NationStates Jolt Archive

Darren Gearing brushed a graying hair from his forehead. Adjusting the white robes of his office, the High Priest of Dana (Excalbia) stepped up behind the podium with a fatherly smile. The church was designed largely like a Protestant church to make the converts feel more at home. Actual church structure meant little in Danaan teachings for it had been a matter of indifference to Gearing. Still, the whole setting seemed alien to him, very different from the naturalistic ritual sites where he had officiated back home. What disturbed him more, though it was not unexpected, was that the pews were largely empty still after some time proselytizing in Excalbia. Those who did fill them were mostly disaffected youth and rebels looking for an alternative to the mainstream of Excalbian society. While Gearing appreciated their faith, he also had a nagging fear that he might become viewed more as some sort of New Age figure here than as a serious cleric. It didn’t seem fair. The Christians had managed to win huge numbers of converts in Holista, including King Gregory himself. Granted, there missions were near total failures everywhere else in the Danaan High Kingdom but…a Kingdom was a lot. Pushing his thoughts to the back of his mind, Gearing began his sermon.

“I will begin at the beginning and the beginning is creation. The beginning is not sin or punishment or destruction but creation. It is easy to forget that. We talk a lot about struggling against evil and darkness. And this is an important struggle and one that must be waged by the sons and daughters of light and that must be won. But we don’t conquer darkness with darkness. We don’t conquer darkness through persecuting it or through censoring it or through forcing it into deeper shadows to fester and grow stronger. Light is what darkness fears, light and love. Dana is creation before all else. Dana is the Mother of us all.”

Wallace Garson listened intently. Like Gearing and almost all the Church staff, he had come from the Resurgent Dream as a Danaan missionary. A plump, paternal looking man, Garson smiled an easy going smile as he looked about. He knew most of the converts and saw only hope in them, ignoring the small number. The aging man folded his hands quietly, taking time to turn and make eye contact with this person or that every now and again. Meanwhile, Gearing’s sermon continued.

“I am reminded of the story of Lady Fiona herself when she was brought before Domnu, the Queen of the Elderdark, Mother of the Fomorians. I do not know how many of you have heard that story. Lady Fiona, who was later to become the mother of a great House and a commander of nations, was then an outcast from her people. You see, she was a sidhe and her beloved was the human Lord Oswin. In those days, people weren’t quite as tolerant of interracial marriage as most of us were today and the ruling fairy lords told her to leave Oswin or go into exile. Having a love that was true, she chose exile. That in and of itself is an impressive thing. All of us here have thought we loved someone or something before. All of us. Yet, how many would really give up our own people, our mothers and fathers, our friends, our brothers and sisters, our world, for love? I don’t expect you to answer. I don’t know if anyone can answer a question like that until he or she is put to the test. Still, it’s an amazing thing Fiona did and we should take a moment to think about it. For love is light and, as we shall see demonstrated more clearly in Fiona’s story, light is what darkness fears.”

Amidst the congregation, mixed in with the students, bohemians and disaffected, were a few others who were there for different reasons. Harlan Jekabson sat in a back pew distractedly listening to High Priest Gearing while he formulated his report to the Minister of Home Affairs. Jekabson wasn’t spying – he would have vigorously denied that allegation – after all, if anyone had asked him, he would have produced his identification without hesitation. The Ministry didn’t spy on people; Excalbia had no secret police as such.

However, the Ministry’s Bureau of Religious Affairs did have a responsibility to make sure that religious organizations complied with their charters. Jekabson’s task was to make sure that this new Church of Dana was not violating its tax-exempt status by engaging in trade or commerce and that it was not violating public order.

Jekabson had listened to a couple of Gearing’s sermons and so far he’d heard nothing in teachings that would violate the law. His report, he concluded, would be fairly boring.

