The Old Faith

The Old Faith is a philosophy that combines aspects of ancestor-worship and reverence of the natural world, from a time before gods and kings. It is perhaps the oldest form of worship in the Free Kingdoms; its holy symbols and rites are evidenced in the ancient history, and cultures older than even the Alphosian Empire. Small examples of the Old Faith are combined with worship of natural deities like the Matron of the Wilds, the Green Goddess, or the Song-Weaver, although some priests follow the Old Faith entirely. The Dale-Men are its most common practitioners. It preaches respect for the sacred spirit of everything within the natural world (plants, animals, stone, etc.), harmony with nature, and the reverence of ancestors and the elderly, while rejecting the power of the gods as less-than the power of nature.