being pious Canonists of outstanding prudence, character, and morals.

§4. The High Pontiff assigns each cardinal his own title within the Church.

§5. From the moment of appointment the cardinal is bound by the duties of office.

§6. The College of Cardinals shall not exceed seven members.

§7. The High Pontiff shall not remove from that office more than one cardinal in each year.

§8. By unanimous agreement, the College of Cardinals may rebuke a High Pontiff, stripping him of that office. In this case, his clerical state remains.

§9. The College of Cardinals is charged to use the power of rebuke prudently, but there shall be no appeal.

§10. A rebuke issued under duress is not valid.

§11. No layman shall be appointed as cardinal if another already serves as one.

§12. The College of Cardinals shall only consider unmarried clerics in communion with the Church as candidates for election to the office of High Pontiff.

§13. The High Pontiff is not eligible to serve as a cardinal.

§14. If a cardinal should not cast his vote for High Pontiff within one year of the election being called, he shall be considered to have abstained.
§15. In order to facilitate the swift election of a High Pontiff during a conclave and mitigate the risk of tied votes, the College of Cardinals should ideally have an uneven number of members. Should there still be a tie at the conclave, the Vice-Chancellor’s vote shall count twice to act as a tiebreaker.

CHAPTER 3. THE CURIA

§1. The High Pontiff executes his office through his council, the Curia, which shall comprise pious individuals of prudence, character, and morals. Officials of the Curia are curates. There are eight existing curates. In order of precedence, these curates are:

The Vice-Chancellor
The Auditor of the Tribunal
The Secretariat to His Holiness
The Prelate of the Priesthood
The Pontifical Chamberlain
The Commandant of the Pontifical Guard
The Palatine of the Apostolic City
The Monsignors, in order of their appointment

§2. The Vice-Chancellor, who must be a cleric, executes the following functions of the Church:

Leading the Curia in its day-to-day functions
Delegating responsibilities to subordinates and reporting their progress
Entreaty and reception of foreign dignitaries, and establishment of concordats with secular governments
Establishment and management of nunciatures to Canonist princes
Providing for the welfare of Canonist faithful who should travel abroad
Leading the Church as regent if the High Pontificate should be vacant or incapable
Organizing the College of Cardinals in the election of the High Pontiff when that office is vacant
Directing the proceedings of a Synod and distributing speaking turns during a Synod.

§3. The Auditor of the Tribunal executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

Establishing and presiding over ecclesiastical courts
Appointing subsidiary officers of ecclesiastical courts and delegating such powers as necessary
Judging, applying, and enforcing ecclesiastical penalties
Investigating and uprooting heresy and apostasy in the ecclesiastical provinces of the Church
Studying, governing, and adjudicating matters of magic used by or upon Canonists

§4. The Prelate of the Priesthood executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

The oversight of the priesthood
Ensuring the proper education of acolytes and clerics
The assignment of clerics to ecclesiastical provinces
Encouraging the recruitment of candidates to the priesthood
Adjudicating, establishing stands for, and issuing academic degrees in divinity and canon law
Presiding over a gathering of the Diet of Bishops
Appointing Canonici and leading the honorable Order of Canonici

§5. The Secretariat to His Holiness executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

Providing theological advice and scribery to the Curia
Drafting and reviewing ecclesiastical decrees
Assembling and maintaining chronicles pertinent to the Church’s history and interest
Preparing causes for canonization, beatification, and veneration for the approval of the College of Cardinals

§6. The Pontifical Chamberlain executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

Managing the affairs and finances of the Pontifical Household and the Church
The construction and maintenance of holy sites
The organization of pilgrimages and celebrations within the Church

§7. The Commandant of the Pontifical Guard executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

The organization and management of the Pontifical Guard and the Orders of Holy Knighthood
Providing for the defense of the High Pontiff and the Canonist faithful

§8. The Palatine of the Apostolic City executes the following functions of the High Pontiff:

The maintenance and improvement of the Apostolic City and other properties owned by the Holy See
The day to day leadership and management of affairs for the Apostolic City and its inhabitants

§9. The Monsignors execute no functions of the High Pontiff of their own, but are permitted to participate in meetings of the Curia and offer their counsel where it is relevant.

§10. Each curate, excepting the monsignors, is permitted to form an office, called a dicastery, which assists in the execution of his authorities and duties relating to the Curia. The curate may delegate assigned powers to officials of his dicastery, and they may act on his behalf where these powers do not require a clerical or monastic status they lack.
§11. The High Pontiff may add curates and dicasteries as he sees fit.

CHAPTER 4. ECCLESIASTICAL SUPERIORS

§1. All clerics and ecclesiastical officials shall have a superior.

§2. The superior of the High Pontiff is God.

§3. A subordinate owes obedience to their superior.

§4. If there is a question of a superior’s suitability for office by their subordinate, their superior’s superior should be consulted.

§5. Unless expressly provided, a cleric or ecclesiastical official’s superior is the pastor of the ecclesiastical province they inhabit.

§6. Unless expressly provided, a pastor’s superior is the pastor of the ecclesiastical province most immediately encompassing their own province.

§7. The superior of a cleric must be a cleric.

CHAPTER 5. THE DIET OF BISHOPS

§1. The bishops and archbishops of the Canonist Church together make up the Diet of Bishops.
§2. The Diet of Bishops as an institution has the purpose of advising the High Pontiff and its members on matters of Church governance, as well as meeting to discuss issues in the various dioceses.
§3. The prelate of the priesthood, vice-chancellor or another member of the Pontifical Curia - in that order of preference - shall preside over any congregation of the Diet of Bishops.
§4. The Diet of Bishops shall only be called to congregation intermittently and on an ad hoc basis. They are not scheduled to meet regularly.
§5. The Diet of Bishops is called to meet either by the High Pontiff, or a majority of the Bishops themselves.

§6. As a method of peer review, the members of the Diet of Bishops are tasked with ensuring their fellow members have adequately assigned and organized parish pastors within their diocese, each time the Diet of Bishops meets.
§7. If any member of the Diet of Bishops finds a fellow member to have vacancies in parochial appointments, such a matter is to be addressed and ideally resolved at said Diet of Bishops by appointing a pastor to the vacant parish.

CHAPTER 6. THE SYNOD

§1. The Synod is an ecumenical council to which the entire priesthood is invited.
§2. A Synod will always be called with one or several specific topics to discuss in mind.
§3. No Synod will be called or adjourned except by the High Pontiff themselves.
§4. No Synod shall be valid, that is quorate, unless its participants constitute at least three quarters of the priesthood.
§5. As to avoid people seeking ordination for the purpose of influencing a Synod, a temporary prohibition on ordination may be imposed by the High Pontiff and Prelate of the Priesthood once a Synod has been announced.

§6. The Synod is presided over by the High Pontiff, who may also restrict certain members of the priesthood from partaking in the Synod.
§7. The proceedings of the Synod are directed by the Vice Chancellor who shall distribute speaking turns to the gathered priesthood.
§8. The Synod is recorded by the Pontifical Secretary, who shall keep track of which priests made speeches, and record the casting of votes.
§9. Only ordained priests are invited per law to partake in a Synod, laymen wishing to partake or even spectate must be permitted to do so by the High Pontiff. When it comes to voting however, only ordained priests may cast a vote.
§10. A synod is called only intermittently and on an ad hoc basis. It is not scheduled regularly.
§11. Once the High Pontiff deems the time for debating to be over, he may call the priesthood to vote on the matter being discussed. The priests are permitted to vote openly, though they always reserve the right to vote anonymously.
§12. Priests voting in a synod are bound only by their conscience, all other authorities and judgements notwithstanding.
§13. The outcome of the priesthood’s vote at a Synod is binding, with the High Pontiff only reserving the right to veto their decision should they feel the decision was not made with solid theological substantiation.

TITLE III. THE ORDERING OF PASTORAL AUTHORITY

CHAPTER 1. PASTORS AND ECCLESASTICAL PROVINCES IN GENERAL

§1. Neighboring churches are to be brought into ecclesiastical provinces encompassing a certain territory.

§2. Pastors of the church are clerics assigned to spiritual care and authority over an ecclesiastical province.

§3. In the function of pastor, a cleric must show himself to be concerned for all the faithful within his care, no matter their circumstance.

§4. It is only the authority of the Church to establish or alter ecclesiastical provinces.

§5. Each cleric shall have a pastor as their superior, except the High Pontiff, who shall have God as his superior.

§6. Pastors receive the functions of governing, sanctifying, purifying, and teaching the faithful within their ecclesiastical provinces.
§7. Ecclesiastical provinces will follow a territorial hierarchy of Holy See, Archdiocese, Diocese, Parish.

CHAPTER 2. THE HOLY SEE

§1. The Holy See is the ecclesiastical province which is the seat of the Church’s governance.

§2. The High Pontiff is the pastor of the Holy See, unless expressly provided.

§3. If an archdiocese should include the Holy See, the pastor of the Holy See shall be that archdiocese’s pastor.

CHAPTER 3. ARCHDIOCESES

§1. An archdiocese is an ecclesiastical province encompassing one or multiple dioceses.

§2. The pastor of an archdiocese is an archbishop.

§3. An archbishop’s superior is always the High Pontiff.

§4. All territory within an archdiocese shall be part of a diocese within it.

§5. A metropolitan is an archbishop over the archdiocese of a major city. In the case of a metropolitanate, the pastor is titled as an archbishop metropolitan without need for subsidiary dioceses.
§6. A patriarch is an archbishop over an archdiocese that primarily encompasses followers of the Ruskan or Jorenic rites. The archdiocese is in this case called a patriarchate, with this difference being solely cultural and both the patriarch and patriarchate otherwise being identical to an archbishop or archdiocese.
§7. The church serving as the seat of governance of an archdiocese is called a cathedral.

CHAPTER 4. DIOCESES

§1. A diocese is an ecclesiastical province encompassing multiple parishes.

§2. The pastor of a diocese is a bishop.
§3. The church serving as the seat of governance of a diocese is called a cathedral.

CHAPTER 5. PARISHES

§1. A parish is the lowest-ranking and typically smallest ecclesiastical province.

§2. The pastor of a diocese is simply called a pastor (f: pastoress).

§3. The aim of a parish is to be the lowest territorial unit, centered around a single community and their church, with this church being the seat of the parish.

CHAPTER 6. VARIATIONS

§1. A territorial abbacy, or abbacy, is a parish governed by an abbey. The pastor of an abbacy being the abbot (f: abbess). Its seat of governance is the abbey.

§2. A territorial prelature, or prelature, is a parish covering a small area, or a diocese with a small Canonist population. The pastor of a prelature being a prelate. Its seat of governance is a church.
§3. A personal prelature, or chaplaincy, is a parish covering a group of individuals who share common bonds aside from locale, particularly family bonds, membership in an organization, or previous membership of a particular faith. The pastor of a chaplaincy being a chaplain. Since this is not a territorial parish but a personal one, a chaplaincy does not have a seat of governance. A chaplain owes obedience to the bishop of whatever diocese they inhabit.
§4. Any ecclesiastical province ran by a vicar is called a vicariate. Any pastor may appoint a vicar to assist them in the governance of their ecclesiastical province, this vicar is never to act contrary to the mind or intention of their pastor but is permitted to act on their pastor’s behalf. When the pastor is temporarily unavailable to run their ecclesiastical province, it becomes run by their vicar. Only one vicar may be appointed unless express permission is granted from the High Pontiff, and the office of vicar cannot be entrusted to a blood relative of the pastor to the third degree.
§5. A diaconate is the office of a deacon (f: deaconess). A deacon is a layman who has been conferred that office after training for the priesthood without receiving ordination. A deacon should maintain a virtuous life with no public notoriety, but are exempt from limitations placed on monastics or members of the clergy such as inheriting land. A deacon is suitable to serve as concelebrant to a cleric celebrating a sacrament. It is preferred that, when no cleric is available to do so, a deacon should perform sacred ceremonies, should they be granted permission to do so from the local pastor, bishop or archbishop.

TITLE IV. ASSOCIATIONS OF THE CANONIST FAITHFUL

§1. The purpose of an association of the Canonist faithful is pious fraternity.

§2. The form of an association of Canonist faithful is an association constituted by the High Pontiff.

§3. Each association of the Canonist faithful shall be assigned a chaplain or personal prelate for its instruction in virtue.

CHAPTER 1. ORDERS OF HOLY KNIGHTHOOD

§1. The purpose of an Order of Holy Knighthood is the defense of the faithful and the Church through Holy Knights.

§2. The form of an Order of Holy Knighthood is a militant order constituted by the High Pontiff.

§3. Association within an Order of Holy Knighthood shall not constitute knighthood of itself. Only the High Pontiff may confer the rank of Holy Knight, or offices of leadership within such orders.

§4. Holy Knights swear vows of obedience to the High Pontiff and owe their allegiance first to his office.

§5. Holy Knights have no authority to enforce or interpret canon law beyond that which is expressly ordered to them by the High Pontiff.

§6. A person is automatically stripped of Holy Knighthood if he has:

Publicly defected from the Church.
Accepted another office expressly stated as incompatible with Holy Knighthood.
Evaded ecclesiastical authority.
Claimed authorities not expressly and licitly assigned to him, and does not recant these when admonished.

§7. An Order of Holy Knighthood is automatically disestablished if:

It retains, for two consecutive years, no members who have made their status known to the High Pontiff, unless expressly provided for.
Its leader is stripped of Holy Knighthood yet continues to exercise leadership functions.

§8. Holy Knights of an order which is disestablished are also stripped of their knightly status, unless expressly provided for.

CHAPTER 2. MONASTIC ORDERS

§1. The purpose of a monastic order is the association of monastic brothers and sisters for the promotion of virtuous living.

§2. A monastic order shall be led by a cleric.

§3. Laymen may associate with and participate in monastic orders, but they shall not be granted any office within them, nor shall they be referred to as brothers or sisters of that order.

§4. A monastic order is automatically disestablished if:

It retains, for two consecutive years, no members who have made their status known to the High Pontiff, unless expressly provided for.
Its leader is stripped of the monastic state yet continues to exercise leadership functions.

§5. Monastic brothers and sisters of an order which is disestablished retain their monastic status, unless expressly provided for.

CHAPTER 3. LAITY ASSOCIATIONS

§1. The purpose of a laity association is the fraternity of laymen for the promotion of virtuous living.

CHAPTER 4. THE ORDER OF THE BLACK SEPULCHRE

§1. The purpose of the Order of the Black Sepulchre is the acknowledgement of exceptional service by laymen to the Church. Its name derives from the ashen urns, or black sepulchres, carried by wandering templars of yore.

§2. The form of the Order of the Black Sepulchre is an association of Holy Knights.

§3. The leader and chaplain of the Order of the Black Sepulchre is the High Pontiff, who alone confers or revokes membership in it.

§4. Each Holy Knight of the Order of the Black Sepulchre shall be entrusted an urn containing the ashes of a saint or blessed, which is returned to the Church upon his death or other departure from the order.

CHAPTER 5. THE ORDER OF CANONICI

§1. The title of Canonicus (plural: Canonici) and with it membership of the Order of Canonici is an honor that serves to signify well-educated, wise members of the priesthood.
§2. The title of Canonicus can only be conferred by either the High Pontiff or the Prelate of the Priesthood.
§3. The leader and chaplain of the Order of Canonici is the Prelate of the Priesthood unless expressly stated otherwise.
§4. Any priest with the title of Canonicus can administer the theological exam an acolyte is required to pass for ordination, granted they first consult with the Prelate of the Priesthood and receive permission to do so - which may be done in writing - and the Canonicus subsequently submits a paper copy of the standard exam with the acolyte’s results to the Prelate’s office.
§5. Any priest who is appointed as a Cardinal but who has not yet been granted the title of Canonicus shall receive said title automatically. This is not the case for laymen who may be appointed as Cardinals.
§6. Any priest with the title of Canonicus may issue a Responsum (plural: Responsa), a written piece of advice or legal ruling on a religious matter. Laymen seeking advice or theological input on a secular matter must also consult a Canonicus, who may then issue a Responsum.
§7. Should a Canonicus no longer be deemed deserving of their title because of improper conduct or Responsa that do not align with Scripture or Church Doctrine, the High Pontiff may remove them from the Order of Canonici.
§8. Members of the Order of Canonici are encouraged to write theological theses in order to further the Church’s understanding of scripture and Canon Law.

BOOK III. THE SANCTIFYING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. THE SACRAMENTS

§1. A sacrament is an expression of the spiritual authority of the Exalted that is conferred upon the priesthood, enacted through a ceremony.

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR ALL SACRAMENTS

§1. A sacrament is considered valid if all requirements for its celebration are met.

§2. An invalid sacrament has no spiritual or legal effect.

§3. A valid sacrament is binding and permanent, unless it is dissolved.

§4. A sacrament celebrated by a cleric is presumed to be valid unless there is flagrant and public knowledge which contravenes its validity.

§5. All sacraments must be celebrated by an ordained cleric acting consistently with the canon law and their superior.

§6. All parties to a sacrament must participate voluntarily.

§7. All parties to a sacrament must, to the best of their knowledge, believe all requirements for validity are met at the time the sacrament is celebrated. The celebrant shall provide that other parties to the sacrament are aware of these requirements.

§8. All parties to the sacrament must be baptized Canonists, except where the purpose of the sacrament is their baptism into the faith.

§9. If there is perilous need, ablution for the purposes of baptism or anointing of the sick may be performed by any baptized faithful, as an ablution in extremis.

§10. The cleric celebrating the sacrament is the celebrant.

§11. A cleric acting in a supplementary fashion to a sacrament is a concelebrant, and shall only be necessary for its validity as is provided for by the canon law.

§12. No cleric shall be obliged to celebrate a sacrament which violates his conscience.

§13. When possible, a sacrament should be accompanied by a mass.

§14. The celebrant must make all efforts to ensure the validity of a sacrament before it is to be celebrated.

§15. The violation of holy vows does not annul or dissolve their associated sacrament per se, although such a violation may be provided as evidence in the course of such a declaration.

§16. None should be party to a sacrament if his participation is prohibited by ecclesiastical penalties such as interdiction or excommunication.

§17. A sacrament shall not be celebrated by a cleric upon himself; in these cases, it shall be required that a sacrament is celebrated by one cleric upon the other.

§18. It is desirable that all Canonists should devote their lives to God through the reception of sacraments.

CHAPTER 2. MATRIMONY

§1. The purpose of matrimony is the holy union of a man and a woman, modeling Ex. Horen and St. Julia.

§2. The form of matrimony is a ceremony with the mutual sharing of vows between the prospective spouses, and at least one competent witness aside from the celebrant.

§3. Each prospective spouse must be unmarried and at least 18 years of age - as instituted by High Pontiff Tylos II's encyclical letter.

Where a prospective spouse has previously attempted to contract an invalid or unconsummated marriage, an annulment must have been issued.
Where a prospective spouse has previously contracted a marriage which was dissolved, express permission must be granted from the High Pontiff to wed again.

§4. Each prospective spouse must not be bound by holy vows which would prohibit consummation.

§5. Each prospective spouse must intend that the union should bear children and that the children should be raised in the Canonist faith.

§6. Each prospective spouse must not be the parent, child, niece, nephew, aunt, uncle, brother, or sister of the other, either by marriage or by blood.

§7. Neither prospective spouse shall have, in the course of either’s life, assumed a familial role to the other for reasons of guardianship, adoption, or the marriage of a parent or sibling. Where such a relationship did exist but for such a duration or distance as to not have impacted the mental or spiritual maturation of either spouse, express permission must be granted from the High Pontiff.

§8. Each prospective spouse must be of the same race, and of a race delineated along the lines of the Four Brothers.

§9. A marriage including at least one spouse of mixed descent is not valid unless it should bear children of at least three quarters descent of one descendant race.

§9. If a prospective spouse is of mixed descent including human blood to the fourth degree, it shall not be valid unless it should bear children of at least three quarters human blood.

§10. The marriage must be consummated in order for the sacrament to be completed and validated.

§11. If the prospective husband is an acolyte or cleric, the matrimony must be celebrated by his superior or one acting on his behalf.

§12. Cardinals and the High Pontiff shall not marry, nor is a married individual eligible for these offices.

§13. If it is desired by both spouses, they may make a nonbinding promise to remain celibate within the union, as St. Catherine did. In this case, the sacrament will not be invalidated for reasons of non-consummation unless, being denied consummation upon requests, one party later petitions for annulment.

§14. The prospective spouses must have obtained the permissions required by civil law, if such permission is legally necessary, and the Church judges the purpose of the law to be licit and within the sacramental purposes of matrimony.

CHAPTER 3. ORDINATION

§1. The purpose of ordination is the induction of people into the priesthood.

§2. The form of ordination is a public ceremony involving the swearing of vows to God, whereby the acolyte pledges to instruct others in virtue and to act as a guardian of the Holy Scrolls

§3. The recipient of the ordination must be an acolyte of the Church.

