The Church of the Light of Beruzen
The Church of the Light of Beruzen is one of the major world religions of Leoram, worshipping a single all-powerful deity whose name remains a mystery. This lack of a name, together with the fact that Beruzen himself is considered an example to all of how to understand and follow their own calling in life, has led to followers of the faith being called Beruzen. For believers, it is the ultimate compliment to be considered to be following their prophet's example, and for non-believers it is the most prominent name associated with the faith and so has become the accepted word to use. The central message of the religion is that the world is not as it should be due to human misinterpretations of previous revelations made by God in the past. Thus a new revelation of a more direct nature has been made in the form of the 77 visions of Beruzen, and this revelation is intended to turn the world's course back to God's vision of a good world.
The religion is barely seven hundred years old, making it the youngest of Leoram’s major religions, but it has grown swiftly through the New Era to become the second largest religion in the world. This growth can, at least partly, be attributed to the fact that one of the primary tenets of the Beruzen faith is the call for adherents to be mendicant preachers, whether by word or by deed. It can also be attributed to the primarily accepting and largely permissive nature of the faith’s beliefs.
Mythology & Lore
The primary lore source for the Beruzen is the Vision Chronicles. This text is meant to have been authored directly by Beruzen himself as a record of the seventy-seven visions sent to him by his unknown god to reveal the message that he was instructed to spread to anyone who would listen. It has also been added to by his contemporary followers, who recorded some of the actions and miracles that they witnessed Beruzen perform as further proof of his divine inspiration.
Divine Origins
The Church of the Light of Beruzen was begun by the Prophet Beruzen, who claimed that he received a series of visions from the god of the whole universe instructing him to make this previously unknown god known in all the world. His message was supported by the fact that he was able to perform seemingly miraculous acts, which led to his investigation and imprisonment on several occasions by The Charter Schools of Sorcery and subsequent, very public, declarations that he was not a sorcerer.
Tenets of Faith
The core beliefs of the Beruzen faith are divided into the internal beliefs that affect the lives of believers and the external beliefs that believers are expected to put into practice in the world around them. The internal beliefs of the Church of Beruzen revolve around the idea that every person has a preordained path, laid out by God, to take in life. All experiences across a person's life are intended to help them better understand this destiny and how they are intended to carry it out. Thus, adherents to Beruzen's teachings are encouraged to understand their own beings through contemplation and meditation and then to work to fulfil their destiny as they have come to understand it. They also view adversities as moments of trial that reveal the kind of person that they are and triumphs as moments of validation that indicate that they are on a path that suits their being and may be their true destiny.
The external beliefs of Beruzen are centred around the call on all followers to encourage others to become Beruzen themselves. To this end, every Beruzen adherent is expected to provide example to those around them and be prepared to explain the core beliefs of the faith. They are also expected not to disavow their belief in God, even in the face of persecution, suffering or death. On the other hand, Beruzen are expected to be respectful of pre-existing customs as these have been established based on previous revelations by God to humans, even if the understanding of those revelations has gone awry.
Ethics
Beyond their core beliefs, Beruzen adherents have doctrines governing many different aspects of life, most of which are spoken about directly in the Vision Chronicles or are views that were espoused by Beruzen himself and so have been taken as divinely supported views on the way things should be. It is important to note, however, that Beruzen adherents are explicitly instructed to be respectful of norms and mores accepted by the people around them as these ideas are said to be divinely inspired and worthy of respect despite their misunderstanding or misapplication by humans. Thus they consider their faith to be correct, but are not in the business of persecuting those that follow other faiths.
Like the Cult of the Originist Way, the Church of the Light of Beruzen teaches that men and women are equal in status. This is expressed in a variety of aspects of the relationship between men and women. For example Beruzen marriages are expected to be monogamous with adultery by either man or woman being regarded as a transgression of marriage vows. Marriages may also be dissolved at the request of either party, although such dissolutions must be clerically approved to be considered valid in the eyes of the faith.
Worship
In places where the Beruzen faith is prevalent enough to be organised, adherents typically build and dedicate buildings called kleisae to their unnamed god.
Priesthood
Beruzen clerics are traditionally addressed as Cursor, a Nirinian word that means ‘messenger’. This is in keeping with the fact that the Beruzen faith calls for its members to be ambassadors of their faith, and this calling is particularly prominent if one is destined for the path of Cursor.
Political Influence & Intrigue
The Beruzen faith is the second largest faith in the world. Scholars estimate that the Church’s membership accounts for about a third of the world’s population. As such, it is a major power in the world.
The Church of the Light of Beruzen typically takes a more cordial stance towards other faiths than it receives from them.
The Church of the Light of Beruzen enjoys a better relationship with the Charter Schools of Sorcery than other religions thanks to the lack of any religious teachings about sorcerers.
Type
Religious, Organised Religion
Alternative Names
Beruzen
Demonym
Beruzen
Permeated Organizations
Deities
Divines
Notable Members
Related Species
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