Church of Laki

Working to ensure justice, the rule of law and peace the church of Laki is popular with judges and all people who desire to live in peace.

Structure

The bottom rung of the church is the Friends in Amity, who, while not actually members of the church’s power structure, do deserve a mention. Friends in Amity include all those persons who are of an unusually pious nature and spend some or (most) of their time working with or for the local temple. While many of them are paid some token salary they generally do not rely on the church for their living. Next up are the Peace Bearers, active members of the church who through study and devotion hope to become Justices in time. They are very eager to show their devotion to their superiors in the church, however, they tend to draw the least interesting assignments. While they may assist in religious services, they have no true power in the church. Further up the ladder are the Code Bearers. Code Bearers are Peace Bearers who have proven themselves loyal to the church and serious in their vows. On reaching this level the former Peace Bearer is expected to take on more responsibilities, including training the Peace Bearers he has left behind. The Code Bearer is also expected to take a greater hand n the worship of Laki, and minor religious services may be entirely under the supervision of a Code Bearer. Justices are the backbone of the religious order, for without them there would be no church. Each temple is associated with one Justice who oversees everything within that temple. Justices are selected from the ranks of the Code Bearers and assigned to new temples or to replace older Justices who are leaving their post for some reason. Above the Justices are the Adjudicators who oversee all church activities in a given town or city. Depending on the size of the community there may be as few as one to as many as six churches under his authority. In some of the smaller kingdoms in the Frontier Lands an Adjudicator may be in charge of the churches in several communities. Next up the ladder are the Arbiters. In more settled lands an Arbiter oversees the churches of multiple towns and cities. Generally, two to six communities will be in the charge of an Arbiter. In the smaller kingdoms of the frontier lands an Arbiter may hold sway over the churches of an entire kingdom. The Judicars are above the Arbiters and second in power only to the Intercessors. A Judicar is charged with the churches in an entire region. The church generally divides a kingdom into regions based on population. Kingdoms are generally divided into six or more regions in the long-settled lands. In the Frontier lands a Judicar may hold sway over multiple kingdoms if they are small enough. Onzethcalet, Cekto, and Tiefhohl, for example are under the jurisdiction of a single Judicar [Erma, a gnome woman], while Ethfamen and Windbrücke each have a single Judicar watching them [Wassa von Karldorf Höhen a human woman, and Búi von Bárthrstadt a human male, respectively] . Near the top of the ladder are the Intercessors. In the more settled lands Intercessors are charged with all the churches in a single kingdom. In the more sparsely settled Frontier Lands, the entire region is the charge of a single Intercessor [Árni Jörgsohn a human male]. At the top of the church hierarchy is the Magister. The Magister is the head of the entire church of Laki and currently resides in Eneslet in the Old Kingdom of Rinden. The Magister [Eadburg Priester a human female] is said to have direct access to Laki, or at least his servants and is therefore the ultimate arbiter of church issues.

Public Agenda

The church of Laki seeks to promote the rule of law wherever they have any influence, believing that laws should work for the greater good. They also seek to ensure justice is done in all cases and its clerics are often called on to help determine the truth in legal situations. They seek to bring peace, which they believe will spread as good spreads, in the wake of law. Finally, and perhaps most importantly they seek to bring those who have erred and fallen back into the light of law and goodness.

Assets

The church doesn’t charge for its services in court cases; however, it has become somewhat customary to make an offering to the church when the do aid the cause of justice. In addition, many people offer freely to the church, especially those who have been offered second chances at life. Consequently, while not as wealthy as some churches, the church of Laki has sufficient resources to meet it’s needs. Wherever they can the church builds large temple complexes, that serve as places of worship, law archives, and courtrooms for civil and important criminal cases. Many communities will support the building of a temple, because of the tenets of the faith.

History

The worship of Laki started in the Old Kingdoms with his adherents spreading his message of good and peace through law, and redemption of those who have fallen. While it is still a popular religion amongst the common folk, some of the more decadent regimes in the Old Kingdoms no longer follow his message. As the Mangen people spread to the lands of the New Kingdoms, they brought the worship of Laki with them. His worship proved popular amongst the demihuman races oof the New Kingdoms, particularly amongst the dwarves who were already worshipping him under the name Merrár. The church strove to make the New Kingdom lands a beacon of law and goodness, and for the most part they succeeded. In particular the church had a big hand in creating the compact which created the kingdom of Atánot. Naturally when people began to settle the frontier lands, the church went with them. It is just as popular in the Frontier Land kingdoms as it has been everywhere else.

