Church of Eresu
The Church of Eresu supports farmers, animal husbands and all who work and nurture the land. In turn they are supported by these same people, all who revere the Mother Creator. While not every farmer is a devout follower of Eresu, it is rare to find one who doesn’t make the occasional prayer or offering to Eresu.
Structure
Acolytes are students of the faith who hope, through great study and devotion, to become active members of the church in time. As a rule, they are young (generally in their mid-teens) and very eager to show their devotion to their superiors in the church.
Above the acolytes in rank are the sporosi. The sporos is an acolyte who has proven himself to be true to the church and devoted in his vows. He is generally older (in his late teens or early twenties). Upon reaching his new level, the former acolyte is expected to take on more responsibilities. In addition to overseeing the training of the acolytes he has left behind, the sporos is now expected to play a greater role in the worship of the deity. In fact, lesser holy services may actually be wholly under the supervision of the sporos.
Next in line in the church hierarchy are the rizas. The riza is the backbone of the religious order. Without them, is no church. Each temple is assumed to be under the guidance of one riza, who is in charge of all that goes on within the temple he is associated with. A riza is usually in his late twenties or early thirties. Rizas are selected from the ranks of the sporos and assigned to serve in areas where the church needs to establish a new temple or replace another priest for some reason.
Above the rizas is the kormos. The kormos is recognized as the head of all church activities in a given town or city. Depending upon the size of the town, he will usually have 1-6 temples in his jurisdiction.
The next rung in the ladder of church affairs is occupied by the akro. In his hands is placed the supervision of all church holdings in 1-6 towns. The akro acts as an interface between the church’s highest officials and the local representatives of the faith (in the person of the local kormos and rizas.) Akros will tend to be in their mid-thirties and have devoted most of their lives to the service of Eresu. In the absence of clear direction from his superiors in the church, the akro is permitted (indeed, expected) to make very important decisions regarding the practice of the faith.
The kladis of the church are second in power only to the karpos. Obviously, the years of devotion and study required to attain this position means that the kladi will tend to be quite old, as a rule, the youngest of kladis will be in their forties. Of course, the healing powers of the faithful tend to result in very long-lived members of religious groups. Each kladi is entrusted with the supervision of all church affairs in a given region. As a rule, any kingdom will be split into 1-6 regions, each of which will be under the guidance of a single kladi.
At the top of the church is the karpos. This person is the absolute ruler of the faith in a given kingdom. The average karpo is well into his fifties by the time he assumes office. The rigors of his life have been such that he is respected as the final authority on all matters of faith. No member of the church may refuse to obey the instructions of his karpo without risking the wrath of Eresu herself.
Finally there is the louloudi. There are onlly two louloudi currently, one in the New Kingdoms and one in the Old Kingdoms. For the most part they leave the running of the church to the karpos, restricting themselves to matters that affect the church as a whole.
Above the acolytes in rank are the sporosi. The sporos is an acolyte who has proven himself to be true to the church and devoted in his vows. He is generally older (in his late teens or early twenties). Upon reaching his new level, the former acolyte is expected to take on more responsibilities. In addition to overseeing the training of the acolytes he has left behind, the sporos is now expected to play a greater role in the worship of the deity. In fact, lesser holy services may actually be wholly under the supervision of the sporos.
Next in line in the church hierarchy are the rizas. The riza is the backbone of the religious order. Without them, is no church. Each temple is assumed to be under the guidance of one riza, who is in charge of all that goes on within the temple he is associated with. A riza is usually in his late twenties or early thirties. Rizas are selected from the ranks of the sporos and assigned to serve in areas where the church needs to establish a new temple or replace another priest for some reason.
Above the rizas is the kormos. The kormos is recognized as the head of all church activities in a given town or city. Depending upon the size of the town, he will usually have 1-6 temples in his jurisdiction.
The next rung in the ladder of church affairs is occupied by the akro. In his hands is placed the supervision of all church holdings in 1-6 towns. The akro acts as an interface between the church’s highest officials and the local representatives of the faith (in the person of the local kormos and rizas.) Akros will tend to be in their mid-thirties and have devoted most of their lives to the service of Eresu. In the absence of clear direction from his superiors in the church, the akro is permitted (indeed, expected) to make very important decisions regarding the practice of the faith.