§4. The acolyte must be a descendant who is competent and has attained the age of reason.

§5. The acolyte must be of good character, having no notoriety and publicly living a virtuous life.

§6. The acolyte must not be bound by oaths of service which would impact their duties as a cleric.

§7. The acolyte must be educated in the Holy Scrolls.

§8. An ordination must be approved by the pastor of the ecclesiastical province in which it occurs.

§9. An ordination must be approved by the High Pontiff or one acting on his behalf, generally the Prelate of the Priesthood.

§10. One who has received a valid ordination is a cleric.

CHAPTER 4. CONSECRATION

§1. The purpose of consecration is the sanctification of individuals, offices, objects, or places, by the swearing of holy vows.

§2. The form of consecration is a ceremony involving the swearing of vows, the affirmation of faith, or sanctifying prayers.

§3. The subject of the consecration must be suitable for a holy purpose, having no notoriety or unholy nature.

§4. A person being consecrated must live a publicly virtuous life and profess Canonism.

§5. A place, object, or office being consecrated must have a purpose for advancing virtuous living.

§6. A person being consecrated must speak, to the best of their knowledge, the truth in the course of the consecration. They must intend to carry out their vows to the best of their ability.

§7. Consecration celebrated for the purposes of coronation or investiture must be expressly permitted by the High Pontiff. Any cleric acting on his behalf may perform the coronation.

§8. The coronation or investiture of a Canonist prince shall not be valid, and shall have no legal or spiritual effect, unless it is celebrated as a valid consecration.

§9. Holy vows sworn as part of consecration may include terms under which they may be discharged, such as by the superior of a consecrated monastic.

CHAPTER 5. ABLUTION

§1. The purpose of ablution is the cleansing of the stain of sin from the penitent, thereby bringing spiritual nearness to God.

§2. The form of ablution is sprinkling of, or immersion in, holy water.

§3. The recipient of the ablution must be a sincere and penitent seeker of God.

§4. The celebrant of the ablution celebrates it according to his own conscience, delivering the sacrament to those who have completed terms of penance for their sins assigned by a confessor acting licitly.

§5. If the recipient of the ablution is not Canonist, he must understand that ablution inducts him into the faith permanently. In this case, the ablution is a baptism.

§6. If the recipient is nearing death, ablution may be delivered as an anointing of the sick with holy oil rather than holy water. In this case, confession of specific sins or the completion of terms of penance is not necessary, but desirable.

§7. Once baptized, a person remains subject to canon law eternally.

§8. It is desirable that, before he participates in a sacrament, one should be cleansed of sin through ablution.

TITLE II. THE SACRED CEREMONIES

§1. A sacred ceremony is an invocation of God for the purposes of the instruction of virtue.

§2. An excommunicant shall not participate in or receive sacred ceremonies, except confession, where this is concordant with the terms of their excommunication.

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR SACRED CEREMONIES

§1. A sacred ceremony should be performed by a priest or monastic, unless there is need.

§2. If it is necessary that a layman perform a sacred ceremony, it is preferred that he be a deacon; regardless he should make clear that he lacks the clerical state.

§3. A sacred ceremony has no sacramental effect of its own, except ablution in extremis.

CHAPTER 2. MASS

§1. The purpose of mass is the spiritual fraternity and public piety of the faithful.

§2. The form of mass is the performance of liturgies, prayers, and devotions to God in a holy site.

CHAPTER 3. EXORCISM

§1. The purpose of exorcism is the casting out of wicked forces which have possessed an individual.

§2. The form of exorcism is the invocation of God’s authority in casting out the possessor.

§3. An exorcism may be conducted by any cleric.

CHAPTER 4. FUNERARY RITE

§1. The purpose of the funerary rite is the soothing of the bereaved, and the solemn recognition of the decedent’s passing.

§2. The form of the funerary rite is a public ceremony in a holy site.

§3. The funeral is to take place in a holy site chosen by the decedent, or failing that the bereaved, or failing that the celebrant.

§4. The funeral of a cleric is to be celebrated by their superior or one acting on their behalf.

§5. After a funeral, the decedent is to be interred in a cemetery or crypt of the Church if possible, unless another tradition, such as cremation, is preferred.

§6. In any case, the decedent’s body is to be treated with reverence and solemnity.

CHAPTER 5. ABLUTION IN EXTREMIS

§1. The purpose of ablution in extremis is the celebration of ablution when there is extreme need and no cleric is available.

§2. The form of ablution in extremis is the sprinkling of clean water on a willing penitent by a baptized Canonist, followed by a profession of faith on the penitent’s part.

§3. Ablution in extremis is only conducted when a person urgently requires ablution, but captivity, distance, or mortal peril prevents them from reaching a willing cleric.

§4. The validity of an ablution in extremis is never assumed, though it is desired. If a penitent has received ablution in extremis, they are obliged to seek out a cleric and receive a sacramentally valid baptism as soon as possible.

§5. According to the extremity of the circumstances, all requirements for ablution in extremis should be met as far as possible in order to ensure validity. If some requirements cannot be met, the only essential requirement is that the penitent professes their faith to GOD and acknowledges the authority of the Church, even only mentally.

§6. An ablution in extremis has sacramental effect only if the recipient believes there is no other recourse to obtain an ordinary baptism.

CHAPTER 6. CONFESSION

§1. The purpose of expression is the modeling of humility and the acceptance of guilt for one’s sins, thereby seeking God’s forgiveness.

§2. The form of confession is the private confession of sins to a confessor, who delivers such spiritual guidance and assigns such terms of penance as are licit.

§3. One who receives confession is the confessor; one who confesses is the penitent.

§4. The confessor is obliged, upon the completion of the confession, to offer such prayers as are appropriate for the soul of the penitent.

§5. Unless there is grave need, confession should always be taken by a cleric who then celebrates a sacrament of ablution over the penitent.

TITLE III. ECCLESIASTICAL AUTHORITY OVER SACRED BONDS

§1. A sacrament creates a sacred bond which is normally indelible and permanent.

§2. In his role as inheritor of the High Priesthood and the Laurel of the Exalted, the High Pontiff may annul or dissolve sacraments.

CHAPTER 1. ANNULMENT

§1. If a sacrament is determined after the fact to have been invalid, the High Pontiff or one acting on his behalf may declare it to be so post facto. This declaration is an annulment.

§2. An annulled sacrament is considered to have never taken place.

§3. An annulment must be issued with a justification of the sacrament’s invalidity.

§4. If it is necessary for the preservation of virtue, sacraments celebrated by a presumed cleric whose ordination was later annulled may be considered to have been celebrated by the High Pontiff, through his authority as High Priest. If this is determined, it must be expressly provided for in the declaration.

CHAPTER 2. DISSOLUTION

§1. If the permanence of a sacrament poses mortal peril to one of its subjects’ soul or body, the High Pontiff may declare it to have ended. This declaration is a dissolution.

§2. A dissolved sacrament took place, but has no further spiritual or legal effect after it is dissolved.

§3. Dissolution of a sacrament is an invocation of the authority of the Laurel of the Exalted. It is to be entered into very prudently, and only declared there is no other recourse for the preservation of an individual’s virtue.

§4. A dissolution must be issued with a justification of its cause.

§5. Because it can never inhibit virtuous behavior, a baptism is never dissolved.

TITLE IV. VENERATION OF RELICS AND THE DEAD

§1. The purpose of veneration is the acknowledgement of the virtue of a deceased individual, for the further instruction of virtue among the faithful.

§2. The form of veneration is reverence of a deceased individual’s virtues or the petitioning of their intercession through prayer.

§3. Veneration is only suitable for the Exalted, or those who have been proclaimed a saint, blessed, or venerable by the appropriate processes.

§4. Once an individual is found to be suitable for veneration, this status may not be revoked, unless a procedural or factual error occurred which prevented them from being considered appropriately.

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR VENERATION

§1. For the better instruction of the faithful, subjects of veneration are represented through icons of themselves, icons of their relics, or their relics directly.

§2. Icons and relics are to be displayed in an appropriate manner so as not to promote idolatry nor confuse the worshippers as to the only subject of worship, God.

CHAPTER 2. EXALTED

§1. The Exalted are the four prophets of God who reside in the Sixth Sky, accompanied by their wives and the first man and woman.

§2. The Exalted are Horen, Owyn, Godfrey, and Sigismund.

§3. The wives of Exalted, despite residing in the Sixth Sky, still require the normal processes to be found suitable for veneration, and shall still be considered saints, blessed, or venerable according to the process.
§4. The Canonist Church affirms the historical and theological authenticity of the four Exalted as irreplaceable pillars of Canonist doctrine. Any attempt to deny, alter or substitute the Exalted constitutes heresy and shall be considered a breaking of Canon Law.
§5. The various rites of the Church reserve the right to focus their veneration more on one of the Exalted, but while they may neglect the others, they are not permitted to deny them outright. It is incumbent upon all members of the Canonist Church, including those of its various rites, to uphold and defend the integrity of the four prophets against any form of deviation or revisionism.

CHAPTER 3. SAINTS

§1. Saints are those Canonists who have died and attained a place in the Fifth Sky, having performed miracles and lived virtuously.

§2. Canonization is the process by which a saint’s place in the Fifth Sky is recognized and promulgated.

§3. In order to be considered for canonization, the prospective saint must:

Have been deceased for more than twenty years
Be a Canonist, or proven to be so after death,
Have lived a holy life,
Have previously been beatified,
Have two verified miracles attributed to their intercession

§4. An individual who meets the requirements may be proposed by the High Pontiff or a cardinal to the College of Cardinals for consideration, who shall vote upon their acceptance of the proposal. If there is no greater than one vote dissenting in the College, and the High Pontiff confirms this, the individual is a saint.

CHAPTER 4. BLESSED

§1. Blessed are those Canonists who have died and attained a place in at least the Fourth Sky, having lived especially virtuously.

§2. Beatification is the process by which a blessed’s place in the Fourth Sky is recognized and promulgated.

§3. In order to be considered for beatification must:

Have been deceased for more than five years,
Be a Canonist, or proven to be so after death,
Have lived a holy life,
Have one verified miracle attributed to their intercession

§4. An individual who meets the requirements may be proposed by the High Pontiff or a cardinal to the College of Cardinals for consideration, who shall vote upon their acceptance of the proposal. If one half of the College agrees, and the High Pontiff confirms this, the individual is blessed.

CHAPTER 5. VENERABLE

§1. Venerable are those Canonists who have died and assuredly attained a place somewhere in the Seven Skies.

§2. The status of venerable is conferred by the High Pontiff.

TITLE V. SACRED PLACES AND OBJECTS

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR SACRED PLACES AND OBJECTS

§1. Sacred places and objects are those which model the holiness of Ex. Horen’s tabernacle, requiring special behaviors on the part of believers.

§2. No iniquity should be perpetrated in sacred places or involving sacred objects.

CHAPTER 2. CHURCHES

§1. A church is a sacred place defined as a house of worship for the faithful.

§2. No prospective church is to be built without the written consent of the pastor of its ecclesiastical province.

§3. A newly constructed church is to be consecrated as soon as possible.

§4. Entry to a church is free and unlimited to the faithful.

§5. All acts of worship may occur in a church that has been consecrated.

§6. If a church later proves to be incapable of acting as a place of worship, its pastor may dissolve the consecration upon it without consulting the High Pontiff. It may be relegated to profane use.

§7. No violence is to occur in a church.

CHAPTER 3. CATHEDRALS AND BASILICAS

§1. A cathedral is a church which is the seat of the High Pontiff, a patriarch, an archbishop, or a bishop.

§2. A basilica is a cathedral which has been granted the special honor of this name by the High Pontiff.

CHAPTER 4. ORATORIES

§1. An oratory is a place of worship restricted to use by a specific community.

§2. An oratory may not be established by a pastor without visiting the site of the oratory physically.

§3. No oratory is to be constructed without the written consent of the pastor of its ecclesiastical province.

CHAPTER 5. SHRINES

§1. A shrine is a place of pilgrimage for the faithful.

§2. Offerings at a shrine are to be guarded securely.

CHAPTER 6. ALTARS

§1. All churches shall have a fixed altar of stone when possible.

§2. An altar is to be blessed on the consecration of a church.

§3. A body is not to be buried under an altar.

CHAPTER 7. CEMETERIES AND CRYPTS

§1. A church is to have its own cemetery or crypt when possible.

§2. If it is impossible for a church to have a cemetery or crypt, it is the duty of the pastor to bless individual graves.

CHAPTER 8. HOLY LANDS

§1. A holy land is a region over which the High Pontiff possesses temporal authority, which is consecrated for a holy purpose.

§2. Holy lands, once consecrated as such, become the property of the office of High Pontiff.

§3. Holy lands are to be used for the good of the faithful.

§4. Holy lands are to remain comparatively small in area to those lands possessed by secular princes, to preserve the harmony between crown and laurel.

§5. The laws and authorities of holy lands are to be subject to and in harmony with the rulings of the Church.

§6. Day-to-day leadership of the holy lands shall be assigned to an appropriate individual by the High Pontiff, generally the Regent of the Holy Palatinate.

§7. Holy lands shall always owe their first fealty and obedience to the High Pontiff.

§8. Holy lands may fall under the protection of a temporal authority, with the terms of this protection determined in a concordat.

§9. A High Pontiff may deconsecrate holy lands in order to cede them or relegate them to profane use.

CHAPTER 9. THE CROSS

§1. The purpose of the Holy Cross is to symbolize the faith through correspondence to the cosmology of the Seven Skies, the World, and the Void.

§2. The form of the Holy Cross is a one-barred, two-barred, three-barred, or four-barred cross.

CHAPTER 10. THE STAR OF ARCHANGEL MICHAEL

§1. The purpose of the Star of Archangel Michael is to symbolize the intervention of God in the world through His angels.

§2. The form of the Star of Archangel Michael is a white star of four, seven, or ten points on a red field.

CHAPTER 11. RELICS AND ICONS

§1. Relics are items having a holy association with an Exalted, saint, or blessed.

§2. Icons are depictions of individuals suitable for veneration or of their relics.

§3. It is forbidden to sell relics.

§4. He is to have the permission of the High Pontiff to repair any relic or holy image.

CHAPTER 12. THE RIGHT OF SANCTUARY

§1. The right of sanctuary occurs if an accused criminal enters a church before they are arrested. The accused is given sanctuary for up to three days to confess his sins and obtain terms of penance.

§2. Those pursuing the accused must remain outside the church and guard it to ensure the accused does not escape.

§3. A legal coroner must come to confiscate the criminal’s goods. He may assign the accused a port of exile where they may take exile for their crimes.

TITLE VI. SACRED TIMES

§1. Sacred times are periods set aside for specific holy practices and behaviors, namely the veneration of particular individuals or the celebration of certain events.

§2. Sacred times are established by the High Pontiff.

§3. The Church may provide a liturgical calendar with prescribed periodic celebrations.

§4. Other sacred times may be established ad hoc by the High Pontiff for the Church and pastors for their ecclesiastical provinces.

§5. A Year of Jubilee is a sacred time proclaimed by the High Pontiff or set forth in the liturgical calendar, during which certain behaviors may be commanded or proscribed.

§6. War between Canonist states is always prohibited during a Year of Jubilee.

§7. Waging war during a Year of Jubilee, unless it be in self-defense, incurs automatic provincial interdiction upon the belligerent ecclesiastical province.

BOOK IV. THE PURIFYING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. THE JURISDICTION OF CANON LAW

§1. No one is punished by ecclesiastical penalty unless they commit a breach of canon law.

§2. No one has committed a breach of canon law if they lacked competency at the time of the act.

§3. No one has committed a breach of canon law if they did not voluntarily commit the criminal act, or by negligence allow it to occur.

§4. Those who breach the canon law shall be held liable.

§5. A sin is not always a breach of canon law, unless it also be flagrant and unrepentant.

§6. A person who commits a sin which does not receive ecclesiastical penalty is still accountable for judgement before God.

§7. A person who commits an act which appears to breach the canon law, but is in fact performing the regular, legitimate, and virtuous duties of his ecclesiastical office, is not liable.

§8. No person is without sin.

CHAPTER 1. COMPETENCY

§1. Competency is the quality of possessing mental and spiritual capacity to be held accountable for one’s actions.

§2. The age of reason, defined as twelve years old, is the age at which a child attains limited competency and some level of moral culpability for his actions.

§3. The age of majority, defined as sixteen years old, is the age at which adulthood and full competency over one's actions are attained.

§4. No one is considered competent if they have not attained the age of reason.

§5. If a person is incompetent or of limited competency, they shall be entrusted to a guardian who will represent their interests, governing them and acting in their stead.

§6. A person who is incompetent may not always remain so; nevertheless, an person who is habitually incompetent shall always be presumed to be incompetent, unless it can be assured otherwise.

§7. The judge shall determine a party to a trial’s competency.

TITLE II. THE TOPICS OF CANON LAW

CHAPTER 1. CRIMES AGAINST VIRTUE

§1. A person who utters or publishes blasphemy, or incites contempt of or sedition against the Church, has committed a crime.

§2. A person who engages in concubinage, adultery, or fornication has committed a crime.

§3. A person who practices dark magics or devilry has committed a crime.

§4. A person who is gravely irreverent of a corpse, sacred place, sacred object, an individual suitable for veneration, or a relic, has committed the crime of sacrilege.

§5. A person who violates holy vows has committed a crime.

§6. A person who murders another has committed a crime.

§7. A person who murders one has not obtained the age of majority, including by procuring an abortion, incurs excommunication automatically.

§8. A person who has carnal relations with another outside of their race has committed a crime.

§9. A person who steals from the Church has committed a crime.

§10. A person who denies the existence of God has committed the crime of atheism.

§11. A person who lies in the course of a sacrament has committed a crime.

§12. A person who conspires or attempts to commit a breach of canon law has committed a crime.

§13. A person who encourages or commands the breach of canon law has committed a crime.

CHAPTER 2. CRIMES AGAINST THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH

§1. An unrepentant apostate, schismatic, or heretic incurs excommunication automatically.

§2. A person participating in prohibited sacraments or ceremonies has committed a crime.

§3. A guardian who permits their ward to enter a heretic or pagan religion has committed a crime.

§4. A person who professes or teaches a doctrine explicitly forbidden by the High Pontiff has committed a crime.

§5. A person who joins a group which plots against the Church incurs excommunication automatically.

§6. A person who aids or gives shelter to an excommunicant has committed the crime of harboring.

§7. A cleric who incites contempt for the Church among the faithful has committed a crime.

§8. A human who professes a pagan faith despite knowledge of the Covenant of Purity has committed the crime of apostasy.

§9. A person who violates a proclamation of anathematization has committed a crime.

CHAPTER 3. CRIMES AGAINST ECCLESIASTICAL AUTHORITY

§1. A person who uses physical force against the High Pontiff incurs excommunication automatically.

§2. A person who uses excessive physical force against a pastor has committed a crime.

§3. A person who initiates violence on holy grounds has committed a crime.

§4. A person who unjustly prevents a pastor from exercising their authorities or celebrating sacraments has committed a crime.

§5. A person who insults or threatens a cleric has committed a crime.

§6. A person who sells a sacred place, sacred object, ecclesiastical office, or the use thereof, has committed a crime.

§7. A person who disobeys the legitimate order of a superior has committed a crime.

§8. A confessor who assigns forbidden terms of penance has committed a crime.

§9. A person who lies in the course of an ecclesiastical trial has committed a crime.

§10. A person who obstructs the justice of the Church has committed a crime.

§11. A person who illegitimately attempts to enforce canon law has committed a crime.

§12. A person who misuses ecclesiastical authority for the furtherance of personal interests has committed a crime.

CHAPTER 4. CRIMES AGAINST TRUTH

§1. A person who falsifies miracles or sacraments incurs excommunication automatically.

§2. A person who celebrates a forbidden sacrament or sacred ceremony has committed a crime.

§3. A person who claims ecclesiastical authorities or offices not due to them has committed a crime.

§4. A Canonist who worships anyone but God, the Creator, has committed a crime.

§5. A Canonist who posits an equal to or separate person within God has committed a crime.

CHAPTER 5. CRIMES AGAINST THE COVENANTS

§1. A person who breaches or attempts to bring about a breach of the Covenants of the Exalted has committed a crime.

§2. The Covenant of Instruction was sworn by Ex. Horen, swearing all humanity to instruct others in virtue. It shall be a breach of this covenant if the person intends to inhibit the instruction of virtue in itself.

§3. The Covenant of Purity was sworn by Ex. Owyn, swearing all humanity to purity in faith and blood. It shall be a breach of this covenant if a person intends to promote impurity of faith or blood among the Sons of Horen.

§4. The Covenant of Sovereignty was sworn by Ex. Godfrey, swearing that the Throne of Man shall never be held by an elf, dwarf, orc, or mage. It shall be a breach of this covenant if such an individual takes the Throne of Man, or if one considers him to have done so legitimately.