Near the front, Janice Pulce was far more intent on Gearing’s teachings. As a PhD student in religious studies at the University of Excalbia, Janice had few opportunities to study non-Christian religions, much less non-Semitic-monotheistic religions. Fiona’s story was interesting and she was anxious to hear the rest of it. The stories of the Danaists were made all the more fascinating by the fact that they had amongst them, in the person of the sidhe Lady Alosse, someone who could claim to attest to them in person.

Janice looked over at her fellow student, Luke Powers. Luke, too, was paying close attention. Unlike Janice, Luke was from the Confederation of Sovereign States. Like most scholars from the Confederation, including students of religion, Luke tended towards agnosticism and atheism. Decades of materialism had eroded religion and religious values. Even within the church, leaders all too often seemed to be pursuing money rather than righteousness.

Unlike other Confederation scholars, Luke didn’t take as a given that skepticism and hostility towards religion were marks of sophistication. After all, for most people in Excalbia their faith seemed to be genuine and fairly well informed. And that faith seemed to serve society well. Excalbia was an orderly, safe and prosperous place. It was also a place where many people, if not most, seemed to genuinely take an interest in other people. It was a startlingly contrast to the Confederation. Especially since, ethnically speaking, the Excalbians and Confeds were the same people.

Luke shook his head. And the fact that the closest thing to a vibrant, growing religion in the Confederation, outside of the Baptists in Southland and the Catholics in Saxmere, was the Order of the Invisible Hand just made things worse. The Order would reinforce all the worst trends in Confederation society. Not for the first time, Luke found himself longing for some kind of religion that would offer him hope for his country.

Araceli Kasel ran a hand through her short, purple hair, a smile touching her cute, round face. She was a rockstar, or liked to think of herself as one anyway. Her music was moderately popular in Farinor and Fireforge. As a Danaan Rocker, her role here in Excalbia, as it had been back home, was to try and make Faith ‘cool’. She didn’t understand why people like her should be necessary though. What could the kids find more satisfying than the unconditional love of Dana? And Gearing preached on.

“Now, Fiona lived and fought with Oswin’s people for some years, battling the armies of the Fomorians wherever they should encounter them. The battles pitted men against all sorts of monsters and creatures not now widely known. They fought against beasts that could turn a man to stone with a glance and a race capable of warping reality itself around them. They fought against lords of beasts and against towering ogres. They fought and they often one. More damage was done to the armies of the Underdark in Oswin’s day than had yet been done. It was in the greatest such battle, fought on the frozen surface of a sea, that Oswin was at last taken by Domnu’s armies and brought before the Queen of Nightmares where he met with scorn and derision before being chained beneath the Earth in her vast dungeons. It was a time of darkness but Oswin kept his faith.”

Lady Alossa ni Liam sat in shining glory among the pews. Her perfect alabaster skin shining with the purity of her blood and her faith. her hands folded neatly in her lap, she listened attentively to the sermon, her long, elegantly pointed ears perked. She smiled a gently, radiant smile with a holy silver glow to it. And Gearing preached on.

“Now, of all the powers of light in the world, not one would dare Domnu’s wrath to save Oswin, not after all her had done for them. Domnu was too powerful. Her fortress too impregnable. Her armies too vast. Fiona alone went for her love. She was taken before Domnu and forced to her knees. She couldn’t fight her way free. She couldn’t stand. But Fiona, there, forced to her knees, beaten, bloody, did what no other save the gods had done before and what none has done since. She looked up and met Domnu’s gaze, the gaze of evil embodied and supreme. She did not lower her eyes and she did not tremble. When Domnu saw this, her foul heart trembled. Hatred quacked before love. Tyranny turned coward before courage.”

Gearing paused, looking over the congregation.

Tyranny turned coward before courage. Hatred quacked before love. Luke repeated the phrases over and over in his mind. This was a message that people needed back home in the Confederation. Hatred was spreading like wildfire – the hatred of the Order for believers, the hatred of religious leaders for the Order. Some commentators were predicting it was only a matter of time before the more religious states – Saxmere and Southland – tried to secede from the Confederation. And that might mean war.