The kladis of the church are second in power only to the karpos. Obviously, the years of devotion and study required to attain this position means that the kladi will tend to be quite old, as a rule, the youngest of kladis will be in their forties. Of course, the healing powers of the faithful tend to result in very long-lived members of religious groups. Each kladi is entrusted with the supervision of all church affairs in a given region. As a rule, any kingdom will be split into 1-6 regions, each of which will be under the guidance of a single kladi.
At the top of the church is the karpos. This person is the absolute ruler of the faith in a given kingdom. The average karpo is well into his fifties by the time he assumes office. The rigors of his life have been such that he is respected as the final authority on all matters of faith. No member of the church may refuse to obey the instructions of his karpo without risking the wrath of Eresu herself.
Finally there is the louloudi. There are onlly two louloudi currently, one in the New Kingdoms and one in the Old Kingdoms. For the most part they leave the running of the church to the karpos, restricting themselves to matters that affect the church as a whole.
Public Agenda
The church of Eresu seeks to promote responsible use of the land and its resources. To this end they teach farmers and herders techniques such as crop rotation and fertilizer to ensure the land remains bountiful. They try to preserve nature in all its splendor, but recognize that sentient races are just as much a part of nature as any animal. They do oppose the deprivations of evil humanoids such as orcs and goblins who tend to destroy the lands they inhabit.
Assets
As almost who work the land revere Eresu, the church is actually quite wealthy. Though adherents usually make offerings in the form of produce and other products of the land, the abundance the church receives is more than enough to support the church. While the majority of what isn't consumed by the clergy themselves is stored away for lean times, much of it is sold to further the purposes of the church.
Mythology & Lore
The church of Eresu teaches that all living creatures are the children of Eresu. This stems from their teachings that all living things were created by Eresu. While some churches of other deities dispute this, eresites don't debate this simply continuing with their daily lives in faithful assurance. According to the eresites Utu, Io, and Asmodeus created the first world but it was Eresu who populated it, delighting in the many forms her plants and animals could be made in. When the first world was filled the deities then took the best of her creations and used them to fill the material world.
Divine Origins
Eresu's church is one of the oldest faiths in Arda. All the nonevil races worship her to some extent and even the evil races acknowledge her. Her teachings have been handed down since the beginning, and their origins are lost in the mists of prehistory.
Tenets of Faith
Much as with their patron, eresites do not concern themselves with issues of good and evil. They see the natural world as above issues of simple morality. They teach that all of nature, plants and animals, are gifts from Eresu and as such are to be used but respected. To this end they teach farmers and herders the most advanced techniques to not only assure bountiful harvests, but to allow them to produce with a minimal impact on the land. The church teaches that death is a part of life, and that those who die fulfilling their destinies should be celebrated and not mourned. To this end they don't oppose hunting for food, but do vehemently oppose hunting for sport.
Ethics
Servants of Eresu do not concern themselves with issues of good or evil. Rather they try to keep all things in balance. To them good, evil, law, and chaos are extremes to be avoided. Therefore they strive not to advocate one over the other. In practice they tend to more often side with good over evil, as good beings are more like to respect the natural world that Eresu's followers strive to protect.
Worship
Worship of Eresu involves a multitude of little practices. Some serve practical purposes, such as crop rotation and occasionally allowing a field to lie fallow for a year. Others like blooding the plow (nicking a finger and smearing the blood drawn on the blade of the plow), and leaving flowers at wells and springs serve only to remind the practitioners who they owe for their bounty. Devout followers will paint her symbol (a sheaf of wheat) over the doors of their houses and barns, give a tenth of their harvest to the church, not plow to the edges of their fields, and leave the corners of their fields for the poor to glean. Less devout followers will give offerings to the church from their harvests and follow some of these practices. Organized worship of Eresu occurs on the days of the quarters of the moon (four times a month) and involves gathering in groves to sing praises to Eresu. Every temple has a sacred grove that the building is constructed around. Usually of oak these sacred groves will have an alter of undressed stone at their hearts.
Political Influence & Intrigue
Eresites tend to shy away from politics, preferring to devote themselves to the land. Despite this they wield a lot of political clout directly and indirectly. For one they are always willing to advise rulers in their area of expertise, and are often consulted by wise rulers. Secondly a large percentage of the common folk make their living through the land, and so pay tribute to Eresu. This gives the church a lot of sway with the common folk. However, the church strives to utilize this power only to further the aims of their patron. In practice this means protecting and preserving the natural world.
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