TITLE III. PENANCE

§1. The purpose of penance is the demonstration of sincere regret for one’s sins and the acceptance of holy authority on the part of the penitent.

§2. The form of penance is the completion by the penitent of terms established by a confessor.

§3. Terms of penance shall not stray beyond those listed in the canon law, unless expressly provided for by the High Pontiff.

§4. If there is a question of the justness of terms of penance, the confessor’s superior should be consulted. The superior may approve the given penance, or assign new ones.

§5. No penance shall ever involve unholy or forbidden acts.

§6. Penance should be proportional and salient to the nature of the penitent’s sins.

§7. Terms of penance should be issued with the belief on the confessor’s part that they are realistically achievable.

§8. Terms of penance are issued as a means of purification and the rectification of the spirit, not as a form of vengeance.

§9. If it is necessary for the function of an ecclesiastical court, terms of penance may be established prior to the celebration of an ablution.

CHAPTER 1. PRAYER AND STUDY

§1. Prayer may be prescribed, in general, with any amount of specificity as to the nature, amount, or period of the prayer.

§2. No confessor shall require prayer on behalf of himself.

§3. Study may be prescribed, in general, or of specific subjects.

CHAPTER 2. PUBLIC PIETY

§1. Public piety may be prescribed, in general, or of a specific kind.

§2. Public piety is not to be imposed for any transgression which is not already known to the public.

CHAPTER 3. CHARITABLE ACTS

§1. Charitable acts may be prescribed, in general, or of a specific kind or amount.

§2. Charitable acts may consist of alms, labor, or any service to others.

§3. Prescribed charitable acts should first benefit the least fortunate members of society.

§4. Prescribed charitable acts should benefit Canonists before members of other faiths, unless it is salient to the penitent’s sins that the charity be to the benefit of non-Canonists.

§5. Prescribed charitable acts should not in any way financially benefit the confessor, nor their office, friends, family, or colleagues.

§6. Prescribed charitable acts should reflect the ability of the penitent to actually carry out the acts; that is, they should not be in amounts or acts they are not capable of realistically achieving.

§7. In general, prayer and public piety should be preferred above charitable acts in the assignment of penance, unless particularly salient to the penitent’s sins.

§8. Where a confessor intends to assign charitable acts, they should first inquire of the penitent what acts they would consider appropriate. The penitent is obliged to respond honestly. The confessor is obliged to take this information into account, but is not bound by it.

TITLE IV. ECCLESIASTICAL PENALTIES

§1.The purpose ecclesiastical penalty is the admonition of the subject and the provision of opportunity for their redemption.

§2. Ecclesiastical penalties are issued only for violations of canon law.

§3. Ecclesiastical penalties are issued only by the Church.

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PRESCRIPTIONS FOR ECCLESIASTICAL PENALTIES

§1. Ecclesiastical penalties do not require the consent of the subject.

§2. Ecclesiastical penalties are only issued for breaches of canon law.

§3. Terms of penance are established when an ecclesiastical penalty is issued.

§4. Once terms of penance are completed to the satisfaction of the appropriate authority, the accompanying ecclesastical penalty should be lifted.

§5. Interdiction and excommunication are issued and lifted only with the approval of the High Pontiff.

§6. If an ecclesiastical penalty is issued automatically by force of law, terms of penance should be issued by the appropriate authority when it becomes known.

§7. Terms of penance may be withheld until the subject undergoes trial in an ecclesiastical court.

§8. Annulment or dissolution of a sacrament is never issued as an ecclesiastical penalty.

CHAPTER 2. PENANCE

§1. Mandatory penance may be imposed as an ecclesiastical penalty, with terms decided by the appropriate authority.

§2. Mandatory penance is the preferred ecclesiastical penalty.

CHAPTER 3. PERSONAL INTERDICTION

§1. The purpose of personal interdiction is to chasten the penitent into penance.

§2. The form of personal interdiction is the temporary limitation of the penitent’s interaction with the Church.

§3. An interdicted person shall not receive or participate in any sacrament except ablution.

§4. An interdicted cleric is prohibited from celebrating sacraments except ablution.

§5. An interdicted person shall not enter sacred places unless it is necessary for their penance or the fulfillment of their ecclesiastical duties.

§6. An interdicted person is bound to complete the terms of their penance with all speed.

§7. A person who knowingly remains under personal interdiction for more than four years automatically incurs excommunication, unless expressly provided for by the appropriate authority.

CHAPTER 4. PROVINCIAL INTERDICTION

§1. The purpose of provincial interdiction is to chasten the parishioners of an ecclesiastical province, and to spur them to action.

§2. The form of provincial interdiction is the temporary prohibition of certain sacraments and practices within an ecclesiastical province.

§3. Consecrations and ordinations are not celebrated in an interdicted province.

§4. Ablutions are celebrated only for the purposes of baptism and anointing of the sick, with exceptions for yearly penance made during the month of Sun’s Smile

§5. Matrimonies and all sacred ceremonies are always permitted in an interdicted province.

§6. In all cases, the Church will not conduct events of celebration or merriment in the interdicted provinces. Sacraments and ceremonies should be austere, with no decoration or feasting.

§7. Pastors providing spiritual care in an interdicted province should remind their parishioners of the causes of the interdiction and how it may be lifted.

§8. A sacrament celebrated by a cleric which is forbidden for reasons of interdiction is valid only insofar as the celebrant was not aware of the interdiction at the time of celebration.

§9. Interdiction is issued when the ruler or populace of an ecclesiastical province flagrantly and unrepentantly disregards virtue or ecclesiastical authority.

CHAPTER 5. EXCOMMUNICATION

§1. The purpose of excommunication is the recognition that one has rejected the truth of the Church. An excommunicated person is an excommunicant.

§2. The form of excommunication is the severe restriction of the excommunicant’s interaction with the Church.

§2. An excommunicant is forbidden from participation in any sacraments, sacred ceremonies, or celebrations within the church.

§3. Any sacraments celebrated on an excommunicant are invalid ab initio, although sacraments already celebrated before the excommunication remain in place.

§4. An excommunicant is forbidden from entering a church or holy site.

§5. An excommunicant is not suitable for association or fraternity with the faithful, and they are engendered to shun and reject them except where there is extreme need.

§6. An excommunicant remains subject to the canon law, though bound by all provisions according to their status. Provision of excommunication supersede all rights of the faithful.

§7. Excommunication is not issued for mere presence in an ecclesiastical province.

§8. According to those terms set forth in his excommunication, an excommunicant may be entitled to the service of a specific confessor, for the purposes of his reconciliation into the Church.

CHAPTER 6. ANATHEMATIZATION

§1. The purpose of anathematization is the protection of Canonists from sinful organizations, individuals, or doctrines.

§2. The form of anathematization is a prohibition on Canonists from associating with, professing, or supporting the subject of anathema.

§3. That which is anathema is judged to be contrary to the promotion of virtue.

§4. Canonists residing in lands under the rule of one who has been pronounced anathema should make all efforts to overthrow them, or failing that, to flee their rule.

TITLE V. FAMILY AND RACE

§1. Determining the racial and familial descent of individuals is of paramount importance for the proper application of canon law.

§2. A person is the race of their parents, if both are of the same race.

§3. If a person is of mixed descent, they are the race comprising their primary descent, that which comprises the largest portion of their blood.

§4. If a person is of equal parts descended from multiple races, and these races comprise the largest portion of their blood, the Church shall determine their race.

§5. If a person’s parentage is unclear, the Church shall determine their descent according to the appropriate processes.

§6. The Church shall endeavor, through the sacrament of marriage, to preserve racial purity and discourage admixture as much as possible.

CHAPTER 1. MATRIMONY AND INHERITANCE

§1. It is the prerogative of licit temporal authorities to determine matters of succession and inheritance, including even legitimate issue’s suitability to receive such inheritance.

CHAPTER 2. GUARDIANSHIP

§1. Guardianship is the responsibility to care for the interests and personal property of another.

§2. Adults are considered their own guardian unless judged incompetent.

§3. The guardian of a child or an incompetent is its parents, with priority given to the father.

§4. An ecclesiastical court may assign a person another guardian if necessary for the promotion of virtue.

§5. An ecclesiastical court may, if desired, defer to the rulings of a temporal authority in determining guardianship.

CHAPTER 3. DESCENDANT RACES

§1. Descendants are those descending from human, elvish, dwarvish, or orcish blood, or any admixture thereof.

§2. Only descendants shall be suitable for matrimony.

CHAPTER 4. NON-DESCENDANTS

§1. Non-descendants are those persons possessing a demonstrable light of wisdom, which is sapience, but who by reason of magical or diabolical interference have obtained abnormal traits which set them apart from descendant races.

§2. Non-descendant sapients, by virtue of possessing a light of wisdom, continue to receive the protection of the Church.

§3. Non-descendant sapients are not suitable to receive or administer sacraments except ablution.

§4. Reproduction by a Canonist non-descendant is forbidden.

§5. Reproduction by a pagan non-descendant is discouraged by not punishable by ecclesiastical penalty.

§6. Where an individual lived some of their life as a descendant, but was later affected by magicks so as to cause a question of race, their race shall be determined by the Church.

CHAPTER 5. DETERMINING RACIAL STATUS

§1. Where there is a question of a person’s race, it should be determined by an ecclesiastical court.

§2. The factors taken into account shall be the person’s lineage, appearance, cultural practices, residence, and the testimony of experts.

§3. An ecclesiastical court may, if desired, defer to the rulings of a temporal authority in determining racial status.

CHAPTER 6. NATURAL MARRIAGE

§1. A natural marriage is one contracted between pagans who, having no sacramental access through the priesthood, make their own provisions according to the natural law that pre-existed the revelation of the Virtue.

§2. A natural marriage is contracted when two unmarried pagans, meeting the requirements for racial purity and monogamy, profess that they are married by whatever ceremonies or prescriptions are familiar to them.

§3. If one spouse in a natural marriage should be baptized, it is permitted that the couple remain married; however it is desirable that the Canonist spouse should seek his partner’s conversion.

§4. If persons in a natural marriage should both convert to Canonism, their union should be sanctified in a sacramental marriage as soon as possible.

§5. Children of a natural marriage in which one spouse converts to Canonism should be raised as Canonists.

TITLE VI. MAGIC

§1. Magic is the supernatural manipulation of the world, or the use of voidal properties, including the use of aengulic or druidic powers.

§2. Miracles, being God’s intervention in the world either directly or through intercessors, are not magic.

§3. Magic is tolerated where it does not inhibit virtue nor promote sin.

§4. Magic is forbidden to Canonists where it involves worship of any being, or obedience to a creed that has a cause contrary to virtue.

§5. Practitioners of magic are to be particularly careful in their observance of Canonism, referring frequently to a confessor for examination of sin.

CHAPTER 1. ANGELIC VENERATION AND INTERCESSION

§1. The veneration of angels is permissible for the sake of spiritual edification.

§2. Veneration that creates a magical tether between the venerator and the venerated is always forbidden.

CHAPTER 2. MORTALITY AND JUDGEMENT

§1. Those who die are typically judged immediately, and enter either the Seven Skies or the Void, as appropriate.

§2. It is possible but not desirable that one should die, but his spirit still lingers in the world of the living.

§3. It is possible but not desirable that one whose spirit lingers a short time after his death may yet be returned to life.

§4. It is forbidden that one who has obtained the clerical state should be returned to life by magic.

§5. It is forbidden that one who has been crowned as a Canonist prince should be returned to life by magic.

CHAPTER 3. SPIRITUAL APPARITIONS

§1. Spiritual apparitions are appearances of the dead in the land of the living, particularly as ghosts or visions.

§2. Because they may be either an intercessory apparition by one who has entered the Seven Skies, or a infernal haunting by the iniquitous dead, it is necessary that spiritual apparitions be judged for righteousness.

§3. An intercessory apparition will not give general revelation, this being reserved to the prophets, but he may give particular revelations, concerning the lives, immediate circumstances, or Virtue of those he addresses.

§4. An intercessory apparition will not linger in the land of the living beyond the time necessary to achieve his virtuous goal, as he will be innately eager to return to his home in the Seven Skies.

§5. An infernal haunting will seek to imitate the living, residing amongst them and controlling them.

CHAPTER 4. FORBIDDEN MAGICKS

§1. All magicks deriving from a sinful source, and those requiring or promoting sin by their nature, are forbidden.

§2. Magic used in the reanimation of the dead, the binding of spirits, or other interference with the natural barrier between life and death is always forbidden.

§3. Magic having the effect of impeding the free will, corrupting the mind, or directly influencing the soul of sapients is always forbidden.

§4. Magic involving corrupt practices such as blasphemy, occultism, necromancy, devilry, or idolatry is always forbidden.

§5. Magic which achieves enduring and unnatural physical transformation in sapients is always forbidden.

CHAPTER 5. ALCHEMY AND NATURAL PHILOSOPHY

§1. The manipulation of natural or preternatural properties by certain processes, called alchemy or natural philosophy, is permissible.

§2. All canon law that applies to the practice of magic applies similarly to the practice of alchemy.

BOOK V. THE PRESERVING FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

TITLE I. PROMULGATION OF CANON LAW

§1. A canon law is promulgated when it is approved by the appropriate authority and made available to its subjects.

TITLE II. ECCLESIASTICAL DECREES

§1. Ecclesiastical decrees are promulgations of rulings and canon laws by pastors.

§2. Ecclesiastical decrees are binding for all whom they are issued.

§3. An ecclesiastical decree is not required for the conferral or revocation of an ecclesiastical office to take effect. Such actions take effect as soon as they are made clear to concerned parties.

§4. An ecclesiastical decree in which its issuer defects from the church is invalid in its entirety.

§5. Sections of an ecclesiastical decree which include some defect of truth or authority are automatically invalidated without affecting other sections.

CHAPTER 1. GOLDEN BULLS

§1. Golden bulls are issued periodically by the High Pontiff, documenting and promulgating changes within the Church.

§2. Golden bulls are named and numbered after the city whence they were issued.

§3. Changes in canon law, if at all possible, should be included in a Golden Bull.

§4. Golden bulls should, if possible, be presented to the Curia for consideration before they are promulgated.

§5. Each Golden Bull should contain a roster of every cardinal, curate, nuncio, and pastor within the Church at the time it is issued.

CHAPTER 2. PONTIFICAL LETTERS

§1. Pontifical letters are issued as necessary by the High Pontiff, documenting and promulgating the occurrence, annulment, or dissolution of sacraments; the conferral or revocation of offices and dignities; the levying of ecclesiastical penalties; the announcement of sacred times or places; the rulings of ecclesiastical courts; or any other execution of the High Pontiff’s authorities, where it is not expedient that they be included in a Golden Bull.

CHAPTER 3. MINOR BULLS

§1. Minor bulls are issued by pastors of ecclesiastical provinces for documentation and promulgation of the following:

Establishment of subsidiary organizations of the Church in the province
Changes to ecclesiastical offices within the province
Establishing a diocesan college for the nomination of the province’s pastor
Updating residents of the province on the faith’s progress or status
Announce significant events or occasions within the province

§2. Minor bulls may not contravene or usurp the authority of superiors or the Church.

CHAPTER 4. RULINGS OF ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS

§1. A ruling of an ecclesiastical court is issued by the judge of the trial.

§2. Rulings of ecclesiastical courts should be made available to all parties to the trial and to the judge’s superior.

TITLE III. TEMPORAL AUTHORITIES

§1. Temporal authorities are those having worldly authority, in contrast to the sole spiritual authority of the Church.

§2. There is no spiritual authority outside the Church, as appointed by God.

CHAPTER 1. RECOGNITION OF TEMPORAL OF AUTHORITIES

§1. Temporal authorities may have the quality of licity, which spiritually obliges Canonists to obey their orders.

§2. Temporal authorities lacking licity are illicit, that is, having no just or virtuous claim to the exercise of their power.

§3. The faithful are not spiritually obliged to obey illicit temporal authorities.

§4. Temporal authorities are assumed to be licit unless expressly provided.

§5. Only the High Pontiff shall rule on the licity of temporal authorities.

§6. Generally, licit temporal authorities are in keeping with the Church’s understanding of the proper order of the world, serving no purpose to hinder its work.

§7. Lack of virtue on the part of a temporal authority does not automatically rule them illicit. Ex. Owyn served faithfully in the court of King Harren, despite the latter’s wickedness.

§8. Accreditation of an ambassador of the Church to a temporal authority shall not necessarily imply licity on that temporal authority’s part.

§9. Particular acts, offices, laws, or individuals may be declared illicit without affecting the licity of those others which produce or support them.

§10. It is desirable for the promotion of harmony between the crown and the laurel that the High Pontiff is tolerant in his judgements of temporal authorities.

CHAPTER 2. INTERACTION WITH TEMPORAL AUTHORITIES

§1. The Church shall strive to maintain harmony between the crown and the laurel, which are the temporal and the spiritual, this being the command of Ex. Sigismund.

§2. No temporal authority shall govern or punish the proper application of canon law.

§3. No spiritual authority shall govern or punish the licit application of temporal authority.

CHAPTER 3. CANONIST PRINCES

§1. The purpose of a Canonist prince is to rule virtuously in keeping with the Canonist faith, for the good of his subjects.

§2. The form of a Canonist prince is the Canonist ruler of a realm possessing sovereignty, or a Canonist ruler owing fealty directly to such a prince.

§3. A Canonist prince is never obliged to accept the rule of a pagan.

§4. A Canonist prince must acknowledge the spiritual authority of the Church in its entirety.

§5. A Canonist prince must, upon assuming his office, receive coronation or investiture into it through a valid sacrament of consecration authorized by the High Pontiff. If this is not possible, he assumes office normally, but is obliged to speedily obtain an appropriate coronation or investiture.

§6. A Canonist prince is entitled and obliged to receive pastors into their lands for the spiritual care of the faithful.

§7. A Canonist prince is obliged to make all efforts to provide for the authorities of the Church and the application of canon law in their realm. It is desirable that temporal authorities should provide appropriate justice such that ecclesiastical courts are infrequently required.

§8. A Canonist prince has no authority to prohibit a lawfully appointed pastor from the appropriate exercise of his office. Nevertheless, it is desirable that the pastor of a realm be kept in harmony with its prince, for the better care of the faithful.

§9. A Canonist prince has no power to assign ecclesiastical offices by virtue of his temporal authority.

§10. An excommunicant prince incurs provincial interdiction upon his realm automatically. This interdiction is lifted automatically should he leave office or if his excommunication is lifted.

§11. An excommunicant prince who remains in this status for four consecutive years automatically becomes illicit, unless expressly provided for by the High Pontiff. Additionally, Canonists are obliged to make all virtuous efforts to reconvert him, or failing that, to overthrow him.

CHAPTER 4. CANONIST EMPIRES

§1. The purpose of a canonist Empire is the continuation of its first established iteration by Ex. Godfrey.

§2. An Empire shall only be recognized as such if it meets by all the requirements detailed herein, with no exceptions.

§3. A claimant must be a faithful baptized and practicing canonist, steadfast in their adherence to the faith, and of complete and undeniable human stock.

§4. Should a claimant be found guilty of heresy, apostasy, heathenism, or dabbling in forbidden magic, the claim will be null and void.

§5. Claimants unrecognized by the Mother Church incur immediate excommunication, as do all co-conspirators.

§6. Only the High Pontiff may legitimize a claimant.

§7. Claimants remain licit and legitimate at the High Pontiff's behest.

§8. A claimant's legitimacy being affirmed or revoked made under duress is invalid.

§9. Only the High Pontiff may crown an Emperor. Otherwise, only one acting on the High Pontiff’s express, written, and public permission may do so.

§10. An Emperor's temporal authority shall derive from the High Pontiff and the Mother Church.

§11. It is the Empire State's obligation to accept Canon Law as national law.

§12. Only the High Pontiff may rule on the licity of the Empire or its Emperor.

§13. The extant Empire and/or its Emperor remains licit unless specifically dictated otherwise by the High Pontiff.

§14. The Emperor is not exempt from excommunication, anathematization, or other forms of spiritual punishment.

§15. It is the spiritual obligation of all Canonists to hinder and overthrow an illicit claimant to the Emperor, this being an office consecrated to special purpose by Ex. Godfrey and legitimized by the Mother Church.

§16. In case of the Empire's dissolution, vassalization, or capitulation, all lands and titles shall be de facto forfeit by the Mother Church to manage at its behest.

§17. The Empire may not be a vassal. In the case of vassalization, refer to §16.

§18. No authority shall bind or govern the Empire, but the Mother Church and the High Pontiff.
§19. A Canonist Emperor must be crowned by the High Pontiff himself if possible. Otherwise, only one acting on the High Pontiff’s behalf with express, written, and public permission may do so.
§20. The High Pontiff will endeavor to seek political unity among humanity for the promotion of virtue, using all diplomatic means. It is not so desirable that a Canonist Empire be established that war should be waged for this sole purpose.
§21. Canonist princes are not necessarily obliged by their faith to owe fealty to a Canonist Emperor, though it is desirable that they do so.