Luke leaned over to Janice and whispered in her ear, “What do you think?”

She turned and whispered to Luke, “Interesting. Not earth shattering in its morality or its mythology, but,” the woman turned nodded towards Lady Alossa, “its basis in the apparent real history of the sidhe makes it very interesting. It is almost like being given the opportunity to go back and hear second generation Christian evangelists proselytizing while some of the eye witnesses still lived.”

Luke nodded. It was intriguing from a religious studies perspective, but he was becoming far more interested in its practical applications.

"Sometimes we forget our highest principles. We take principles derived from them and treat them as if they are themselves sacred.We treat specific matters of positive law as more sacred than justice. We treat electability as more sacred than principle. We truth usefulness as more sacred than truth. We treat markets in and of themselves as more sacred than the freedom on which they are based. This is no way to live a life."

Luke nodded along. Gearing was really making sense to him. Janice listened closely as well, though she was far less emotionally engaged than her friend.

Meanwhile, in the back, Harlan Jekabson found himself looking at his watch, anxious for lunch.

Gearing smiled, looking over the crowd. "I know most of you are new to the church or just looking. And I know you all have questions and different things you want to hear spoken of. So I'm now going to invite anyone who wants to to speak, to ask whatever you wish to ask or say whatever you wish to say. This is a church of and for its congregation after all. In an orderly fashion, please."

Janice looked around to see if anyone else was standing to speak. Seeing that people weren't rushing to speak, she stood. "I have two questions, if I might. Apart from the theological differences, what are the ethical differences between your religion and, for example, Christianity? And, how have you been treated here by the religious establishment?"

Gearing nodded. "Certainly an interesting question. There are a number of areas but the most important would be that we don't teach passivity in this life but strength in the cause of righteousness. We do not render unto Caesar but, if Caesar is a tyrant, then we strike down tyranny and put a proper just ruler with free subjects in his place. We do not turn the other cheek but value knights of honor who serve as the sword of the weak and the shield of the vulnerable. Good is worth fighting for and evil shall not be allowed to prosper while good men stand strong and firm. When the good embrace passivity and make a virtue of meekness, then evil is free to reign on earth."

Something about Gearing's answer made Jekabson take notice. He stood. "Sir, what is your impression of Excalbia and of the Excalbian government? Is it a 'Ceasar' that you feel is worth obedience?"

Luke stood at almost the same moment. He waited patiently while the odd, gaunt looking man in the back asked his question and Gearing answered it. Then, he raised his hand. "High Priest Gearing, have you thought about extending your mission to other parts of the Excalbian Isles?"

Gearing shook his head. "Absolutely not. I don't think one could spend even a day in Excalbia without noticing that Excalbians are a free people justly ruled. But there are countries in this world that are not. There are countries in this world where meetings such as this one would have to be quite secret. One cannot tell the rebels in places like Iesus Christi or the Five Kingdoms that their rebellion against the murderers and darkness that they rebel against God's order for the world."

Gearing shook his head. "Not with foreign missionaries. We won't be sending more than the four we have. We just want to make the message available to you. It is up to Excalbians who accept the faith to take it and spread it among their countrymen."

Jekabson nodded with satisfaction and sat down. His report was pretty much finished. Now he could plan lunch.

Janice stood again. "Another question, if I may. How does one decide whether something is just or righteous or whether it is evil? Christianity, Judiaism and Islam all claim a standard of absolute morality - whether it be the Bible, the Torah, the Koran or Canon Law. Do have a standard of absolute morality? If so, how do you defend it agains the ascendant modern idea of relative morality - the view that each culture, indeed in the extreme each individual, defines their own moral standards?"

Meanwhile, Luke listened very carefully. Gearing's words seemed to burn within him as he pondered them.

