'Godspeech'

Andraous (Discontinued)    Culture    Languages      'Godspeech'

In one religion, being able to speak to the local spirits and gods is a closely guarded secret. The reason for this is power, if anyone could speak to the higher beings there would be no need for the religious leaders. Because of this they keep the language of the gods from the common folk, forcing them to rely on the religious leaders to ask for blessing and such. Disobey the religious doctrine and the religious leaders won't request blessings on your behalf.
Very few know this language, and only children hand picked at birth are taught it. These children are taken from their families at birth and raised for the sole purpose to become the future generation of religious leaders. In addition to being taught a common language, these children are taught how to commune with the Gods from a young age. To keep this language from being learned by non-priest kids, the chosen children are not allowed to leave religion grounds unattended, and are forbidden from interacting with anyone who isn't a priest until they are adults.
If anyone who is not a religious leader or being raised to become one is found out to known the language will often be punished by having their tongue cut out and vocal chords cut. Those that learn how to write the language that shouldn't know how are declared blasphemous and sacrificed to 'please the Gods'.
How the words are spoken and written depends on what the speaker is trying to convey. For example, if a priest is making a request to a god for a blessing for a farmer's fields, the language is only spoken as a soft, whispering prayer. On the other hand if a priest is asking to curse a merchant on behalf of a rival merchant, the language is spoken in a loud, rough way.