CHAPTER 5. JUST WAR

§1. The purpose of war is the promotion of virtuous living through the exercise of just and necessary violence by one state against another.

§2. The form of war is a declared conflict between states, with causes and goals stated by at least one party.

§3. Canonist princes are obliged to wage war only for the purposes of self-defense or the promotion of virtue.

§4. War is a function of temporal authority and is to be conducted as such.

§5. It is for the High Pontiff to declare a temporal authority’s causes and goals of a war to be just or unjust.

§6. The faithful are not obliged to participate in an unjust war.

§7. It is forbidden for a Canonist prince to seek the aid of apostates, heretics, or schismatics in war.

§8. It is forbidden for a Canonist prince to be the first to seek the aid of pagan allies in a war against another Canonist prince.

§9. It is permitted for pagan subjects of a Canonist prince to participate in their ruler’s war, provided they owe full fealty to the prince.

§10. War is to be waged as a last resort, when there is no peaceable option for the promotion of virtue.

§11. Canonist princes are always required to wage war against an excommunicant prince if he remains in that status for four years, unless expressly provided for by the High Pontiff. They are required to continue until his excommunication is lifted or he is removed from office.

§12. It is desirable that Canonist princes should resolve violent conflicts with as few casualties as possible, assaulting such targets as are absolutely necessary for a speedy and virtuous peace. Thus it is desirable that war be prevented through the use of personal combat, or small, limited combats among appointed representatives.

§13. The High Pontiff will endeavor to mediate diplomatic proceedings and personal combats between Canonist princes at war, seeking neutrality and fairness in his judgements.

§14. If mediation is impossible or inexpedient, and no party to the war is significantly more righteous in their conduct, the war should be allowed to reach its natural outcome. It is not desirable that the High Pontiff should unnaturally prolong a conflict by favoring a certain side.

§15. Prisoners of war are to be treated humanely, preserving appropriate dignity and care for them if at all possible.

§16. Prisoners of war are entitled to receive spiritual care from a cleric.

CHAPTER 6. TITHES

§1. The Church may request tithes, in general, or of specific kinds at specific periods, from the temporal authorities of realms coterminous with ecclesiastical provinces.

§2. It is desirable, but never mandatory, that a temporal authority should pay tithes.

§3. Ecclesiastical penalty shall never be issued for failure to pay tithes.

§4. A Canonist prince’s counsel in the nomination of a pastor may be denied for failure to pay tithes.

§5. The Church shall endeavor to levy only those tithes which are financially appropriate to a realm.

§5. Tithes are to be used only for the legitimate purposes of the Church, favoring activity in the ecclesiastical province in which they were collected.

§6. The receipt and expenditure of tithes should be recorded diligently and reported to the collecting pastor’s superior. The Church shall endeavor to make these available to the appropriate temporal authorities.

CHAPTER 7. ECCLESIASTICAL OFFICIALS WITH TEMPORAL AUTHORITY

§1. The purpose of an ecclesiastical official with temporal authority is the licit application of such authority to promote virtuous living, and to advance the Church’s interests in temporal matters.

§2. The form of an ecclesiastical official with temporal authority is a cleric, monastic, or official of the church who also possesses licit temporal authority.

§3. An ecclesiastical official may derive temporal authority from the worldly holdings of the Church, or from concurrent office within a separate temporal authority.

§4. An ecclesiastical official shall not hold temporal authority which inhibits the exercise of his duties within the Church.

§5. An ecclesiastical official shall not swear oaths of service which would prevent him from obeying his ecclesiastical superiors or the Church.

§6. An ecclesiastical official shall not use his authorities within the Church to further the temporal or personal interests of himself or his friends, family, or allies.

§7. An ecclesiastical official shall not use his temporal authorities to influence or inhibit the proper execution of processes within the Church.

§8. An ecclesiastical official shall not serve as the ruler of a state, unless such a state is a holy land under the control of the Church.

§9. An ecclesiastical official engaging in politics in a temporal role may not state or imply, by his words or actions, that disagreement with him in those matters in itself constitutes laxity in faith or opposition to the Church.

§10. An eccleisastical official with temporal authority shall take a confessor who does not fall under the jurisdiction of his temporal authority.

§11. Ecclesiastical officials shall always make clear to all the distinction between his temporal and spiritual authorities.

§12. An ecclesiastical official’s superior may require his resignation from certain temporal positions if it is necessary for the promotion of virtuous living.

§13. An ecclesiastical official will obtain the approval of his superior before accepting any position of temporal authority.

BOOK VI. PROCESSES FOR TRIAL

§1. The object of the trial is for the declaration of juridic facts and the imposition of penalties for transgressions of the faith.

§2. The Church is to adjudicate all matters spiritual, breaches of canon law, and matters in which there is question of sin or the imposition of ecclesiastical penalties.

§3. All proceedings of a trial must be recorded and made available to the judge’s superior.

§4. The High Pontiff is judged by no one but God.

§5. If a temporal authority is already in the process of prosecuting, or has prosecuted, an individual for the same act of which they are accused in ecclesiastical court, the judge may determine this sufficient for the execution of the Church’s justice and forego ecclesiastical trial.

§6. A judge is never obliged to forego an ecclesiastical trial because of the workings of a temporal authority, unless expressly provided for by the High Pontiff.

TITLE I. THE JUDGE

§1. The judge of the first instance, unless the respondent is a cleric, is the pastor of the ecclesastical province in which the alleged breach of canon law occured.

§2. If the respondent is a cleric, the judge should be his superior.

§3. In any trial, the judge may appoint accessors, including laymen, to consult him on legal and procedural matters.

§4. If necessary, a judge may delegate a case to a committee of other pastors.

§5. The judge of the second instance, unless the respondent is a cleric, should be a cardinal who has obtained the clerical state.

§6. If the respondent is a cleric, the judge of the second instance should be the High Pontiff.

§7. If a Canonist prince is the petitioner or respondent in a trial, the judge should be the High Pontiff.

§8. If necessary, the High Pontiff may assign another judge to a trial, generally the Auditor of the Tribunal.

TITLE II. PARTIES

§1. Anyone, baptized or not, may bring a case to trial.

§2. The parties to a trial are the petitioner, respondent, advocates, witnesses, and experts.

CHAPTER 1. PETITIONER

§1. The petitioner is the individual who accuses the respondent of a breach of canon law, also called the plaintiff.

CHAPTER 2. RESPONDENT

§1. The respondent is the individual accused of a breach of canon law, also called the defendant.

CHAPTER 3. ADVOCATES

§1. It shall be the choice of the petitioner and the respondent to appoint an advocate to represent them in the trial.

§2. An advocate must be appointed for penal trials.

§3. It is possible for the judge to suspend an advocate, or remove them from their office entirely.

§4. If a party is unwilling or unable to appoint an advocate when one is required, the judge shall appoint an appropriate advocate for them.

§5. An incompetent must always have an advocate.

CHAPTER 4. WITNESSES

§1. A witness is one who presents testimony to the ecclesiastical court regarding the facts of the matter at hand, or the character of other parties.

CHAPTER 5. EXPERTS

§1. An expert is one who presents testimony to the ecclesiastical court regarding the subject of the trial.

TITLE III. THE PENAL PROCESS

CHAPTER 1. PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATIONS

§1. It is the duty of a cleric to inquire personally should he believe a breach of canon law has occurred.

§2. Those investigating must be careful as to not taint the reputation of the 1faithful.

§3. The cleric must consult with two judges as to whether the matter requires the attention of an ecclesiastical court.

§4. It is the duty of the cleric to inform a judge if he fears that a sin or breach of canon law will occur.

CHAPTER 2. DEVELOPMENT

§1. If a matter is to be brought to ecclesiastical court, the investigating cleric is to inform the accused, as to give them opportunity to prepare for their defense.

§2. The judge is to issue a decree calling the person to trial, setting forth the reasons of law in explicit and simple terms that do not presume the accused’s innocence or guilt.

§3. The accused may be prevented from attending sacraments or sacred ceremonies for the duration of the process if it is necessary for the preservation of virtue.

§4. The accused is never bound to confess guilt.

CHAPTER 3. TRIAL

§1. The judge of the trial shall determine its place and time, making all effort to ensure it is suitable to the petitioner and the respondent first, then the advocates, and then the experts.

§2. The trial should continue for such a time as is appropriate that all relevant testimony be delivered in a timely manner, and that deliberations should occur speedily.

CHAPTER 4. RULING AND SENTENCING

§1. The judge, after due consideration, shall rule on the respondent’s innocence or guilt for each accused breach of canon law.

§2. The judge shall sentence the accused only to ecclesiastical penalties as are just and appropriate for each crime.

§3. The judge shall consider, but not be bound by, precedent established in similar cases.

CHAPTER 5. APPEAL

§1. If there is a question of the justness of a trial or an appeal, appeal should be made to the judge’s superior.

CHAPTER 6. REDRESS

§1. Aggrieved parties, if extent, may receive remedy as part of the sentencing, in order to repair damages caused.

§2. The judge further adjudicates any redress and resolution to the case, including punishment.

BOOK VII. LEXICON

ATHEIST - One who denies the existence of God.

APOSTATE - A Canonist who has renounced his faith, or a human who rejects Canonism.
CANONICUS - An experienced and well-educated priest who has certain additional privileges over a regular priest.

CANONIST - One who has received the sacrament of ablution as a baptism.
DEFROCKMENT - The opposite of ordination; removing a priest’s clerical status.

HERETIC - One who worships the God of the Holy Scrolls but accepts false doctrines regarding Him or His faith. All who worship the Creator exclusively but do not adhere to the dogma of the Church are heretics.

PAGAN - One who does not follow the Canonist faith, claiming to practice another. Also called a heathen. It is forbidden for a human to be a pagan, but other races are permitted to practice their faith provided they do not proselytise humans.
RESPONSUM - A written piece of advice or a legal ruling made from a theological standpoint by a Canonicus about any given topic.

SCHISMATIC - One who worships God and recognizes the Holy Scrolls, but does not submit to the authority of the Church.

February 19

5 minutes ago, Optimus420 said:

Istvan the Cattle Farmer who could not read nor write simply nodded along as if trying to understand was written, all he knew was that the missive bore the Pontiff's Seal therefore must be an important document, he then quietly said a prayer to himself!

His Holiness had heard about the legendary cattle farmer. He'd be sure to include some kind of cow pictures for the man at some point!

February 19

Synod on Homophilic Matrimony
Answering the Four Canonist Princes

8th of the Amber Cold, 168 S.A.

Dear brothers and sisters in faith,

Recently, Queen Catherine of Petra, Queen Sybille of Balian, Tar-Caraneth of Numendil and Viceroy Cesar of Hyspia published a declaration titled 'Four Canonist Princes on Marriage', which many of you will have undoubtedly read. To the relief of some and the disappointment of others, we hereby announce that the Canonist Church will not go along with the decision of these rulers. It is not their prerogative to make decisions on key elements of our faith such as which people can be joined together in the sacrament of matrimony, especially not considering that these "Four Canonist Princes" completely went behind the Church's back in this decision of theirs, save for the consultation of Monsignor Enrico Amadeus.

As it stands, the Canonist Church does not condone homophilic matrimony - also known as 'same sex marriage'. It is a direct violation of Canon Law, as Book IV, Title I, Chapter 2. MATRIMONY of the Codex Iurius Canonici Danielus Pontifex clearly states: "The purpose of matrimony is the holy union of a man and a woman". This law is based in theology and scripture, and we deem Monsignor Enrico Amadeus' brief arguments in favor of homophilic matrimony to be insufficient as to argue against this law. Therefore the Four Canonist Princes are in violation of Canon Law and we would urge them to abide by God's law as interpreted and written by the church for many hundreds of years.

Simultaneously we do however realize there is a strong desire among the Canonist flock to adress the topic of homophilic matrimony. We are therefore more than happy to discuss the subject, but since it is a religious affair, we do not wish it to be decided upon by secular laymen, but rather for it to be discussed in religious circles. We therefore announce that a Synod on Homophilic Matrimony is to be held within the coming years in the Synod Hall of the Holy See. This shall be the first Synod of the kind we are establishing in our rewriting of the Codex Iurius; namely a gathering of the entire priesthood to debate theology and matters of Church law. In other words, every ordained priest will be welcome and indeed urged to attend this Synod. There, this gathering of the priesthood may argue for or against the inclusion of homophilic matrimony on religious grounds based on scripture and tradition. A vote will then be held at the end of the Synod, in which the members of the priesthood will decide wether or not the Church is to allow this new kind of marriage. Granted there is a majority of the priesthood in favor of this reform, and their arguments for said reform are deemed religiously sound by us personally, Homophilic Matrimony will be legalized in Canon Law. Should there not be a majority of the priesthood in favor however, or the arguments made for such are deemed insufficient, it will be rejected. This, we find, is the proper way to effect or reject such a monumental change in the laws of our faith. In the meantime, the Holy Mother Church's official stance is that homophilic matrimony is illegal as a result of its contradiction of Canon Law. Until a decision has been made in favor of the topic by the Synod, the Church will not condone this kind of marriage, as it is currently deemed sinful, and we forbid our priests from officiating same-sex marriages.

We hope that, while this may be a bitter disappointment for the supporters of the 'Four Canonist Princes on Marriage' declaration, people realize that these princes made false promises with said declaration, as they hold no authority to alter religious law, including what is and isn't allowed in terms of the Sacraments. The Synod on Homophilic Matrimony will be planned within the coming months to take place, preferably within the next two years, on a date suiting the majority of the priesthood. In the meantime we encourage debate on the topic by and between priests and laymen alike.

Sincerely,
His Holiness, Sixtus VI

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

February 19

The High Pontiff scoffed when he read the letter from the former Silver Lubba "Too bad Mika Anarion with his silver tongue and half-decent manners no longer represents Lurin... They're led by a different 'Silver Lubba' now, one who sings a different song from his', one of hatred and mockery; animosity." He remarked to his medic as his necrotic wound received the daily treatment "He trusts in the competency of both institutions to fight darkspawn... We wouldn't trust that Lumia for but a second, judging by the conduct she's shown thusfar. Damned Lurinites, digging their own grave... Pitiful, in a way."

February 17

Dispelling Lurinite Lies

21st of the First Seed, 168 S.A.

Dear brothers and sisters in faith,

We write to you, our Canonist flock, from our private apartment in the pontifical residence. For we're bedridden, recovering from blood loss and a wound. A stabwound near the shoulder, one that's concerningly showing some necrosis of the skin around the wound, though our medics tell us that with rest and treatment, we will make a full recovery. We were stabbed by a lich, presumably one with ties to the Arch-lich we've been hearing about recently. But we were not stabbed in the Apostolic City, or in some Canonist princedom, but in Lurin, and to our regret, the Lurinites have seemingly been telling falsehoods about the details of what happened, to which end we will provide you with the true story here.

The previous Saint's Day, we were told there's been some issues with members of the Order of Saint Jude that'd gone to Lurin to test there for darkspawn. In hindsight it became apparent that they'd not been provided the adequate papers - a treaty we'd signed with Silver Lubba Mika Anarion allowed men sent by the Church to test for and combat darkspawn in Lurin provided they had a papal permit for such. One would say this would be a minor issue, but supposedly the Lurinite response to this lack of a permit was quite belligerent and we were told their 'Queen', which we were later told was the Silver Lubba's consort, was shown to lack the dignity of her office by disrespecting the Church's men and insulting and making a mockery of not just the Church, but GOD himself. Naturally, we wondered what we'd done to deserve such disrespect from our easternly neighbours, for we believe we've been quite the good and courteous neighbour considering these are ties between a land of pagans and the Holy Mother Church.

Thus we set out with a small retinue of personal guards, consisting of Holy Ser Gerard, Holy Ser Robert, Brother Lug, Brother Reynard and Brother Alexander, on a short ride to Lurin. Once we got there we found the gate closed, but luckily there were plenty of people in the city square to ask for someone to open the gate. One of these people was Edvard Kervallen, another was a figure by the name of 'Johanes'. We were received by mister Kervallen, a member of Lurin's council by the title of the Lubba's hand. He seemed courteous enough at first, bringing us into a government building for us to talk and bringing with him some men of his own, Johanes being one of them. We presumed that this Johanes was a guard, as he seemingly stood guard at the end of the room behind us.

After a less amicable, moreso tense conversation in which mister Kervallen not only showed lacking respect for the treaty signed by the Church and Lurin, but also insulted places such as Haense, Petra and Hohkmat for consorting with darkspawn and not doing enough to combat the darkspawn threat, the events of that day took a turn for the worse. Despite mister Kervallen having repeatedly stated 'There are no darkspawn in Lurin', it was suddenly revealed that the figure known as Johanes was a lich when he had snuck up on us and suddenly stabbed us with a bone dagger, morphing into his true identity. Four of our guards piled onto the creature within the blink of an eye, and while we drew our own sword to try to get a swing at that spawn of Iblees, our medic Alexander Llopis - blessed be his heart - pulled us away from the fray.

As other Lurinites poured into the building, swarming us, and one of them - a strange looking creature - insisted on providing 'care' for us, we told mister Kervallen that our personal medic would provide us with medical aid and that we would be leaving, back to the Holy See. On our way out we started hearing the first hints of the lie that these men of Lurin would later spread in declarations on paper; that this lich that had hidden under the name of 'Johanes' had come into the city with us. That he was one of our guards even, they would say. The men of Lurin blamed us for bringing a lich into their city, a lich that we were supposedly consorting with, but that... stabbed us in the shoulder? Increasingly, as we rode home and as we were given medical treatment, it began to dawn on us that the opposite could well be true.

We deem it a logical conclusion on the events of that day, that this lich 'Johanes' was working with the men of Lurin and that the stabbing with a necrotic bone dagger was part of a setup. Do not believe the Lurinite lies saying that he was one of our guards, that he was a man of the order, that he had come into the city with us. He was already in the city, he was brought into the room with us by mister Kervallen, he had no ties to the Order of Saint Jude, and we'd never seen the creature before, let alone appointed him as one of our guards.

Do not believe the stories of pagans consorting with darkspawn who insult the Church and GOD. We shall pray to Saint Amyas for our recovery, and we thank those of you who pray for us.

Sincerely,
His Holiness, Sixtus VI

February 11

An Open Letter to Monk Matsuda

11th of the Sun's Smile, 167 S.A.

To the Monk Matsuda Sakuraba of Casica,

We hope this letter reaches you well and that you've calmed down a bit from when you wrote your letter to us. You wrote to us in a seemingly quite accusatory and ill-spirited manner, which we do not appreciate from a member of the Church, but we will consider it symptoms of well-meant concern and forgive your curtness. Next time that you have questions about Church policy though, we'd prefer if you just write to us personally rather than spreading discontent. As for your questions, we will gladly answer them in the hopes that our answers allow you to better explain things to your flock, and perhaps we will do so ourself to other readers of this letter.

To start on the matter of the magic commission report; we hear your concern about the matter of Scions and we will discuss it with the Curia. We were personally not one of the clergymen who researched the various magics for the writing of the report, so it is not clear to us in this moment why the choice was made to give certain exemptions to these Scions. In reading the report before making final additions for publishing, we did find this matter questionable ourselves, but we chalked it up to being a matter requiring better understanding of magic. Since it appears that it has received questioning from others as well however, it might indeed be a matter of the mage Valindra abusing her position as a source for influencing the report in her own favor. If the Curia can not justify the exemption for Scions either, we shall assume the latter to be the case and outlaw the magical practice completely.

As for curses that are supposedly only possible to be lifted by Xanism and Shamanism, the solution is rather simple from our point of view. The practice of these magics is forbidden for the Canonist faithful. In the rare, niche case that someone does get cursed with a spell only able to be lifted by these magics - a problem we ourselves could not find any examples of - then in these cases the afflicted will need to seek out a non-Canonist who practices these magics. Being reliant on aid from pagans is regrettable, though if there's supposedly truly no other solution in this specific case then we deem it necessary. Insofar as the timing of the publishing of the Magic Commission Report is concerned, it has been in the works for a long time and it deserved to finally be published at the earliest possibility, if that possibility is during a time of serious allegations about darkspawn threats, then so be it, the two are not connected.

Speakign of darkspawn threats, there is the matter of the alleged connection between darkspawn and the Haeseni royal family. We did not ignore these serious allegations, in fact we had an emergency meeting about it in the synod building followed by a more private meeting with the members of the Curia at Patriarch Josef's request. By now we've been informed that King Aleksandr is present again, so it is permissable for us to shed some light on what we were informed of by Patriarch Josef in said private meeting with the Curia. We say the King is present again, because the Patriarch disclosed to the Curia that King Aleksandr was missing and they did not know where he was. He explained that the King had been tricked by fake tradesmen who were supposedly looking to trade in artifacts. King Aleksandr was said to have disappeared into thin air during this interaction and the Aulic Council was pretending the King was ill as to bide their time for a few months to see if the King would return, which he now has. We decided to likewise wait to see how this would develop before taking any course of action, as the words by the Arch-Lich shared in his letter were revealed to be a lie and we did not wish to take action based on fraudulent rumors. Now that His Majesty King Aleksandr is said to be back, we intend to meet with him in the near future to discuss the details of these events and make further decisions based on acquired insights.