Gearing answered swiftly and almost off-handedly. "I don't have to." He said nothing for a long moment, allowing the sharp response to take effect. After he had, he explained. "I don't need to prove what's right and wrong by the use of mere reason. People talk of moral relativism in the colleges and universities. They write books about it. But Dana has written a conscience into her sentient creations. Does any of you really think of honesty and deceit as equally moral in your heart of hearts? Can any of you really contemplate torture or rape with a neutral attitude? Whatever we do and whatever we say we believe, we know right and wrong in the depths of our souls. All the sophistry in the world can't even begin to touch it except for those wishing to justify actions they know are cause for shame and guilt."

Janice nodded as she listened to the response. She waited to see if anyone else wanted to speak, but everyone seemed to be waiting for her. So, she rose to continue the discussion. "Let me go in a slightly different direction, then. If morality is written in the soul, and would you say that most religions follow the same moral code - in essence, if not in detail? And if so, are you trying to convert Christians away from their churches or are you content to reach out to those who have no religion? And that brings me back to my question of how you see your church's relationship with the Church of Excalbia, the official state church?"

Gearing nodded a little, pondering the question. "That is certainly a tricky question but I think I'll be more respectful to all concerned by answering it quite bluntly. Yes, I think all religions, or almost all, have the same essential morality. The same essential morality but the devil is in the details. For example, Danaan morality has seen the fair and equal treatment of women as crucial for centuries whereas Christianity is only recently embracing the concept. So, yes, I am trying to win converts from whatever faith they currently hold. I am hear to speak for a specific faith which I believe in with all my heart and which I believe to more accurately reflect both how people should live their lives and how the universe is ordered than any other religion. I hope no one will take that as offensive to their own faith but I would be insulting you more if I pretended to you that clerics were not partisan on such matters, a fiction not one of you would believe. As for the Church of Excalbia, we respect them, of course, but we have no theological ties."

Janice, satisfied with the answers sat down. Luke, looking obviously nervous, stood. "What, sir, do I have to do to join your religion?"

Janice looked up her school chum, her mouth open in surprise. She had invited him as a fellow researcher. He was an avowed agnostic, if not an atheist. The last thing she had expected was to witness a conversion...

Gearing smiled broadly. "Just come up to the altar and pray to Dana. She already loves you with all Her heart. You just have to be open to embrace that love."

Feeling a bit self-conscious, Luke approached the altar and knelt and prayed. Afterwards, he looked up at Gearing. "What happens now?"

Gearing looked down to him with a soft smile. "What does your heart tell you?"

Luke looked up nervously. "I think it tells me to go back home, to the Confederation, and spread Dana's teachings." Luke swallowed. "But I can't do it alone. I'll need help..."

Gearing nodded. "Araceli Kasel will go with you. Is there anything else you have need of?"

Kasel stood at that, smiling nervously and raising a hand to identify herself to Luke.

Luke turned from Gearing and saw Araceli smiling at him nervously and holding up her hand. He turned back to Gearing. This was all so new and so unexpected to him. "Umm, I'm not sure. I never imagined that I'd be some kind of missionary. What do you think I need? Do I need training? Practice?"

Gearing smiled. "Araceli will go with you. She has all the formal theological training anyone could ask for. As for practice, well, there's really only one way to get that."

"OK," Luke blinked. Then, he turned back to Araceli. "I guess, then, the question is, when can you leave, Miss?"

Araceli grinned. "First thing tomorrow morning."

((OOC: To the other thread then? And have you run this all by CSS?))

OOC: You have a tg.

"Good," Luke said standing. "Could we meet this evening to plan our mission, Araceli? I have a lot of questions." Luke turned to Gearing. "Perhaps you could join us over a meal?"

Araceli smiled. "Of course. What time would you like to meet?"

Gearing nodded. "I'd love to."

Luke shrugged, but smiled at the same time. "How about 19:00 at the pizza place on the corner of Samuel II Boulevard and St. Thomas Avenue?"

(Assuming the suggestion is accepted...)

That evening, a little before 19:00, Luke drifted into the cozy Italian restaurant. He told the hostess that he was expecting two friends and asked for a table in the back. The hostess nodded and led Luke to a large round table on a raised platform nestled in a corner of the room. A circular bench went three quarters of the way around the table. Luke took his seat and accepted a menu from the hostess. Then, he sat back and waited fro Araceli and Gearing.

