The Church of Light is the main institution following the
Belief of the One Light. This variant of the belief is practised mainly on
Celyrion and @Astanya. It also was followed in some parts of
Véllkros, before the
Durghamian rule took over.
Theory of the One
The Church of Light believes that the One Light is a sentient deity representing the essence of light and all that is good. The One gave humans life by giving them an own will. It bestowed the world with its magic to bring forth and continue life. Living is the most important aspect of this world and only magic that brings forth life is supposed to be practised by men, as it was intended by the One.
The Church does not believe in the existence of a sentient being representing the absence of light. The absence of light means the absence of life and it is thus impossible to have its own will. Some humans strayed away from the One however, and derive their magic from the absence of light, resulting in dark magic. Since this is not what was intended by the One Light when it gave humans their will and their life, using dark magic will result in the punishment of the individuals concerned. According to the Church, the One's wrath is what caused
The Great Disaster as a way of punishing the Sarthanians for their free use of dark magic.
Practising dark magic is strictly forbidden and harshly punished. This is justified by the idea that if humans punish the use of dark magic, then the One won't do it in an act of retribution. Punishing dark magic usage will absolve the society and avoid another disaster befalling the world. The punishment is in relation to the offence and can consist of imprisonment, corporal or financial punishment. In Astanya it might also result in a death sentence. The Celyrian following of the Church of Light will not give this verdict however, since death is the absolute opposite of life and this punishment could never be justified by any offence, according to them. Nevertheless, both approaches to the belief respect each other.
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