As for the allegations of there being darkspawn in Haense and other places in general and our response to these threats, do not presume we do not tell our Auditor, the good Cardinal Mattia of Tyria, to investigate these matters. We have regularly told the Auditor, as well as Holy Ser Gerard, to investigate matters like these, orders which they've diligently followed and which have born fruit in the form of invaluable information. There are investigations being conducted into these matters, worry not. Sadly however, we were informed that Haense will not be allowing these representatives of the Church to be conducting investigations and resulting actions like arrests in their territory anymore. We were told that members of the Order of Saint Jude have shown undesirable or unsupervised - we have always told members of the Order to work in cooperation with local authorities, which seems to have been ignored here - conduct within Haense, for which reason the Order is now barred from operating within Haeseni territory. We recognize that the timing of these sanctions coinciding with the rumors about King Aleksandr make said sanctions seem very suspicious, though as it stands we do not presume the two to be tied. What we can say at the moment is that these events just seem to be the result of recently heightened tensions between Haense and the Order in light of the rumors, as well as regrettable conduct. In our meeting with King Aleksandr we will attempt to straighten things out, and, should the reintroduction of operations by the Order of Saint Jude in Haeseni territory be too much to ask for, we shall at least try to get Cardinal Mattia involved again in his role as Auditor.

We hope that this letter answers some if not all of your questions and that our relatively hasty response serves as a testiment that your accusations of sloth are not wholly justified. We are not perfect, Monk Matsuda, but we try to do what is best during troubling times.

Sincerely,
His Holiness, Sixtus VI

February 9

THE MAGIC COMMISSION REPORT

22nd of Tobias’ Bounty, 1963

Issued by His Holiness, Sixtus VI

Written by His Eminence, Antonius Cardinal Artorus

Edited by His Eminence, Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

Introduction

Many years ago now, our predecessor Sixtus the Fifth set up the so-called ‘Magic Commission’. The aim of this commission was to go through all the different kinds of magic known to mankind and determine the official stance of the Canonist Church on these magics so that this decision can be used in policy regarding what to do with certain kinds of magic. In other words, this commission had the monumental task of figuring out which magics were sanctioned, or allowed - if sometimes discouraged, and which of them were forbidden. The reason for this being the matter of our faith having a largely negative stance on magic, as propagated by the Holy Scrolls, while the Church’s policy on how to deal with the use of magic has varied through the centuries.

This report is the result of the Magic Commission’s work. Over the many decades it took to come to this final report, many priests and other members of the church, as well as some experts on various fields of magic, contributed in researching the magics talked about here. With this report we seek to explain the reasoning for the Church’s decision on whether to sanction or forbid them as best as possible, and through this research, writing and revision the report took a long time to finish. We hope that, with it finally being done and published to the Canonist flock, it may henceforth be a guiding principle on how to deal with magic for not just all of Canondom, but perhaps in due time also the wider world. The second half of this introduction is the original introduction of the report as written by the man who masterminded the Magic Commission, our now-deceased cousin and late Cardinal, the reputable Father Antonius of Artorus.

- High Pontiff Sixtus VI

It was requested of me by our former pontiff Sixtux V to investigate the various sources of magicks in the realm and their relation to our Canon Law and scripture. After many, many years, beseeching the guidance of the Almighty, I believe I have compiled a fair though likely incomplete study of Magicks around Aevos.

The following is an analysis on each type of magic known to us based on the compilation of works of Sixtus V, Father Armand, Father Callahan, Father Rhodri, Father Wert, Father Brandt and myself. May the grace of the Divine illuminate these ponderings, and may the discernment granted unto us aid in distinguishing the sanctified from the forbidden in the realm of mystical arts.

- Antonius Cardinal Artorus

‘Further Alkemia’

From the notes compiled by Father Armand, Father Brandt and Arch Lector Dante

SANCTIONED, relative to practice and relation to Canon Law, Devilry and the Occult is to be banned.

Father Armand and Arch-Lector Dante:

While the divine bestowal of alchemy (otherwise called Natural Philosophy) upon the progeny of mankind is perceived as a manifestation of God's benevolence, the virtuous practice thereof is dependant upon the practitioner’s purpose and their righteous stewardship of the 'art of creation.' Thus, it necessitates the practitioners of this mystical craft to traverse the path of virtue in line with the teachings of the Holy Scrolls.

Certain methodologies within the schools of Alchemy however, may lead practitioners astray into recesses of the occult. In such forbidden territories, the alchemical endeavors may give rise to profane creations fraught with the potential to inflict grievous harm upon the descendants of humankind. Thus, it is ordained that a discerning eye be cast upon the deeds of alchemists, and the banishment of those practices that veer into forbidden territories be duly enforced to safeguard the sacred order.

Father Brandt:

Furthermore, it is imperative to draw the line between the permissible realms within the practice of alchemy. Mutagenic alchemy, the craft of Animii crafting, and adherence to the core principles of alchemy find favor in the eyes of Canon Law. These pursuits, when embarked upon with virtuous intent, stand as commendable manifestations of God's gifts to His creation.

However, let it be known, as declared by the Epistle to the Magi, that the creation of alchemical homunculi is expressly forbidden. Such an act, resulting in the generation of false life, stands as a mockery of the Lord's divine creation. In seeking semblance to the Almighty through the sacred act of creation, the fashioning of alchemical homunculi transgresses the teachings laid forth in the Epistle to the Magi by Exalted Owyn. It is hereby proclaimed that such ventures into the realm of false-life creation be deemed unholy, and FORBIDDEN for they deviate from the path of righteous emulation of the Lord's divine handiwork.

Moreover, it is solemnly decreed that the fusion of alchemical arts with any other magical practices prohibited within the confines of this document is categorically FORBIDDEN.

‘Soul Magicks’

From Father Tonito’s personal study

Not to be confused with ghost magicians, this umbrella term is something coined within the Lectorate era to describe magic based on the ingrained mana of our souls from our creation. These mystical arts, independent of ecclesiastical doctrine, manifest as a gift accessible to all descendants, transcending the boundaries of doctrinal constraints.

Housemagery - SANCTIONED

Housemagery resides in the common realm of domestic enchantments, as an ordinary strain of magic, delving into the mundane aspects of daily life. This humble practice extends its influence over the domains of general housekeeping, utility, and culinary arts, thus being categorized as a benign and innocent pursuit. In its essence, this form of magical practice is integrated into the mundane pursuits of daily life. It serves as a facilitator of practicalities, allowing households to function in a more efficient manner. May it be recognized as a gentle and unassuming school of magical practice.

Bardmancy - SANCTIONED

A kindred discipline to Housemagery, bardmancy emerges as the magical practice for artists. Within this mystical practice, the internal mana of the practitioner becomes a vessel for the creation of performative illusions and the augmentation of abilities that transcend the bounds of mundane means. In essence, bardmancy, while generally innocent, also does possess master spells with the potential to disorient and stun large assemblies en masse within a given proximity.

Shindo-No-Hamon/Respvrinda - SANCTIONED (but deadly)

A discipline focused on harnessing environmental mana ingrained in the world’s creation to manipulate matter and surfaces, requiring its user to maintain rhythmic breathing. Practitioners cannot wear or wield metal armaments. This is considered a ‘martial arts magic’.

Sorvian Sculpting - SANCTIONED, (Recommended under regulation)

The Sculptor’s Magick - Sorvian Sculpting is the art of imbuing life into clay and wood husk mannequins through a portion of the sculptor’s soul essence that takes time to recover, preventing the mass creation of such constructs. Sorvians are people-like in imitation and are loyal to the doctrine of their sculptor bestowed upon them and could prove to be a potent tool for the Church’s inquisition in the hopes of preserving life. On the other hand though in the hands of heathens they could be used to arm dangerous armies of foreign faiths. Sorvians themselves fall under Title V, Chapter 4 Non descendants of Canon Law.

‘Aenguldaemonica Magicks’

From a mix of interviews and Father Tonito’s findings

This umbrella term is used to describe the divine-pacts made between supernatural entities ranging from Aenguls, Drakkaars, Spirits and descendants. Most of these magics require adherence to a doctrine outside of, though not inherently contrary to Canonism.

Druid Magic - FORBIDDEN

The magic practiced by those attuned to the ways of Druid Magic are, henceforth, declared as forbidden due to their habit of adherence to the Aspectist faith, and thus their worship of animal spirits through prayer.

Let it be understood that the forbiddance of Druid Magic is rooted in the recognition of its divergence from the established doctrines and orthodoxy upheld by the ecclesiastical authority. Thus, Druid Magic is deemed incompatible with the sanctioned practices in the purview of the Canon Law. As such, Canonist practitioners of Druid Magic or Canonist Druid-Aspirants are hereby commanded to reconsider their magical pursuits and seek alignment with the approved doctrines and ordinances.

Archangel Michael’s Templars - SANCTIONED, (but susceptible to heresy and heathens.)

The Archangel Michael's Templars, hereby sanctioned, are decentralized followers of Archangel Michael, bound together by varied beliefs and ideals, reflective of the diverse cultures that shape their context. The Archangel Michael, although historically having shown favor towards our Church and the Lord’s mission, as evidenced by the Inferi Wars, has nevertheless delivered his blessings upon his followers irrespective of their adherence to Canonist doctrines. However, it is noted that the Archangel's has recently been silent, denying direct communion between the Templars and their patron. Templars wield a magic primarily meant for melee combat and general utility. Their order is symbolized by the radiant Star of the Archangel Michael—an emblem representing the divine intervention of GOD through the intercession of His angels.

The Templars operate within a code of conduct. For it is known that the Archangel shuns the pursuit of worship, and does not demand prayers from his followers, desiring not adulation but adherence to the virtuous aspect of COURAGE, a quality he embodies. The sacred tenets are thus revealed as follows;

1. Defend the innocent and not take up arms against them.

2. Show no fear.

3. Be loyal to your compatriots, do not allow disagreements to fester. Settle disputes in an honorable duel if need be.

4. Don’t use the blessing to accrue wealth.

History

Heathen Adunian Templars, grappling with their adversarial relationship the Creator on account of their curses similar to the one prescribed upon the kin of Krug, envisioned Archangel Michael as a higher power, mirroring their practices of belief in ancestor spirits venerated in Adunian culture. However, a scarcity of dogma and cultural context surrounding Michael left them adrift, devoid of a moral compass, thus rendering them a decentralized group.

In their plight, a deviation from Virtue took root, in which these Templars found themselves in engagement with iniquitous vampires and necromancers. Yet, in this errant path, a way towards redemption had been established for the Templars through the leadership of Tar-Uriel, who undertook the task of reclaiming a notable amount of the wayward Adunians. His intercession, guidance and conversion efforts led to success in bringing the Templar Adunians back into the fold of the faithful, and thus Michael is now equated to the our Saints within their Canonist faith.

However, According to Father Armand, who highlights the disunity and fragmentation of the various Templars, the elves of Amathea who have the blessing of Michael view and pray to him as “Malchadiel”, referring to him as a deity alongside their druid Aspectist spirits. It is thus advised therefore, that these Templars not be perceived through a singular lens, for they hail from varied walks of life. A discerning gaze, measuring individual merit and fidelity to GOD's word is recommended in dealings with the Templar.

Shamanism - FORBIDDEN

The magic of harnessing the blessing, curses and blights of the spirits. A magic varying wide in spectrum, it is dependent on prayer, invocation of name and sometimes direct pacts with these spirits to harness otherworldly powers. This is obviously antithetical to our faith, and such is the rationale behind the forbiddance.

The very essence of Shamanism, entailing communion with otherworldly entities and the forging of pacts, marks it as antithetical to the tenets upheld within the dogma of our faith. The communion of these mystical arts with spiritual entities outside the Canonist doctrine renders the practice forbidden, as it stands as a deviation from the divinely ordained path.

Paladinism - FORBIDDEN

We implore all Paladins who profess allegiance to the Canonist faith to sever their connections forthwith, thereby safeguarding the sanctity of their immortal souls. The Sunlit Path is heretical in its practices, even if not overtly heretical in its doctrine and tenets. While some Paladins assert their position comparably to the Templars, the potential emergence of Paladins embodying Templar virtue is uncertain, and ought to be disregarded.

Janus exhibits a tenuous relation with the Church of Canon, but allegedly protests against worship of him and refers to the Creator for worship

(Editor’s note: This argument is a strategic ploy by the Paladins to enjoy unhindered presence within Canonist cities, thereby enabling unchecked activities.)

Operating under an independent doctrine detached from the Canon, Janus maintains sporadic and limited contact with his Paladins, displaying an apathetic indifference to the Church of Canon. His order harbors open heathens, fostering a cult that deviates from the established Canonist dogma. Despite Janus' disconnect from the Church, certain paladins identify with both Canonist and Paladin doctrines in an effort to find synthesis in the dual allegiance to GOD and Janus, in such philosophy, the latter being perceived as a divine general akin to Archangel Michael.

(Editor’s note: This is another strategic ploy by the Paladins, and this editor is cynical of that conviction besides the practical benefits that holding such a view grants.)

Notably, an unidentified emissary of Xan has advocated collaboration with the Church to combat forces of iniquity, urging the Paladins to establish relations with our ecclesiastical authority. However, it remains unclear whether Xan is amenable to engaging in dialogue with the curia.

Janus’ Tenets:

1. You are the child of the Maker, the Creator, the Divine, for it is HE who made all the First, the Aenguls and Daemons, and the Second, the Descendants. The Descendants, given life divine by the Creator’s breath, have Janus’s shield and his sword.

2. Never hold yourself above descendants

3. Don’t equate Janus to GOD

4. Don’t attack your fellow paladins

5. Don’t abuse the blessing, they’re reserved for the wicked. Don’t harm descendants.

6. Never engage with darkness and iniquity.

Prayers are not required to use Janus’s magic but enchantments made by paladins require users to pray to Janus in relation to the desired blessing of the enchantment’s usage.

‘Tracing their legacy back to the elder days of ancient Sheerok, the doctrines of Light and Order have long been held by the Paladins of Xan as values of utmost sanctity, transcribed from the sacred halls of the Order of the Golden Lance as the interpretation of the Lord of Sunlight’s very words.’

This is heretical, as nothing should be held to greater holiness than the Scrolls.

Father Armand:

However, in regards to the Paladins, we found something different. Whilst some Paladins claim to be Canonist, this is directly hypocritical. One Paladin that comes specifically to mind is known as Alatariel - she claimed directly that she was a Canonist, however, the investigation we conducted with the Lectorate yielded vast amounts of evidence that, overall, showed that Paladins are incapable of being true Canonists without being inherently heathens and heretical in nature, as Paladins are required to pray directly to Xan/Janus in order to utilize their magic, and are as such all criminals under the word of Canon Law, as they directly practice extreme idolatry in their reverence of Xan solely as a deity in order to utilize their magicks. Whilst the names of the Paladins I have interviewed in the past are no longer clear to me, as it has been quite some time, following this investigation (in my early days as Auditor) I interviewed two Paladins. Both were entirely unaware of the existence of the Creator GOD, and did not revere Him whatsoever, and, as such, this further shows the heathenry the Paladins are capable of. As such, it is my wish, and was likely the wish of the late High Pontiff, that we treat them with no tolerance whatsoever, and it must be made known to Canondom and all Canonist Nations that they must be treated as they are - heathens and heretics, despite their false claims to be Canonists.

Summary: Although there are some conflicting notes between Father Armand’s and Father Tonito’s own findings, one thing is concrete that there are at times some forms of prayers to Xan and we suspect the giving away of Xannic enchantments is a proselytization method of theirs to enrapture followers/fans into calling on Xan to perform magical blessings. They also follow a doctrine separate to our own, tolerate heathenry and idolatry in their ranks (though this seems to vary between chapters) and Xan is indifferent and apathetic to our Church. It is therefore advised we excommunicate and treat them akin to the Azdrazi.

Azdrazi and Dragon Cultists - FORBIDDEN (Asioth is a heresy.)

Azdrazi are descendants endowed with the ability to manifest draconic attributes, and their nefarious counterparts, the Dragon Cultists, who propagate the heretical doctrines of Asioth while wielding fire magics, are hereby condemned in the strongest terms.

These renegades, driven by heretical inclinations, have repeatedly sought to infiltrate the sacred confines of Canondom, attempting to bridge their aberrant doctrine with the hallowed teachings of the Church. Their nefarious designs extend beyond mere ideological subversion, as they have allied with darkspawn, orchestrated mass destruction, and perpetrated heinous acts including the murder of clergy.

To counter the insidious influence of Azdrazi and Dragon Cultists, an inquisition has been diligently undertaken over the past century. It is incumbent upon the faithful to remain steadfast in their rejection of these forbidden doctrines, guarding against the insidious attempts to infiltrate the sacred bastions of Canondom.

‘Dark Magicks’

From a mix of notes compiled by Father Armand and former Archlector Dante.

Anything often associated with evil and explicitly violates our Canon law and Virtue.
(Pontifical note: these kinds of magic are not just forbidden, but carry a death penalty)

Necromancy - FORBIDDEN

Father Armand:

Necromancy is unequivocally deemed forbidden. The practice stands as a heretical and malevolent force within the gaze of the Holy Mother Church. Practitioners of this dark discipline wield the ability to manipulate the lifeless husks of the departed and siphon the vitality from the living. The overarching objectives of these necromancers remain obscured, yet the peril and harm they pose is unmistakable.

Throughout history, the actions of those dabbling in Necromancy have consistently transgressed the sacred boundaries established by Canon Law. The perversion of manipulating the bodies of the deceased and the unholy act of draining life from the living are egregious affronts to the sanctity of life and the divine order.

Infernal Sorcery ((Naztherak)) - FORBIDDEN

Father Armand:

Infernal Sorcery: Those who possess this dark art have, in recent times, shown to be extremely dangerous, as shown by the demonic invasion. They are capable of manipulating various demonic creatures originating from an alternate demonic realm suspected to be the realm of Iblees itself, and, as such, these dark arts are in direct combat against the word of GOD, and as such, against Canon Law. These individuals have been less prevalent as of recently in their crimes, though we must still be wary of them nonetheless. They typically associate their faith with reverence of a goat-like figure, and have, in the past, attached posters to boards of multiple towns and cities regarding their faith, which were promptly removed by the Tribunal.

Mystics - FORBIDDEN

Father Armand:

Mysticism: A sinful art that grants an individual the power to manipulate nondescript, seemingly spiritual, corrupt energies, typically referred to as "Ectoplasm". From the works I have studied in the past, as well as through my direct witnessing the utilization of this corrupt art in battle, it is clear that these individuals are extremely dangerous. The majority of them, alongside most other practitioners of the dark arts adhere to a foul system of belief known as Xionism. Those that bear the wicked art of Mysticism are dangerous in many ways. They are capable of summoning knights wrought of stone, and channeling tortured and lost spirits that continue to roam the earth in battle, Furthermore, their arts grant them the boon of being able to battle themselves with great and profane strength.

An eyewitness' account of a Snow Elf living in Fenn on the continent of Almaris revealed that a group of those bearing this dark art summoned an extremely dangerous creature of occult, phantasmal nature that has brutally attacked and slain multiple citizens. I pose that their dangerous potential does not simply originate from their strength nor their hereticism, but from their potential to spread this heresy amongst Canondom, through offering these boons at the expense of true faith.

A woman by the name of Ilaria Des'nox, a known bearer of this Dark Art according to those of the Dark Elven settlement, had recently built numerous shrines in reference to a faith known as "The Shorewalkers", a faith practiced by those possessing this Dark Art. The King of Balian, upon speaking to him, was reluctant to remove this shrine despite my admonishment upon him that made it clear that this faith putrid heathenry. It is for this reason that it must be made clear to all laymen that this faith is extremely heretical and must not be tolerated to any extent.

Blood Magic - FORBIDDEN

(Editor’s Note: See Woldzimir incident and Tsutenkaku report.)

(Editor’s Note: An uninformed perspective, borne of initial impressions, yet nevertheless a firsthand testimony of the event at Woldzmir. Subsequent investigation, however, has conclusively determined that the occurrence in question was NOT a miracle but rather the result of magical intervention. )

Father Armand:

Blood Magic is an avaricious art allowing the practitioner to manipulate their own blood and the blood of others to utilize the energy known to exist within the blood of all descendants dubbed "Genus".

Blood Magic itself was considered to be 'a gray area' by Saevel. Upon looking into this matter myself into the past, it is clear that, whilst the elements manipulated within the practice are not inherently corrupt, they consequently give rise to corruption elsewhere. Thus this art is one that goes against the will of GOD and his divine plan, and as such is against Canon Law, due to giving rise to powers not meant to be wielded by people. Those who possess this art have been known to be avaricious and generally sinful in nature, although it is unclear whether or not this is a result of the utilization of the art itself, and all seem to possess some form of anemia or symptoms of a lack of sleep. These users are all extremely dangerous and not to be trusted as a result.