Araceli and Gearing arrived right on time, looking around the restaurant before spotting Luke. Araceli waved her hand and smiled brightly as she approached. "Good evening." She slid casually into the booth.

Gearing was a little less bright, though he was smiling. "Good evening." She sat down after Araceli.

Luke smiled. "Hello," he said cheerily. He gestured for Araceli and Gearing to join him. "I hope you both like pizza. This place is probably the best in town." He handed each of them a menu. "So," he turned to Araceli, "we leave for the Confederation tomorrow. What's the first thing we need to do when we get there?"

They both nodded a little. "I love pizza!" Araceli exclaimed enthusiastically, her bright, round face looking eagerly over the menu.

"I enjoy it at times." Gearing answered non-commitally, slowly and methodically looking at the choices.

Araceli laughed slightly at the question. "Well, the first thing we do is find somewhere to stay. The quarters can't be too close. Propriety about such things counts for a lot when you're a missionary. Then we'll have to obtain a meeting hall of some kind. Then have a well advertised concert. Then start having well publicized services."

Luke rubbed his chin as he listened to Araceli. Before he could speak, however, a waitress walked over to the table. "Are you ready to order?" She asked.

Luke nodded. "I'll have a small salad and salami and extra cheese. And a beer. Whatever you have on draught."

The waitress nodded and waited for Araceli and Gearing.

After they ordered, Luke turned back to Araceli. "I think I can take care of the housing. I left an apartment vacant near the University when I transferred here. As for you, if you don't mind sharing, at least at first, I have a friend - a girl - who has a two bedroom flat around the corner. I'm sure she wouldn't mind a roommate for a little while. As for a meeting hall, I would suggest the University student union, but in the last couple of years they've gotten real funny about having 'religious' ceremonies on campus. Maybe we could rent out a little restaurant for an evening. If we have enough money..."

Luke looked at Gearing. "Umm... do we get any kind of fund to work with, sir?"

Araceli and Gearing ordered a large anchovie pizza. Araceli smiled. "That sounds fine. I don't mind sharing at all."

Gearing nodded. "A couple hundred thousand dross, probably. Her Holiness takes spreading the word very seriously."

"A couple hundred thousand dross," Luke repeated. "It sounds like enough, but I'll have to figure out what that is in sovs. Also, we'll have to open a bank account to put it in; almost no one in the Confederation takes cash for anything more than the price of a lunch these days. Everything is done by check card. It should be easy to open an account in the church's name. And, we'll need to register."

Luke rubbed his chin as the waitress delivered the drinks. He sipped his beer, then set it down. "We can register as civic organization. All we'll need is a letter of authorization from the parent organization - the mother church in this case, an address and a charter." Luke looked at Gearing. "Could we get those things before we leave in the morning? I'm guessing you have a charter already - the one you gave the Excalbians would probably work in the C.S.S. as well."

He turned to Araceli. "And we need transport. How much equipment do you have? Do you have a car or truck?"

Gearing nodded. "I certainly can arrange that."

Araceli shrugged. "Unfortunately not. Could we get one there?"

Luke nodded. "Getting one there isn't a problem. But I'm thinking of getting stuff there. I'm assuming we'll need to carry your musical gear and some literature and things. Or do you want to send it by air?"

"We could get a car here, I suppose." she answered.

"OK," Luke said nodding, "I'll rent a car. Or a truck, maybe. I'll come by and pick you first thing in the morning." He looked to Gearing. "Is there anything else we need to consider before we go?"

Gearing shook his head. "Sounds like a plan."

"Good," Luke said just as the pizza arrived. "Let's eat and I'll come by in the morning with a truck."

OOC: About time to move to the other thread?

OOC: Yes. C.S.S. will script Luke's next appearance, which will be his and Araceli's arrival in Jefferson.