Exaltation of Nethyr
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The Exaltation of Nethyr is the religious organisation worshipping Nethyr. They are a cult surrounded around motherhood, childbirth, and life. In particular, Nethyr sponsors mothers whose children dies, offering to bring them back to life. However, they do not always come back the same.He's an idiot with a plan, which makes him arguably scarier
The members and politics of the organisation are entirely separated and fractured. Each temple is at odds with every other one, and the high priests and priestests are constantly trying to kill one another for the favour of their goddess. Nethyr herself only looks on in amusement, waiting for her new champion to arise.
Recruitment
A lot of the rhetoric told to potential joining members of the cult is that Nethyr will bring back their child if they are devoted enough. They prey on the desperation of grieving mothers, promising them a future that will likely never happen.When a mother does get her child back, though this is a fairly rare occasion, it is often that she will leave the cult and abandon the child. This is because Nethyr does not return the child in their original form, but rather in that of a tiefling.
When this happens, one of two things generally occurs. If the mother took the baby away from the cult, they are typically raised on the street or in an orphanage. However, if the cult is left with the baby, they are either raised within the cult into their doctrine, or they are used as a human sacrifice to increase the power of the high priest or priestess.
Structure
The structure of a temple of Nethyr is typically as follows: the high priest or priestess is a tiefling of Nethyr, typically one who believes that they are the "True Child" of Nethyr. Directly beneath them are a chosen number of faithful who keep the temple running, and are responsible for both recruitment and for management of members, as well as a slew of other responsibilities. In the lowest tier are the simple clergy who pray, offer up their blood, and worship the goddess in the hopes their dead children will be brought back by her.
Divine Origins
The central idea surrounding Nethyr's history is that she was once a mortal mother. She had a single child, who lived for a total of one week. The child died in her arms of an unknown illness, and she wept, crying tears so powerful that she was able to bring her precious baby back to life. She was elated, and she began to go to other mothers, promising that no one else would have to go through the pain of losing a child.
Sects
There are multiple different sects within the Nethyrian religion, mostly separated by core differences in the ways they percieve the teachings of Nethyr. Cacophony is the leader of one of these sects, an isolationist community on the border of Khastoro and Reuni.
Religious Infighting
The separations between sects is mostly due to religious disagreements. However, the high priest or priestess of any given temple is very likely to believe that they are the chosen child of Nethyr. In this belief, they are obligated to shed the blood of Nethyr's other children, to commune with their goddess and become her chosen.Notes from Saibra
The cult of Nethyr is one of the most manipulative organisations out there, and could be incredibly influential if not for their inability to stop fighting amonst themselves. I suppose we have Nethyr to thank for that - she's not notorious for promoting a healthy work environment.
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