‘Voidal Magicks’

From interviews with former and current voidal mages and Bishop Gelimar’s input.

The arcane domain of Voidal Magics, encompassing elementalism, enchantment, and the forging of atronachs, is acknowledged as a common magical trope. While these practices are not explicitly forbidden by current Canon Law, it is essential to recognize that they diverge from the sacred teachings and principles enshrined in scripture.

Voidal Magic introduces an element of peril and spiritual risk. Though not overtly harmful in their common manifestations of elementalism, enchantment, and atronach forging, practitioners may encounter dangers, particularly with voidal poisoning at advanced tiers. This latent threat, though primarily afflicting the user, underscores the potential hazards associated with delving into Voidal Magics.

The Ecclesiarchy, after contemplative discourse sees fit to release arguments included herein to present a case for the spiritual benefits and drawbacks of the practice of this magical art;

Benefits:

Appeal: Elemental magic, on a superficial level, carries an appeal that captivates the imagination and fosters a sense of wonder in the Lord’s creation.
Combatting Voidal Threats: Knowledge of Voidal Magics can empower the faithful to confront and counteract potential Voidal threats that may emerge.
Popularity: The widespread popularity of Voidal Magics within Canonist kingdoms suggest a prevalent interest and engagement with this mystical practice, rendering the persecution of practitioners impractical.

Drawbacks:

Scriptural Discord: The scriptural text in the Book of Provenance warns of the corruption associated with the touch of the Void.

Book of Provenance:

23 And Iblees replied “For you name us as servants, and I shall devise of no virtue until I am your equal. 24 And now my touch is the touch of the Void, and it is with all things in your creation.”

Historical Incidents: Past incidents, such as those at Ando’Alur and Celia’nor, underscore the potential for grand-scale corruption and instruction associated with voidal influence.
Individual Corruption: On a small scale, voidal magic corrupts the individual’s health and the body’s integrity.
Epistle to the Magi: Voidal users are generally prone to disobedience of the Epistle to the Magi, and have been associated with numerous problems ranging from tolerating vigilante violence, letting dark magic practitioners within their circles to kidnapping priests, best exemplified in the case of Lurin.
Burden of Sin: Due to man’s ability to combat the Void with the use of Alchemy, it shouldn’t be on the ecclesiarchy to allow people to burden sin.

Valindra:

Voidal Magics are generally considered taboo, and the practice of it likely requires monitoring due to the practice’s capability of spawning heretical figures, who naturally pose a threat to humanity. Here is my assessment of the sub-sects of the practice of voidal magic;

The Elements - SANCTIONED
Transfiguration - SANCTIONED
Life Evocation - SANCTIONED, on the condition that humanoid parts and creatures are not summoned. This practice will need monitoring and oversight.
Sensory Illusion - Due to its generally underhanded casting methods and uses, sensory illusion sits somewhere in between being sanctioned or forbidden. If it is used on bystanders without consent, it is dangerous. Furthermore, due to subtle tells, it is difficult to identify illusionists.
Translocation - SANCTIONED if used on SELF and others with explicit consent.

Further Voidal Pursuits

Veilwatching: Often overspread, even though generally the practice should only be given to trustworthy individuals. This practice will need heavy oversight.
Eminence: SANCTIONED.
Artificing: SANCTIONED; The most acceptable path of further void magery, though granting false-life upon creations is unorthodox and may be a violation of Epistle VII.
Scion: FORBIDDEN. Should not be permitted in use by anybody, it’s practice being able to mentally destroy someone.
Voidstalker: FORBIDDEN. The practice is a conduit of voidal corruption, and is almost always evil as an affront to GOD, with only a select few permissible voidstalkers. Voidstalkers should be constantly repentant if allowed at all, with heavy oversight.

Verdict and Summary: The very essence of voidal magic stands in apparent contradiction to scripture and dogma, which is the realm of Iblees, who brings onto the world the touch of the void and the ability for man to exploit its powers. The void is further identified as the destination of the damned, coming to mean that the practice of voidal magic will strengthen Iblees’ touch upon the world. Although certain studies of the void can be beneficial with intentions to combat its threats, the overarching considerations surrounding the practice, study, and dissemination of voidal magic tip the scales in favor of caution.

There are rumors of weapons of mass destruction being produced in Hokhmat akin to what was seen in Ando’Alur long ago. It’s my recommendation we pursue the ban of voidal magic and its spread amongst our faithful flocks, lest we risk ambitious minds in the future utilizing it on a path of destruction.

(Pontifical note: With an outright ban on voidal magic being impractical due to its widespread presence, as well as voidal mages sometimes being of use as stated above in instances where they are required to combat voidal threats, we instead decree that voidal magic is to be heavily monitored - save for the forbidden magics which are plainly outlawed. Canonist countries ought to keep a list of practitioners of voidal magic within their realms, perhaps working with a system of permits, and the priesthood should keep an eye out for unregistered mages or mages using their voidal powers in a troublesome manner in an effort to guard the canonist flock from harmful magical practices.)

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

February 1

PEACE AND BLESSINGS
TERTIUS AUREA BULLA APOSTOLICUS
Third Golden Bull of the Apostolic City

6th of Owyn’s Flame, 1962 F.A | 6th of Malin’s Welcome, 166 S.A.| 6th of Jula and Piov, 515 E.S.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Archbishop of Visigia, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Sovereign of the Apostolic City, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD does decree…

TABLE OF CONTENTS

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

SECTION I - Opening Prayer
SECTION II - Diocesan Restructuring
SECTION III - Diocesan Appointment
SECTION IV - College Appointment
SECTION V - Curia Appointment
SECTION VI - Excommunications
SECTION VII - On the Apostolic City
SECTION VIII - On the Codex Iurius
SECTION IX - On the Penance of Johanes van Aert
┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose word lasts into the eve of the world, Your will be done. We ask that you heed your pious flock from the evils of sin and the evils of Iblees’ servants alike. Many of them are unaware of the perils the world has in store for them, but this is not ignorance, rather innocence. So please, Holy Father, bless the innocent with Your divine grace, and may You forgive those who have strayed from innocence into sin, so that they may yet find salvation and Your glory. Amen.

SECTION II - DIOCESAN RESTRUCTURING

It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted, that We see fit to reconstruct, merge and establish the following Diocese, so that Our Church may be better and more efficiently managed by the accordingly appointed shepherds.

As per the joint suggestion of the Bishop of Buron and the Bishop of Gelimar, their Dioceses will be merged to form the following new diocese:

DIOCESE OF ST. GODWIN
Encompassing the entirety of the United Kingdom of Aaun as well as surrounding parishes not incorporated in other Dioceses, with its seat in the Parish of Whitespire. To be shepherded by Bishop Frantzisko.

SECTION III - DIOCESAN APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we appoint the following members of the priesthood to shepherd and be pastor of the Church’s Dioceses:

DIOCESE OF AQUILA
To be shepherded by Bishop Callahan

SECTION IV - COLLEGE APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the College of Cardinals. We decree the College to be thus:

TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Josef Cardinal Jorenus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Frantzisko Cardinal St. Godwin
TMR, Her Eminence, Mr. Rhosyn Cardinal Casica
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Mattia Cardinal Tyria

SECTION V - CURIA APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the Curia. We decree the Curia to be thus:

Vice Chancellor, His Eminence, Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
Auditor of the Tribunal, His Eminence, Mattia Cardinal Tyria
Secretariat to His Holiness, His Eminence, Josef Cardinal Jorenus
Prelate of the Priesthood, Her Eminence, Rhosyn Cardinal Casica
Pontifical Chamberlain, His Eminence, Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard, Sede Vacante
Palatine of the Apostolic City, His Eminence, Frantzisko Cardinal St. Godwin

SECTION VI - EXCOMMUNICATIONS

Through the power given him from GOD, the High Pontiff has been appointed to administer spiritual and temporal punishments as each case severally deserves. One such spiritual punishment, a severe one, is that of excommunication. Declaring someone to be an excommunicant, to be anathema, is a medicinal penalty. A threat, yes, but one that serves to invite and animate the person to change their behavior away from sin, to have them seek penance and repent, so that they may return to full communion with our most Holy Mother Church.

That said, we declare the EXCOMMUNICATION of Richard and Ottavia Stassion. The Lord and Lady of House Stassion have broken their vows sworn on a holy relic - the body of Saint Alexander of Furnestock - to King John of Aaun. A vow that there would be no aggression between the Stassions and the King, a vow that said Richard would seek to become a deacon. Yet the House of Stassion has broken this holy oath of non-aggression, and Richard has not become a deacon. What is more, the Holy Mother Church of the Canon charges Richard and Ottavia Stassion with the arson and destruction of the church in the parish of Stran. In addition to these crimes against the faith, there is also the fact that the Stassionites have sided with the anathema Gaspard of Veletz in battle, a crime in of itself.

For these crimes combined, we thus deem it just and necessary to excommunicate the Lord and Lady, with the hope of the damnation of their souls urging them to change their sinful ways. Lord Richard and Lady Ottavia, we ask you to reach out to us or a member of our Curia to repent and seek penance for your deeds and hope to see you as changed, GOD-fearing people before it is too late.

SECTION VII - ON THE APOSTOLIC CITY

While this news comes somewhat late, since our last Golden Bull, the Apostolic City has come into being. A construction effort was led by Cardinal Frantzisko of Buron in his role as Palatine of the Apostolic City which saw the miraculously rapid building of this holy place at the hands of the Church’s builders.
Since then the new primary base of operations of our faith has seen much use already and we hope that it may continue to serve our Holy Mother Church well into the future. While much of the Apostolic City is restricted in access to members of the clergy and the Order of Saint Jude, visits for religious or studying purposes as well as tours are possible at request. For this, we recommend eager visitors to reach out in writing or in person to the Palatine of the Apostolic City, the aforementioned and reverend Cardinal Frantzisko, Bishop of Buron.

SECTION VIII - ON THE CODEX IURIUS

We seek to inform the faithful of a project we have taken up ourselves and with our Curia, a project that has been sorely needed and a long time coming; revising the Codex Iurius. The Codex Iurius Canonici Danielus Pontifex, known to the layman as the Lawbook of the Church, has over the many years of its existence grown outdated and erroneous even despite its revisions under High Pontiff James II. It contains sections which are no longer relevant - like on the Holy Orenian Empire, it fails to account for certain newer reforms of the faith pertaining for instance to the women of the priesthood, and in many places it is also written in an unclear manner that could use revision.
While this revision of the Codex Iurius with all the required rewritings, removals and additions, shall be a monumental task, we have no doubts that despite the long time it will take to complete, it will be achieved with the help of the members of the Pontifical Curia, providing Canondom and the Holy Mother Church with more suitable religious laws.

SECTION IX - ON THE PENANCE OF JOHANES VAN AERT

Recently we had one of the Veletzian excommunicants come to us seeking penance for the first time; the former Duke, Sir Johanes van Aert. Sir Johanes was included in the excommunication of Veletzian leadership but his crimes were limited to associating with the anathema and siding with them in conflict. In recognition of this, we agreed with him to a penance that was fair; Sir Johanes van Aert is no longer to associate with or aid anybody who is excommunicated from our Holy Mother Church. Additionally van Aert shall become a deacon to serve the Church as a layman. Once he is invested in his diaconate function, his excommunication shall be lifted.

THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH OF THE CANON

Under GOD maintained by His Holiness Sixtus VI

THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Patriarchate of Jorenus

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Archdiocese of Lotharia

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Archdiocese of Albarosa

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL ST GODWIN
Diocese of St. Godwin

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Diocese of Casica

MATTIA CARDINAL TYRIA
Diocese of Tyria

THE CURIA

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Vice-Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

MATTIA CARDINAL TYRIA
Auditor of the Tribunal of the Church of the Canon

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Pontifical Secretary of the Church of the Canon

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Prelate of the Priesthood of the Church of the Canon

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Pontifical Chamberlain of the Church of the Canon

SEDE VACANTE
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL ST GODWIN
Palatine of the Apostolic City

CANONIST DIOCESES

THE HOLY SEE
Encompassing the entirety of the Apostolic City State, to be shepherded by High Pontiff Sixtus VI

PATRIARCHATE OF JORENUS

Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Patriarch Josef Cardinal Jorenus

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV, encompassing all the lands east of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Amleth Bishop Andrikev.

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD, encompassing all the lands west of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Villorik Bishop Westerwald

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA

Encompassing the eastern region of Aevos, including the lands of the United Kingdom of Aaun, the Commonwealth of Petra, and the surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF ST. GODWIN, encompassing the entirety of the United Kingdom of Aaun as well as surrounding parishes not incorporated in other Dioceses. To be shepherded by Bishop Frantzisko.

DIOCESE OF CASICA, encompassing the entirety of the Commonwealth of Petra, to be shepherded by Rhosyn Bishop Casica

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS

Encompassing the central region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Númendil, the League of Veletz, and surrounding territories, in Sede Vacante

DIOCESE OF AQUILA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Númendil, to be shepherded by Callahan Bishop Aquila

DIOCESE OF ST. ARPAD, encompassing the entirety of the League of Veletz, to be shepherded by Alexios Bishop St. Arpad

ARCHDIOCESE OF LOTHARIA

Encompassing the south-western region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Balian and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Matthias Cardinal Lotharia

DIOCESE OF TYRIA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Balian, to be shepherded by Mattia Bishop Tyria.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

January 23

The Church and Adria

Clarifying the Church's stance on the Reconciliation of Adria

To the Canonist faithful, our brothers and sisters,

Last Saint's Day, Markus Sarkozic, the Duke of Adria, came to us asking for a meeting to discuss plans of his'. He told us he wished to assume leadership over the League of Veletz, disband it and restore the Duchy of Adria as a nation and from this new position of power he wished to push for reconciliation between the people of the Midlands and the Holy Mother Church. He asked if we would endorse his takeover, we told him such would be his own decision. His intentions to see to the demands we have previously sent to the League of Veletz however and his promise to bid Veletzian excommunicants to seek penance, this we could endorse. He wrote up an agreement of what would need to be done for the people of the Midlands to set into motion a process of reconciliation with the Church, which has since been shared to you all as the 'Reconciliation of Adria'.

However, since it seems like this missive has caused some confusion as to what the Church's stance is on Adria and to what degree the Church shall involve itself in the ongoing war, we seek to clarify our intentions to you all in the form of this Pontifical letter. Let it be clear that the Reconciliation of Adria is purely an agreement to solve the issues that have plagued the relations between the people of the Midlands and the Church for years now. The aim of the agreement is for this relation to be normalized, primarily through seeing to the demands made in response to Veletzian soldiers attacking a monastery of nuns in Petra, as well as penance being enacted for the various people that were excommunicated. The agreement is strictly clerical, not secular, we put our signature at the bottom in approval of this policy-shift towards mending ties with the Church, not as a kind of taking sides in the ongoing secular conflict.

Speaking of said conflict, there is a line at the bottom of the missive that has sown a lot of confusion and which in hindsight we should have requested be taken out or rephrased, for it does not clearly reflect our intensions. When Duke Markus asked if this reconciliation with the Church would make us willing to push for the covenant to reach a peace agreement with Veletz - or Adria as it is now called - we said we did not wish to involve ourselves in the course of the conflict. We did say however that if Duke Markus would convince the Covenant to enter into negotiations, we would be willing to serve as a mediator between the two sides should such be desired of us. Wether or not peace negotiations happen though is not our prerogative, but that of the various national leaders involved.

Our signature at the bottom of the Reconciliation of Adria was an endorsement of Duke Markus' mission to see to fulfilling the Church's demands in mending religious ties with the people of the Midlands, not any statement referring to the nature of the ongoing conflict. We ask that this distinction is not muddled and hope that any confusion might hereby be cleared up. We hope to see the people of the Midlands, Adrians as they now call themselves again, honour their promises and do as they say they will in the aforementioned missive. If there are to be negotiations we're available to mediate - but if peace remains out of sight, then such be the nature of the conflict, we do not advocate either way.

HIS HOLINESS, SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon

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January 5

What is a knight without honour?

A Final Chance

To Gaspard of Veletz,

What is a knight without honour? What is a canonist without virtue? What's a leader who can't keep a lead over his men? Is it you, 'Sir' Gaspard? Shall we draw a crude picture of your face in future dictionaries to depict the phrase 'scum of the earth'? Or shall you man up and do what is right? We have received news of what happened in Petra earlier this Saint's Day; "armed bandits bearing symbols of Veletz and Stassion", "Veletzian Marauders", attacked a MONASTERY inhabited by NUNS. How dare you? What gives you the audacity and sheer stupidity to think this is even somewhere remotely acceptable? Are you truly that much of a two-faced snake? That you would speak of wanting your excommunication to be lifted and that this war is only secular with one forked tongue, while using the other forked tongue to give orders of waging war against the innocent of the church directly in the place where our people are most vulnerable? Do you have any semblence of self-worth, nay, worth in general, as not just a man but a living being that is graced with the chance to breathe the same air as everybody else?

Our Cardinal, who YOUR men CAPTURED and threatened to KILL if she didn't provide them the opportunity to go into Vallagne and commit genocide upon its citizens, said that her assailants eventually let her go when she proposed you might be angered by their conduct, which gives us the slightest sliver of hope that these servants of Iblees fighting under your banner were not acting on your orders. We want you to prove this to be true. We want you to rebuke the men involved, strip them of any connection to Veletz, and hand them over to either Petran or Church authorities for execution. You and your people are not to ever associate with them again, lest any correspondence between Veletz and the respectable institutions of the world can hereby be considered terminated in perpetuity. This is your final chance at maintaining any shred of dignity in our eyes and, we should hope, the eyes of the wider world.

We await a formal response in which you profusely apologize for what has happened, rebuke these men and hand them over to the aforementioned authorities for termination of their lives, as well as some form of respectable reparations for the Cardinal Rhosyn of Casica as well as the monastery's nuns. Should you fail to provide such within two Saint's Days, you should consider any ties to Canonism for you and the people who stand by you, to be over.

HIS HOLINESS, SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon

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December 25, 2023

PEACE AND BLESSINGS
SECUNDUS AUREA BULLA APOSTOLICUS
Second Golden Bull of the Apostolic City

3rd of Horen’s Calling, 1956 F.A | 3rd of Snow’s Maiden, 160 S.A.| 3rd of Wzuvar and Byvca, 509 E.S.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Archbishop of Visigia, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Sovereign of the Apostolic City, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD does decree…

TABLE OF CONTENTS

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

SECTION I - Opening Prayer
SECTION II - Diocesan Restructuring
SECTION III - Diocesan Appointments
SECTION IV - College Appointments
SECTION V - Curia Appointments
SECTION VI - On the Construction of the Apostolic City
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SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose word lasts into the eve of the world, we’ve lost many of our dearest and nearest in the past years and we pray to you for your forgiveness of their sins and their subsequent salvation. We ask additionally that you forgive the trespasses of the living, as they forgive those who have trespassed against them. May they be blessed by Your most Holy Grace. Amen.

SECTION II - DIOCESAN RESTRUCTURING

It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted, that We see fit to reconstruct, merge and establish the following Diocese, so that Our Church may be better and more efficiently managed by the accordingly appointed shepherds.

The current Diocese of Citrea within the Archdiocese of Albarosa, seated in the Parish of Lemon Hill, is to be dissolved. Its territories will be divided as follows;

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR
Encompassing the western portion of the United Kingdom of Aaun, from the mountains up to the border with the Kingdom of Petra, with its seat in the Parish of Minitz. To be shepherded by the newly appointed Bishop of Gelimar.

DIOCESE OF CASICA
Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Petra, with its seat in the Parish of Vallagne. To be shepherded by the newly appointed Bishop of Casica.

