The Joyful Circle of the Gracious Witness

Overview

The Joyful Circle is a religious organization dedicated to Atix, The Witness. Chapters of The Circle span much of the continent. Despite its long reach, membership is still fairly small since local chapters tend to have only a handful of members. The Circle is best known for running orphanages across the continent.
 

Faith

The Joyful Circle of the Gracious Witness venerates Atix The Witness, an aspect of Iara The Mother, who watches over women who raise children who aren't their own as well as said children. Adoptive mothers, stepmothers, nannys, caretakers, and all associated children, all fall under the domain of Atix.

Gender Controversy

Occasionally someone will point to a man who is raising a child they did not sire and ask why he does not fall under the gaze of Atix The Witness. Answers to this question have historically varied based on the individual chapterhouse. Some answers have pointed at history and tradition, others have attempted to divert the question to focus more on the children, some have even claimed to quote the goddess herself. The short answer, however, seems to be that the language and the policy are not going to change.

Women Who Can't Have Children

Some people erroneously believe that Atix is specifically the patron of women who can't have children on their own. This is untrue. While Atix happily accepts those women who adopt children because they can't have their own, She accepts and protects all women who raise children they did not bear. This holds as true for nannys and caretakers as it does for adoptive mothers.
 

Orphanages

By far, the most well-known aspect of the Joyful Circle is its work with orphanages. Every chapterhouse/chapel of the Circle is also an orphanage, halfway house, or some other center for children without caretakers. The main work of the organization is to find mothers for all children without them. And if that is not possible, to care for the children to the best of their own ability.
 

Organization

The Joyful Circle is generally run under the belief that their charges will be better served by small communities than by monolithic hierarchies. There is no central structure or home church for the Circle. All local decisions are handled locally by council.
  Due to their mission of finding mothers for all children, when a chapter grows beyond the needs of a local community, universally, one of the sisters will decide, or be divinely inspired, to leave and start a new chapter in another community.
 

Relations with the Church of Iara The Mother

With no centralized leadership on the part of the Joyful Circle, relations between the Church of Iara and individual chapters of the Joyful Circle vary quite a bit. In general, however, the two get along. Some people in the Church of Iara feel that worship of the Atix aspect dilutes their own membership. More commonly, however, ranking priestesses in the Church of Iara treat the Joyful Circle like a little sister who needs guidance from time to time.