Mythology & Lore

The youngest child of Vaalea and Mudutu, Laki was born after the gods war and didn’t take part. According to legend Laki was stillborn, but however Eresu not wishing to see her daughter sorrowing breathed life into the child, and Laki became the god of second chances.

A staunch believer that laws should be used to promote the greater good, he contested with Asmodeus in writing the laws of Iahmesu, a contest he won, when the ruler decided that Laki’s law was best suited for his kingdom. These laws became the basis for the laws of all the Old Kingdoms, as well as the New Kingdoms and Frontier Lands. Consequently he is hailed as the lawgiver by humans and dwarves and to a lesser extent other good races.

It is said in the famous trial of Meresankh it is said that Laki manifested directly and served as the judge of the case, where a woman as an only child wished to inherit her fathers lands and businesses, instead of it going to one of her male cousins as was customary. Laki listened to the arguments from both sides and ultimately ruled in favor of Meresankh establishing the right of women to own property.

Tenets of Faith

Perhaps the most important tenet of the faith is summed up in the motto, “Good redeems its own.” The church believes and teaches that just because someone fails to live up to the teachings of the church they should not be cast aside, and that as long as the individual strives to live up to the tenets, they should be welcome.

While the church teaches its members and followers to practice martial skills, they believe that all peaceful resolutions to an issue should be exhausted before resorting to use of force. That using force before peaceful resolutions can be found is a tool of tyrants, those who would pervert the rule of law to serve their own selfish ends. The best solution to a problem is one that is achieved peacefully and benefits all parties involved.

The church teaches that rule of law is necessary for good to thrive, and that laws should serve and promote the greater good. That strong governments are necessary to enforce the rule of law and to nurture the greater good. What’s more the church teaches the importance of civilization to ensure the rule of law, and that families are the building blocks of a strong civilization. So the church encourages strong families and strong, but good, governments. It’s members abhor evil in all its forms, and strive to encourage strong governments as a bulwark against evil.

While not first and foremost a martial organization, the church does believe in self-defense and teaches its members to practice skill of arms, and even encourages the learning of unarmed combat when necessary. It teaches its members not only to protect themselves but to protect all who are weak an innocent. Those who cannot defend themselves should be defended even if it risks the life of the believer. Another reason the church is welcome in most kingdoms is it teaches the common folk, tactics, defensive skills, as well as skill of arms. Laki’s followers form the backbone of many community militias.

Ethics

Good redeems its own.
Seeks a peaceful solution to all disputes whenever possible.
Value balance and peaceful, beneficial resolutions.
Use of force except as a last resort is a tool of tyrants.
Strive for order and organization.
Strong government is necessary for civilization’s cultivation, and strong families and communities are the building blocks of successful settlements.
Abhor evil in all its aspects.
Protect the lives of others at your own risk.
Protect the weak and the innocent.
Improve the tactics and defensive skills of those you aid.

Worship

Worship in the church of Laki follows a strict formula. Worship services are open to all and are held once a tenday, (three times a month), though the exact time during the month is decided by the Justice in charge f the church. The service starts with the singing of several hymn honoring Laki. This is followed by a sermon from the Justice, or sometimes a Code Bearer. Topics of the sermon vary though they are usually drawn from the Peace Bringer’s Guide and are typically expounding on the subject of law, though occasionally they are exhortations to the faithful to improve their martial skills. After the sermon, several more hymns are sung followed by a benediction. Those who wish to make an offering do so either on the way in, or the way out of the temple.

Priesthood

The priests of the church of Laki are known as Justices. They are generally chosen from the ranks of Code Bearers who have proven their dedication both to the church and to its teachings. Those who are chosen are cloistered for a period of months as they study the law and its many applications. This is followed by training period which can last months or years. Those who complete the training are tested on both their knowledge of law, as well as its proper application, and their martial skills. Those who successfully pass the tests are promoted to the rank of Justice. Justices only wear their vestments for worship and when performing a function as the representative of the church. The vestments consist of white robes with blue trim, along with belt also of blue.

Political Influence & Intrigue

The church makes no attempts to disguise its interest in the politics of the kingdoms it inhabits. It seeks to encourage the rulers to enforce the rule of law equally for all, peasant and noble alike, and to use the law to promote the common good. Many rulers heed the church, and quite a few have a code bearer, if not a justice (or higher) amongst their advisers. Even in cases where the church doesn’t have the rulers ear, they still wield a lot of temporal power as they serve as assistants to, if not judges in many of the courts, both for civil law and criminal law. Further as defenders of justice and the week, the church is very popular amongst the people, even those who aren’t formal members of the church. This gives the church a lot of temporal power even in realms where the rulers do not heed the church. However the church is careful to use this power only to promote law, justice, and the greater good.