SECTION III - DIOCESAN APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we appoint the following members of the priesthood to shepherd and be pastor of the Church’s Dioceses:

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR
To be shepherded by Bishop Leofric

DIOCESE OF CASICA
To be shepherded by Bishop Rhosyn

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD
To be shepherded by Bishop Villorik

SECTION IV - COLLEGE APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the College of Cardinals. We decree the College to be thus:

TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Josef Cardinal Jorenus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Frantzisko Cardinal Buron
TMR, Her Eminence, Mr. Rhosyn Cardinal Casica

SECTION V - CURIA APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the Curia. We decree the Curia to be thus:

Vice Chancellor, His Eminence, Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
Auditor of the Tribunal, Sede Vacante
Secretariat to His Holiness, His Eminence, Josef Cardinal Jorenus
Prelate of the Priesthood, Her Eminence, Rhosyn Cardinal Casica
Pontifical Chamberlain, His Eminence, Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard, Sede Vacante
Palatine of the Apostolic City, His Eminence, Frantzisko Cardinal Buron

SECTION VI - ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE APOSTOLIC CITY

It has been a few years since the declaration of the establishment of a Papal State; the Apostolic City, and we are glad to announce that our team of engineers and architects, supervised by ourself, have just about finished the designing of the Holy See to be. Designs on paper do not equate to an actual city however, and therefore we establish the Dicastery of the Palatine of the Apostolic City, to which we’ve appointed the Cardinal from Buron, Frantzisko. Cardinal Frantzisko will oversee the construction project, but needless to say he cannot build the entire city on his own. We therefore call on the faithful flock of Canondom to come to the Church’s aid:

Any of you who would be willing to volunteer in helping to build the Apostolic City can write to the Palatine Cardinal. We, and indeed the whole of the Holy Mother Church of the Canon, will be eternally grateful for your aid in such. Additionally, the construction of the Apostolic City will bring costs of the construction materials, for this too we call for aid, with the hopes that many good Canonists will be willing to donate funds for such a great project. Indeed, every coin counts, and if many of our faithful flock each make a small donation, we shall collect the required funds with ease.

SECTION VII - ON THE APPOINTMENTS OF ARTORUS

With the recent passing of the good Archbishop of Artorus and the disappearance or death of the Bishop of Aquila, the Kingdom of Numendil and indeed the whole of Artorus is without spiritual leadership. As of yet, clear candidates for the filling of these vacated positions have not yet presented themselves to the Church. Since we do not wish to make rash decisions in making such appointments, we shall give the local clergy some time to prove themselves and show the commitment and adequacy required for the appointment to said positions. We have no doubt that, out of the various people we consider potential appointees, good candidates will present themselves.

THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH OF THE CANON

Under GOD maintained by His Holiness Sixtus V

THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Patriarchate of Jorenus

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Archdiocese of Lotharia

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Archdiocese of Albarosa

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL BURON
Diocese of Buron

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Diocese of Casica

THE CURIA

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Vice-Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

SEDE VACANTE
Auditor of the Tribunal of the Church of the Canon

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Pontifical Secretary of the Church of the Canon

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA
Prelate of the Priesthood of the Church of the Canon

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Pontifical Chamberlain of the Church of the Canon

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL BURON
Palatine of the Apostolic City of the Church of the Canon

CANONIST DIOCESES

THE HOLY SEE
Encompassing the entirety of the Apostolic City State, to be shepherded by High Pontiff Sixtus VI

PATRIARCHATE OF JORENUS

Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Patriarch Josef Cardinal Jorenus

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV, encompassing all the lands east of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Amleth Bishop Andrikev.

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD, encompassing all the lands west of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Villorik Bishop Westerwald

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA

Encompassing the eastern region of Aevos, including the lands of the United Kingdom of Aaun, the Commonwealth of Petra, and the surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF BURON, encompassing all the lands in the United Kingdom of Aaun east of the mountains, to be shepherded by Frantzisko Bishop Buron

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR, encompassing all the lands in the United Kingdom of Aaun west of the mountains, to be shepherded by Leufric Bishop Gelimar

DIOCESE OF CASICA, encompassing the entirety of the Commonwealth of Petra, to be shepherded by Rhosyn Bishop Casica

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS

Encompassing the central region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Númendil, the League of Veletz, and surrounding territories, in Sede Vacante

DIOCESE OF AQUILA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Númendil, in Sede Vacante

DIOCESE OF ST. ARPAD, encompassing the entirety of the League of Veletz, to be shepherded by Alexios Bishop St. Arpad

ARCHDIOCESE OF LOTHARIA

Encompassing the south-western region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Balian and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Matthias Cardinal Lotharia

DIOCESE OF TYRIA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Balian, to be shepherded by Mattia Bishop Tyria.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

December 25, 2023

The High Pontiff's Letter of Tuvmas

Peace & Charity

Dear brothers and sisters,

The time that most consider the most wonderful of the Saint's Year has once again come, as we celebrate one our faith's foremost religious holidays; Tuvmas, as it is known by many, or St. Tobias' Mass in common. Giving to those in need, such is the essence of Tuvmas, as we honour Saint Tobias of Sarkoz, who lived the life of a rich worldly merchant, only to give all his fortunes away to those in need in the later parts of his life, ultimately dying in order to provide a meal for others. It is a time of giving and receiving gifts, which we hope all of you most generously do. A holiday centered around charity, a virtue that can otherwise be lacking in every day life for many of us.

However it is also a time of a togetherness and solidarity. Many of you will look to your fellow man around Tuvmastime, giving love and charity to them, and many more will look to your close kith and kin. Tuvmas is a holiday spent amongst friends and family, one where we come close and huddle around the fireplace as we love one another and be merry like God intended. It is a time where we allow ourselves to indulge in the likes of food, drink and music; the worldly pleasures God created, as stated in the Canticle of Temperance.

Through this sense of merriment and togetherness, Tuvmas is also a time of peace, not just among Canondom - but through the pagan holiday of Krugmas - a time of peace on earth. However this might be hard to believe for those who let the state of the world sink in. Where once there was unity and joy under a Tuvmas tree, people are fiercely opposed to eachother. Deep wounds have been made, and peace and reconciliation seem further away than ever. The shockwaves of what has happened in Veletz, but so too in Aaun, Balian and elsewhere in the world, can be felt in Canonist homes everywhere. There's no Tuvmas carol loud enough to protect us from the sound of cannons and the cries of the innocent. While there may be causes to war, there is no denying the horror and brutality, nor the profound sadness, of Canonists fighting against fellow Canonists. We all have our ideas on who is right and who is wrong when we fight in war. When we get confronted by things that hurt and divide us, it is easy to point and blame.

However, making mistakes is human. What's more, making mistakes and learning from them makes us into better people. This is what lies at the core of humanity's covenant with God, of confession and repentance, sinning and forgiving. Let Tuvmas therefore be a time for new beginnings. Where we look at ourselves in the mirror and ask - what can we do better? Where we look to our enemies and say 'We might disagree, but let us put that aside', even if only for just a short while. A time of merriment, togetherness and charity, not just amongst close friends and family - our kith and kin - but amongst all of Canondom and Humanity. A moment for peace on earth where we may celebrate, love and give, untroubled by what divides us, so that we may catch a glimpse of a better, holier future. A glimpse of paradise, shared by enemies turned brothers, as they exchange gifts under the Tuvmas tree. Don't forget charity for the needy, love for your family and fellow man, forgive eachother and allow for new beginnings, such is what we hope for this Tuvmas.

On behalf of ourself, the Holy Mother Church of the Canon, and our Lord GOD, we wish all of you, wherever you are and no matter your personal circumstances, a most blessed Tuvmas.

HIS HOLINESS, SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon

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Merry Tobiasmas, Joyeux Tovemesse, Veselich Tuvmas, Fröhliche Tobiasmesse, Bona Messa Di Toveah, Laeti Tovemessa, Feliz Tovidad, Meri Tobiasu, Kali Maza Tovias, Majid Eid Tubyas, Buon Messa Di Tobias, Vrolijk Tobiasfeest, Wyn Toveah Kaliri, Laeti Tobiae Massa

December 20, 2023

Sixtus would turn to his right as he left his small dorm in the morning, going to knock on his neighbour's door - he hadn't heard him come home last night and he just wanted to see if his old friend and colleague was alright. Besides that, he took simple pleasure in talking to the fellow redheaded friar from day to day, their chats made him feel less lonely. No luck this morning though, Mikhael must be travelling so he thought, he didn't answer the door. Alas, he still wasn't there the next day or the day after - was this a trip to a faraway place like Balian or Haense? After almost a week had passed, the High Pontiff would use his spare key to take a look inside Mikhael's dorm, which revealed no signs of the priest having left for a while. Strange, unnerving even, Mikhael hadn't answered his letter from the day before either. Once the Holy Father asked about and heard the news of his long-time confidante's passing, it stunned him. The passings of Tonito, Stanislaw and Odo in recent times had hurt, but somehow this broke something in him - more than the others' deaths combined - as he wished he'd spent a little more time with Mikhael the last time they had a chat at the garden seat opposite their dorms...

December 13, 2023

Holy Hostage No More

On The Seizing of Sixtus

Dear brothers and sisters, children of God,

We write this letter to you in light of that which has recently transpired, seeking to briefly explain what happened and how we reflect on recent events. Two Saints Days ago, we were seized in Aaun by agents of Sir Gaspard of Veletz as part of a raid. He had us kidnapped, brought to Winburgh as a hostage. Eventually, after being interned there for a while, we were brought to the table in his castle, where he revealed to us what we already expected. He wanted us to lift the excommunication upon him and his associates in exchange for our release. We were lucky that Sir Gaspard was joined by Duke Markus Sarkozic, who served as a voice of reason, and that we ourselves were at some point joined by Cardinal Brandt, the Archbishop of Albarosa, who spoke passionately in our defense and that of the Church as a whole. The conversation was difficult and tense - for a while the subject of our presence there was in question, as Sir Gaspard tried to downplay the captive nature of our stay at his castle. Had he not shown infinite compassion to His Holiness the High Pontiff by providing a room, food and drink? Why certainly, we enjoyed all the fineries that constitute the bare necessities of prisoner life, Sir Gaspard...

At one point, Cardinal Brandt sought to ask the Captain-General Gaspard; "What will you do if His Holiness does not agree to lift the excommunication?" to which the response of Veletz' leader was something along the lines of having little reason to let us live. When said answer led to outrage from not only the Cardinal, but also Duke Markus - who said he'd sooner take up the sword against Gaspard then let the Captain-General kill us - Sir Gaspard was quick to try to soften his words, insisting it was not a threat - somehow. For a conversation supposedly solely aimed at resolution, it was not exactly drenched in good faith or a mood of amicability. We insisted that we too wanted resolution at that point of the conversation, and fearing the talk of threats and murder turned sour, we sought to stear the conversation towards establishing some clear terms for lifting the excommunication. The Captain-General then also made clear that on top of lifting the excommunication, he wanted us to tell the faithful flock of Canondom to forsake the ongoing war between Veletz and the Covenant, and turn away from it. While this notion stuck in our head as Sir Gaspard caring more about the winning of his war and dealing a blow to the Covenant's morale rather than having the excommunication of his eternal soul lifted, we continued along with the talks of terms for the time being. As a deal seemed to be getting closer to being hammered out, and the conversation drifted into the matter of these negotiations being held under duress however, we could not help but get stuck pondering and reflecting on some of the things said.

What we said about the matter of lifting the excommunication and how we felt about the matter began to drift further and further apart in our mind. In terms of the conversation, the Veletzian leader was eager as it seemed we were close to making a deal. In terms of inner reflection however, we kept reflecting on how Sir Gaspard had resorted to kidnapping us, a High Pontiff, to how he said he had little reason to let us live, to how we kept bringing up trying to turn Covenant forces against the war from our position as the Vicar of God. The agreement was not being made in good faith, we felt. If we were to lift the excommunication and no longer have the backs of those canonists loyal and faithful to the church on the opposite side of the war to Veletz - alienating us - what was to keep Sir Gaspard from simply not adhering to our agreement for the sake of convenience in the war? ...Little reason to let us live. We were not a man of flesh and blood, let alone the High Pontiff in his eyes, but a means to an end. A tool for his ambitions, to be discarded when not serving the purpose he had in mind for us - he needed a reason to let us live, more than the reason that murder is a grave sin. We do not know if it is the correct way of thinking, but it is what it began to feel like to us. Once the excommunication was lifted, would he be faithful or break our agreement made before God the next time it was convenient for his ambitions? The agreement we were working on for lifting the excommunication felt like it was being made in bad faith, under duress, didn't account for the burning of the church in Petra, acts like the murder of King Edmund, the lingering presence of the terrorist Ferrymen in Veletz - more and more it didn't feel right to us the more we thought on it. Between the long negotiations and the debating with our conscience, we were tired. 'Could we sleep on it?' we asked. Sir Gaspard, in decent spirits at this point, responded positively. That then raised another question: were we free to leave? When Sir Gaspard answered the second question affirmatively as well with a questionable 'You were always free to leave', we resolved to do just that and continue reflecting on the matter in freedom and solitude.

And as we did so, unburdened by feeling the need to provide a reason to live among other burdens, we decided we would hold off on lifting the excommunication, for it does not feel right to do so, but rather like a compromising of our own and the Church's integrity and morality, more like being pressed to do so, rather than it fully being the right thing to do. The offers made by Sir Gaspard were a step in the right direction, should he keep true to his word on them, but they would be a partial resolution rather than a complete one. A compromise, and we feel it is not right to compromise in matters of excommunication. Thus we say the excommunication shall remain in place. It may yet be lifted some day, a day where the leaders of the people of Veletz or Adria entreat with the servants of God in good faith and in wholeness of virtue, but it is not this day.

Regardless, we left Veletz and the captivity we were held in - something that we believe cannot be said of all the people that were kidnapped alongside with us, as we do not think everyone made it out alive. We say to all the faithful flock of Canondom; remain steadfast in your faith and your pursuit of the Lord's righteousness, may our story be an example that you do not buckle to threats and intimidation. To Duke Markus, Cardinal Brandt and Bishop Callahan, we wish to say we are thankful for your influence on the conversation and for pledging to protect our right to live when such was put into question. We apologize if we disappoint your wishes for resolution and peace, but in the current moment this is not a full or true peace and thus not a peace we can agree to. GOD blesses the peacemakers, yes, but He also blesses those who hunger and thirst for righteousness - and the events of the past Saints Days have not left us nourished, but hungering.

Sincerely,
HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS SIXTUS, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon

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December 4, 2023

Sixtus VI, once just Toni's cousin Arnaud, would weep as he heard the news of the Cardinal's death. As he prayed for Tonito's soul, he regretted not spending more time him and wondered why he hadn't; his cousin had always been a joy to have around. Sure, they did not always see eye to eye, but he hoped that Tonito knew that Arnaud or Sixtus felt they'd always seen heart to heart. He wept, for his... hermano.

November 30, 2023

PEACE AND BLESSINGS
PRIMA AUREA BULLA APOSTOLICUS
First Golden Bull of the Apostolic City

3rd of Horen’s Calling, 1953 F.A | 3rd of Snow’s Maiden, 157 S.A.| 3rd of Wzuvar and Byvca, 506 E.S.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Archbishop of Visigia, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Sovereign of the Apostolic City, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD does decree…

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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SECTION I - Opening Prayer

SECTION II - Diocesan Renaming
SECTION III - On the Establishment of a Papal State
SECTION IV - On the Coronation of John of Aaun
SECTION V - On the Jorenic Rite
SECTION VI - On Veletz and the War
SECTION VII - Veneration
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SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose word lasts into the eve of the world, the sons of Horen, Your Canonist flock, are greatly divided. Iblees has turned some men wicked and away from Your faith, causing them to do evil deeds - and war between the evildoers and their victims has ensued as a result. We pray to You for an end to the suffering of the innocent, for an end to wickedness, and an end to bloodshed and war upon the victory of the righteous. Amen.

SECTION II - DIOCESAN RENAMING

It was the good Bishop Alexios of the Bishopric of St. Emma who petitioned us that his Diocese be renamed. Not because of a lack of veneration or disregard for the holy St. Emma, but because of local cultural and religious considerations. Whereas the previous cathedral had St. Emma as its patron Saint, the current seat of the Diocese is named after St. Arpad, and the local clergy and laity have taken to venerating him as their patron Saint. The good Bishop’s request was therefore to rename his Diocese to the Diocese of St. Arpad, and out of a desire to aid the Bishop in facilitating Canonism in this troubled land, we grant him this request.

SECTION III - ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PAPAL STATE

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we hereby announce the establishment of a Papal State. This state, to be known as the Apostolic City, was created as per the recently signed Treaty of Albarosa between the Holy Mother Church and the United Kingdom of Aaun. The Apostolic City, of which we as High Pontiff are the sovereign, shall be a comparatively small city state, shaped out of an enlarged Albarosan Church District. From henceforth, the Apostolic City is the seat of the Holy See, something of which the King of Haense - who played host to the Holy See in Jorenus - was informed of beforehand.

We thank and bless the late King Edmund of Aaun for donating the lands in question to the Church and giving the Church the right to determine for itself what to do with them, the donation of Edmund shall not be forgotten. We thank King John of Aaun also for putting the Treaty of Albarosa on paper with us and making this agreement in good faith.

We do wish to remind the Faithful however that the building up of such a Papal State will be costly both in funds and labor, and the Holy Mother Church is for a large part dependent on donations from you. If you wish to donate minas or material, or you wish to labor in building up this holy land, we ask that you reach out to us and we will be most grateful.

Spoiler

SECTION IV - ON THE CORONATION OF JOHN OF AAUN

We speak with sorrow on what recently transpired in the United Kingdom of Aaun. As you will all be well aware, our faithful flock, men from the House of Stassion and men from the League of Veletz assailed the young King Edmund, who was set to host a peace conference that day. As the good young King laid dead and the noble soldiers of Canondom - from Haense, Aaun, Balian, Petra and Hyspia - chased out the evildoers, the future of the Kingdom of St. Godwin seemed up in the air. Luckily for us all, the late King had written a will in which he named his relative, Father John Alstion, as his successor on account of his own lack of children.

Father John, who was a priest, humbly accepted this duty and the severity of the office entrusted to him and renounced his priesthood in order to be crowned as King John of Aaun. Because of the hazardous nature of the events at that moment and Father John not wanting to put Aaun and its people at risk by holding off on a coronation, the crowning had to happen on short notice. Regrettably, we were not able to conduct this ceremony at that time and so the Archbishop of Albarosa, Father Brandt, saw to it that John was crowned King. Normally this is not allowed as it is the High Pontiff who must crown monarchs, but due to the circumstances we hereby recognize that the Archbishop’s intercession was justified and affirm John Alstion as the legitimate King of the United Kingdom of Aaun.

While King John had to renounce his ordination as a member of the priesthood to accept the crown, we do recognize his commendable knowledge of our Faith and his virtuous character and thus offer him the position of Deacon of the Holy Mother Church - a position that can be held in addition to being a monarch - so that he may continue to be of service to the canonist cause.

SECTION V - ON THE JORENIC RITE

Recently the Patriarch of Jorenus, Cardinal Josef, announced the formalization of the Jorenic Rite. We hereby recognize the Jorenic Rite as one of the legitimate rites in communion with the Holy Mother Church of the Canon as we have found it to be but a cultural interpretation of the faith based on the legacy of the Ruskan rite and the Kingdom of Haense’s culture, rather than touching on the core of the Canonist religion. We hereby also reaffirm the right of the clergy to establish their own rites, granted they have historical or cultural reasons foundational to their creation, and they do not contradict the Church’s core beliefs in any way. Any clergy wishing to establish such a rite are required to seek pontifical approval however before it is recognized.We do ask the priesthood, especially those in Jorenus, to remain vigilant in that this new Jorenic Rite does not devolve into heretical beliefs that stray the faithful from the true word of GOD.

SECTION VI - ON VELETZ AND THE WAR

We are saddened to review the state of affairs in the League of Veletz and pertaining to that country. We must say that, while a war of canonist against canonist, brother against brother, is always regrettable and something to try to avoid, we understand the decision of the covenant of five to declare war on the League of Veletz. So much hatred, so much hurt, abuse and sin has come forth from that place in recent days. The kidnappings of people from Balian and Petra, the murder of King Edmund, the clashing of armies, the burning of the Petran church - these are not actions to be taken lightly. Since Sir Gaspard and the rest of Veletz’ leadership have shown to be unwilling to change their ways thus far, perhaps it is best military action be taken against them in order to put an end to the hurt and violence, even if it means the sin of shedding canonist blood. We do hope and pray that Sir Gaspard and the others that were excommunicated with him have a change of heart, see the light of GOD, and reach out to us in an effort to set things right. We know that the chances of such are slim, but GOD works His miracles sometimes. We hope and pray also that those living in Veletz that remain faithful to GOD and the Church make an effort to see to it they still receive the Sacraments and that they do not take up the sword against their fellow faithful canonists, lest they be damned for all Eternity.

SECTION VII - VENERATION

It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that We affirm the following veneration:

VENERABLE CUNIMUND HAL’CINGEDOZ
Baron Cunimund of the Cingedoz tribes is hereby made Venerable on account of his long service to the Holy Mother Church’s written word. Cunimund was appointed to oversee the literary donation of the Venerable Father Wert as Albarosa’s Church Librarian and in doing so gave shape to the library there, not only managing the Wertian collection, but vastly growing it to become the largest collection of books in all of Canondom to our knowledge. In addition to this, and more importantly in regards to his Veneration, Cunimund transcribed a great number of religious texts - some of which had never been put in book form before - and made the effort of spreading these religious texts far and wide across Canondom, thus playing an enormous role in spreading the word of God, of the Church, and in evangelizing the descendants of Horen through his contributions to the written word.

THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH OF THE CANON

Under GOD maintained by His Holiness Sixtus V

THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

ANTONIUS CARDINAL ARTORUS
Archdiocese of Artorus

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Patriarchate of Jorenus

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Archdiocese of Lotharia

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Archdiocese of Albarosa

STANISLAW CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Diocese of Westerwald

ODO CARDINAL GELIMAR
Diocese of Gelimar

THE CURIA

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Vice-Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

STANISLAW CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Auditor of the Tribunal of the Church of the Canon

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Pontifical Secretary of the Church of the Canon

ANTONIUS CARDINAL ARTORUS
Prelate of the Priesthood of the Church of the Canon

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Pontifical Chamberlain of the Church of the Canon

ODO CARDINAL GELIMAR
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard

CANONIST DIOCESES

THE HOLY SEE
Encompassing the entirety of the Apostolic City State, to be shepherded by High Pontiff Sixtus VI

PATRIARCHATE OF JORENUS

Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Patriarch Josef Cardinal Jorenus

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV, encompassing all the lands east of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Amleth Bishop Andrikev.

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD, encompassing all the lands west of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Stanislaw Bishop Westerwald

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA

Encompassing the eastern region of Aevos, including the lands of the United Kingdom of Aaun, the Commonwealth of Petra, and the surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF BURON, encompassing all the lands east of the mountains, to be shepherded by Francis Bishop Buron

DIOCESE OF CITREA, encompassing all the lands west of Saint Daniel’s Crossing, to be shepherded by Callahan Bishop Citrea

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR, encompassing all the lands west of the mountains, to be shepherded by Odo Bishop Gelimar

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS

Encompassing the central region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Númendil, the Veletz League, and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Antonius Cardinal Artorus

DIOCESE OF AQUILA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Númendil, to be shepherded by Pious Bishop Aquila

DIOCESE OF ST. ARPAD, encompassing the entirety of the League of Veletz, to be shepherded by Alexios Bishop St. Arpad

ARCHDIOCESE OF LOTHARIA

Encompassing the south-western region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Balian and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Matthias Cardinal Lotharia

DIOCESE OF TYRIA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Balian, to be shepherded by Mattia Bishop Tyria.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

November 25, 2023

The High Pontiff's Letter of Eucharist

Being Thankful

Dear brothers and sisters,

The past Saint's Day saw the celebration of eucharist, from the Akritian 'efcharisto'; giving thanks. While not strictly a Canonist holiday, it is an occasion that brings families and friends together in humble displays of gratitude and compassion It is a time of reflection and generosity, of an openness to giving and receiving blessings. Because of the occasion having such beautiful effects, we would like to partake in this tradition by writing all of you, our faithful flock, a letter.

We'd like to start by thanking GOD, for how he illumes us, how he guides and inspires us and how he has heard our prayers and given us chances to grow and be a better person. We are also thankful for how the canonist flock has received us since we became High Pontiff. While there have been some ups and downs in these first few years, overall the response has been overwhelmingly loving and welcoming and we sincerely thank you, all of you, from the deepest of our heart. Your love and compassion and supportiveness gives us strength and makes us want to be there for all of you all the more. We are thankful also, upon reflecting on recent events, for those of you who have been less loving, perhaps more reluctant, hesitant or even criticising. While your attitude towards us is sometimes hurtful or disappointing in the moment, we know that your criticisms are invaluable feedback that we must not ignore but keep on lending a listening ear to.

We are thankful also for the people around us; for our Cardinals and Bishops who often lend a helping hand as well as good advice. For the men of the order of St. Jude who are always willing to be our valiant protectors. For those who have sought us out for the intimate and personal experience of confessing sins and the trust that comes with that sacrament. We are thankful for our family outside the church, our actual family, as well. For our brother Albert, who helps us hold a mirror to ourselves and makes us keep thinking straight when necessary at times. For our cousin Adrian, for always showing that even a distant relative (both in blood relation and physical distance) can still be a core part of one's family. For our niece Catriona, for always being a pleasant presence and bringing light to our day, like a daughter we never had. And while she might not expect such, we are thankful for our mother whom we have not seen much for over 40 years now, for she reminds us of the happy times of our youth and the love she gave us then.

There are also some simpler though no less beautiful things in life we are thankful for. We are thankful for the food we eat - especially the sweet fruits and the pleasure we take in growing them. We are thankful for wine, which we make sure to enjoy in moderation. For our good health and that of our loved ones. We are thankful for the beauty and majesty of the churches and the enjoyment of reading books and taking walks in nature. We are thankful for our lovely horse Spirit, for our four-legged companion is a much beloved and loyal steed.

Lastly we are thankful for all of the letters you write us and the messages you leave us. Correspondence with so many of our devoted faithful flock brightens our day, especially when it turns out there is something we can do to to help or brighten up someone else's day. On that note, we most humbly invite you, our faithful fellow canonists, to write back and share in good spirit what you are thankful for. We hope that you use this as an opportunity to reflect on all the things that are good in life and that you wish to thank God or other people for.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon

Thank you God. Merci mon Dieu. Spasiba Godan. Danke Gott. Graza teu Don. Myrcei Dio. Gracias Dios. Kamisama arigato. Efcharistó Thée mou. Alhamd lilah. Grazie Dio. Dank u God. Ahernan Caele. Gratias tibi Deus.

November 22, 2023

Spoiler

PEACE AND BLESSINGS
VICESIMUS TERTIUS AUREA BULLA JORENUS
Twenty-Third Golden Bull of Jorenus

3rd of Horen’s Calling, 1952 F.A | 3rd of Snow’s Maiden, 156 S.A.| 3rd of Wzuvar and Byvca, 505 E.S.

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS VI, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Archbishop of Visigia, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD does decree…

TABLE OF CONTENTS

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

SECTION I - Opening Prayer

SECTION II - College Appointments
SECTION III - Curia Appointments
SECTION IV - Diocesan Appointments
SECTION V - Marriage Dissolution
SECTION VI - On the Ferrymen
SECTION VII - Venerations
SECTION VIII - Beatification
┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

SECTION I - OPENING PRAYER

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, whose word lasts into the eve of the world, we ask that You illume us, forgive the trespasses of those who have sinned against Your Virtue, and bless those who have been true and devoted to Your mission. The Canonist flock are assailed by trials and tribulations on many sides, Heavenly Father. We pray for the flock of Haense, whose warmth of spirit is being frozen by a never-ending winter and ask that You bless them with the thaw of spring. We pray for the flock of the midlands, of Numendil, Petra and Veletz, for they are troubled by the likes of Vampires, Azdrazi and wicked Magi, and ask that You cast down these threats to the faithful. We pray for the flock of Aaun, whose King lies hurt and bedridden after an evil man tried to bereave him of life, and ask that you bless their ruler with good health. And we pray for the flock of Balian, whose royal family was broken after the sacrament of marriage was severed, and ask that you console them. Above all however, Heavenly Father, we pray that these hardships bring us together as family, and that Your faithful are strengthened by enduring them. Amen.

SECTION II - COLLEGE APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the College of Cardinals. We decree the College to be thus:

TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Antonius Cardinal Artorus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Josef Cardinal Jorenus
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
TMR, His Eminence, Fr. Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
TRR, His Eminence, Fr. Stanislaw Cardinal Westerwald
TRR, His Eminence, Fr. Odo Cardinal Gelimar

SECTION III - CURIA APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we make these affirmations, alterations, and additions to the Curia. We decree the Curia to be thus:

Vice Chancellor, His Eminence, Matthias Cardinal Lotharia
Auditor of the Tribunal, His Eminence, Stanislaw Cardinal Westerwald
Secretariat to His Holiness, His Eminence, Josef Cardinal Jorenus
Prelate of the Priesthood, His Eminence, Antonius Cardinal Artorus
Pontifical Chamberlain, His Eminence, Brandt Cardinal Albarosa
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard, His Eminence, Odo Cardinal Gelimar

SECTION IV - DIOCESAN APPOINTMENTS

It is through our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that we appoint the following members of the priesthood to shepherd and be pastor of the Church’s Archdioceses and Dioceses:

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA
To be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF BURON
To be shepherded by Bishop Frantzisko

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR
To be shepherded by Bishop Odo Cardinal Gelimar

DIOCESE OF ST. EMMA
To be shepherded by Bishop Alexios

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV
To be shepherded by Bishop Amleth

DIOCESE OF TYRIA
To be shepherded by Bishop Mattia

SECTION V - MARRIAGE DISSOLUTION

Matrimony is a most Holy sacrament, granted by GOD through his clergymen that serve the flock. However while the union created between a man and a woman through the sacrament of Matrimony is meant to be an eternal one, sometimes the situation causes the Church to have to intervene, for one reason or another, through an official dissolution of the pair’s union.

Today, We perform such once more, as It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that We officially dissolve the union of Adrian of Balian and Andromeda Ester, on the grounds of abandonment and denouncement through Andromeda’s departure from Balian and her disloyalty to and forsaking of Adrian after many years of an unhappy marriage, and the struggle of the latter to make said marriage work.

We wish that GOD grant mercy to this separated couple in the next chapters, and We request that they seek Our approval before once again receiving the sacrament of matrimony.

SECTION VI - ON THE FERRYMEN

Recently we called for the warriors and knights of Canondom to assemble and ride with us to Veletz and Haense. The reason was that the Ferrymen had sought to make their return by kidnapping a pregnant woman, the Princess Sibyl, heir to the Kingdom of Balian. We hereby condemn the actions of the Ferrymen and declare them EXCOMMUNICATED and ANATHEMA. No service or sacrament is to be given to any of their members by any member of the clergy. They reside outside the law of both the Church and secular realms, with their rights forfeited. If any of their members consider themselves Canonists, they may individually seek me out for their penance.

We wish to make something very clear; that actions like these are a slight against the Canonist family and they cannot stand. One cannot be a Ferryman or aid a Ferryman and consider themselves a Canonist. Ferrymen cannot live a Canonist life because their lifestyle blasphemes GOD. The age of terrorist behavior like what was displayed by these bandits is done. The Ferrymen as a group laid dead in the dust for a while now and we prefer they remain dead. Their actions have proven that the Canonist League was right in claiming that the Ferrymen reside in Veletz, for they have shown themselves to use the Mareno keep as a base of operations. We say thus to Captain-General Gaspard of the League of Veletz; evict these men and declare them banished, else you aid these terrorists and shall be considered one of them rather than a good Canonist and be likewise declared excommunicated and anathema. We have also seen that a band of Orcs came to the aid of the Ferrymen - for which we admonish the Rex.

Let there be no confusion; the Ferrymen are not some sort of lovable rogues who fight a just cause against the remnants of an oppressive Orenian Empire. They are bandits, criminals, killers: terrorists, who make up excuses for supposed heroism while taking a pregnant and innocent woman from her home and threatening to kill her. Let there be no confusion also of the nature of the intervention that happened to try to negotiate the princess’ release; it was not an invasion of Veletz or Ferrymen territory by Haense. The King of Haense, the Admiral of Balian and the Grandmaster of the Order of Saint Jude were there under our banner. We take full responsibility. This was a Canonist mission of liberation inside of Canonist lands. So we say to the Ferrymen; do not try to spin this as some sort of unjust act of war where you are the victims.

We thank our good and devout Canonist faithful for heeding the call and coming together as one big family in an attempt to free our sister in GOD from these wicked men. As of right now it is unclear what has happened to her, some say she lives and some say she was killed. Regardless, we shall pray for her soul and her wellbeing and that of her unborn child.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for their righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.

SECTION VII - VENERATIONS

It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that We affirm the following venerations:

VENERABLE HENRY ALSTION
Prince Henry Alstion was deemed Venerable as per decision of a Curia meeting held under our predecessor Sixtus V for his lifelong commitment to the Church - first as a layman, later as a deacon - and the role he played in ensuring peace among Canondom by ending the long-term war between the Duchy of Adria and the Canonist League.

VENERABLE FATHER ARMAND
Cardinal-Archbishop Armand of Lotharia is made venerable for his efforts in spearheading the crusade on the Azdrazi heralds of Azdromoth, the role he has played in combating the forces of evil in general, serving the Church faithfully as Auditor for decades and his invaluable contributions to the Magic Commission.

VENERABLE KING CHARLES I OF AAUN
King Charles of Aaun is made venerable in recognition for his unwavering loyalty to the Church and defense of our most holy institution throughout his lengthy life and reign. His legacy of devotion to the Church among the population of Aaun can be felt to this day and the importance of him standing up for the Canonist Church when an alliance led by Sedan threatened to schism over the issue of investiture cannot be denied.

SECTION VIII - BEATIFICATION

It is through Our Apostolic Right, bestowed unto Us through the Laurel derived from the Exalted that We affirm the following beatification:

BLESSED SISTER CALLIOPE
Sister Calliope Renata of Merryweather was a nun hailing from the House of Alstreim who joined the Church’s sisterhood in the Principality of Savoy. Aside from her service to the Church and her Faithful, she is beatified for the miracle she is believed to have performed at the Duchy of Reinmar in Haense in 1943. The Duchy was attacked by a band of undead led by a necromancer, who set the lands of the Duke ablaze and slaughtered his animals. After the attack, the Duke went to a chapel and prayed to Sister Calliope for intercession, upon which he saw a vision of the nun. After leaving the chapel, it was apparent that - miraculously - the damage the undead’s fire and blades had done to the Duchy had been reversed as if nothing had happened.

THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH OF THE CANON

Under GOD maintained by His Holiness Sixtus VI

THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS

ANTONIUS CARDINAL ARTORUS
Archdiocese of Artorus

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Patriarchate of Jorenus

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Archdiocese of Lotharia

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Archdiocese of Albarosa

STANISLAW CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Diocese of Westerwald

ODO CARDINAL GELIMAR
Diocese of Gelimar

THE CURIA

MATTHIAS CARDINAL LOTHARIA
Vice-Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

STANISLAW CARDINAL WESTERWALD
Auditor of the Tribunal of the Church of the Canon

JOSEF CARDINAL JORENUS
Pontifical Secretary of the Church of the Canon

ANTONIUS CARDINAL ARTORUS
Prelate of the Priesthood of the Church of the Canon

BRANDT CARDINAL ALBAROSA
Pontifical Chamberlain of the Church of the Canon

ODO CARDINAL GELIMAR
Commandant of the Pontifical Guard

CANONIST DIOCESES

PATRIARCHATE OF JORENUS, THE HOLY SEE

Encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Hanseti-Ruska and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Patriarch Josef Cardinal Jorenus

DIOCESE OF ANDRIKEV, encompassing all the lands east of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Amleth Bishop Andrikev.

DIOCESE OF WESTERWALD, encompassing all the lands west of the river Lahy, to be shepherded by Stanislaw Bishop Westerwald

ARCHDIOCESE OF ALBAROSA

Encompassing the eastern region of Aevos, including the lands of the United Kingdom of Aaun, the Commonwealth of Petra, and the surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Brandt Cardinal Albarosa

DIOCESE OF BURON, encompassing all the lands east of the mountains, to be shepherded by Francis Bishop Buron

DIOCESE OF CITREA, encompassing all the lands west of Saint Daniel’s Crossing, to be shepherded by Callahan Bishop Citrea

DIOCESE OF GELIMAR, encompassing all the lands west of the mountains, to be shepherded by Odo Bishop Gelimar

ARCHDIOCESE OF ARTORUS

Encompassing the central region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Númendil, the Veletz League, and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Antonius Cardinal Artorus

DIOCESE OF AQUILA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Númendil, to be shepherded by Pious Bishop Aquila

DIOCESE OF ST. EMMA, encompassing the entirety of the League of Veletz, to be shepherded by Alexios Bishop St. Emma

ARCHDIOCESE OF LOTHARIA

Encompassing the south-western region of Aevos, including the lands of the Kingdom of Balian and surrounding territories, to be shepherded by Archbishop Matthias Cardinal Lotharia

DIOCESE OF TYRIA, encompassing the entirety of the Kingdom of Balian, to be shepherded by Mattia Bishop Tyria.

☩ EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO ☩

IT IS A CYCLE, NOT CHANGE

November 17, 2023

Sixtus the Sixth blesses this edition of the newspaper.

November 14, 2023

THE PONTIFICAL CORONATION OF 1950

THE CORONATION OF ARCHBISHOP ARNAUD CARDINAL ALBAROSA

Most beloved flock, blessings and benediction,

Two months ago, His Holiness High Pontiff Sixtus the fifth was laid to rest in a ceremony overseen by Patriarch Josef of Jorenus, after which his remains were cremated. Once this chapter in our church’s history was closed, the College of Cardinals gathered nextdoor to the Basilica in the late Pontiff’s residence for a conclave. I now feel blessed to formally announce to all of Canondom that it was me who was elected to serve as His Holiness’ successor in said conclave.

The votes were cast by Cardinal Matthias of Lotharia, Cardinal Antonius of Artorus, Cardinal Josef of Jorenus and myself. The election was a close one, initially being tied. After lengthy and careful deliberation however, the votes were counted as three votes to one and it was thus that the Church of the Canon had its next Pontiff-Elect and I was chosen to be the next Vicar of God.

To officiate this duty and great honor being bestowed upon me and come together to celebrate this momentous occasion for all our Canonist family, I invite you all to come and partake in the ceremony of my Pontifical Coronation. The event is to be held in three Saint’s Days, in the Temple of the Exalted Prophets of the Canon outside Whitespire, Aaun.

Special invitations go out to;

King Adrian I of Balian and his household @ErikAzog
King Aleksandr II of Haense and his household @Mio
King Edmund II of Aaun and his household @Caranthir_
Tar-Caraneth of Númendil and her household @AstriaS
Queen-Apparent Catherine I of the Petra @Zaerie
Queen-Emeritus Renilde I of the Petra and her household @tilly
Captain-General Gaspard II of Veletz and his household @M1919
Grandmaster Halston Veyont of the Order of Saint Jude @FashionBeard
Albéric du Lac and his household @Andustar

EST CYCLUS, NON MUTATIO

ARNAUD CARDINAL ALBAROSA

Pontiff-Elect of the Church of the Canon

Spoiler

The event will be on Friday the 17th, 3pm EST

November 9, 2023

THE FUNERAL OF HIGH PONTIFF

SIXTUS V

His Holiness Sixtus V lay in state at the Everardian Basilica. Valdev, Haense

A MESSAGE FROM THE VICE CHANCELLOR OF THE CHURCH OF THE CANON

Our dear Canonist flock, by now you are undoubtedly all aware of the great misfortune that has befallen our family in recent days, with the passing of our Faith’s leader, the Vicar of God, His Holiness, Sixtus the fifth. As our Church’s Vice Chancellor, it is my duty to soon laud in and organize a gathering of the College of Cardinals to elect whomever is most suited to be the late High Pontiff’s successor. However before we put the quill to the paper on that matter, we must first close the current chapter of our most Holy Church’s history, the great and lengthy story of Sixtus V.

FUNERAL SERVICE

Unfortunately, the late Pontiff has not left us any wishes in regards to how he would prefer his funeral to be conducted, but that does not mean it shall be conducted without great care. Sixtus the fifth, born Iosif Sigmar Basrid, was a canonist of the Ruskan Rite and before he was elected as the Vicar of God, he was Patriarch of Jorenus and served the Haeseni King as Palatine. His Holiness was a Haenseman, a fine and pious example of one, who taught his students - among whom I find myself - not just the importance of Canonism, but so too also the importance of the teachings of the Exalted Sigismund. Yet despite all he taught me, I do not follow the Ruskan Rite and I am no Haenseman.

Therefore I have decided that, in order to give the late Pontiff the funeral that best suits him, it shall be held in the Everardian Basilica in Haense, conducted by Patriarch Josef according to the local traditions His Holiness was accustomed to. Those who wish to say a few words themselves about Sixtus V or Iosif, could perhaps find a chance to do so, but are asked to reach out to myself or the Patriarch in advance.

MASS

Following the Funeral Service, as is customary, there will be a mass held within the Everardian Basilica, in which the late Pontiff’s legacy will be further honored and in which we shall pray for his ascendency into the Seven Skies. We humbly yet devotedly invite all the good faithful to join us in this grand ceremony.

[[SUNDAY 04:00 PM EST - 09:00 PM GMT - 10:00 PM CET]]

REQUIESCE IN PACE

HIS HOLINESS SIXTUS V, High Pontiff of the Church of the Canon, Patriarch-Emeritus of Jorenus, Successor of the High Priesthood of the Church, Supreme Pontiff of the Church of True Faith, Keeper of the Canon, Missionary to Aeldin, High Servant to the Exalted's Testaments, Humble Servant of the Faithful and Vicar of GOD

82 SA - 154 SA

November 8, 2023

Father Arnaud would solemnly mourn the passing of the late Pontiff, the man who had once educated him, been his mentor, inducted Arnaud into the faith. It was a sore loss to see Iosif, alias Sixtus the fifth, move from this plane to the next, but the Cardinal found comfort in praying for him and the thought he was surely in a better place now, among the virtuous dead in the Seven Skies.

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