Tenets of Saint Nora

Followers of Saint Nora have six core beliefs: That Silnos is the creator, That Saint Nora gave up her power to save the people of Vreathe, that Meliheal is the World tree and Wellspring of Souls, that Nora judges you in the afterlife, that following her virtues and heeding her great cautions is how you get into the afterlife. ((For more information on the Church of Saint Nora itself, read the article to the right.))

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The Universe is God

"Silnos is the God of everything. They created the universe. They are the Universe. They created the Rena and the world seeds. They planned for humans to enter Vreathe through the World Tree. Their grand design is far beyond our understanding, so we look to Saint Nora to teach us."

There has always been great debate among theologians over the nature of Silnos. Are they the universe, the creator of the universe? Are they everywhere, nowhere, an outside observer, someone who interferes with everything, someone who has a meticulous plan that has been executing for many thousands of years?

There is also disagreement over whether Silnos is even a god at all, or if they are the only god. Before the Iron Age, the Rena were referred to as the "Elder Gods", but then Nora became a mortal human and started teaching that the Rena were just powerful creations of Silnos to execute his will. Because of this, there is still disagreement in the church over whether Silism is a Monotheistic reigion or some combination of Polytheism and Pantheism.

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Nora's Sacrifice

"Nora relinquished her power to save Vreathe. She stopped the war between the Rena and shut them out of the world and the world tree forever. For this, Nora was rewarded with a mortal human form that would grow old and die. She used the life she had to lead and teach the people of Vreathe."

One aspect of Silism where there is very little disagreement is in the nature of Nora herself. During the Bronze Age, There was war between Elves and Humans, and the Rena were warring with both, demanding worship. Nora was once a being of incredible cosmic power, but she gave it up so the people of Vreathe could be free of the other Rena.

There is disagreement over the nature of Nora's rebirth. Some say that Silnos was involved, giving her a human form. Others say that that it was just the last remaining pieces of Nora's power. Whatever the disagreement, Nora is still known as the Great Teacher of Vreathe.

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Depictions of Nora have varied greatly through the ages. Iron Age humans generally depict her as a hooded woman with black hair, fair skin, deep blue eyes, and surrounded by the stars.

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The Wellspring of Souls

"Meliheal the World Tree, planted by the Rena long ago, connects all things. It houses all unwicked souls, both those yet to be born, and those that already lived their one life on Vreathe. Souls that are not within the wellspring are said to be forever suffering while those within the wellspring are said to be in a state of eternal bliss."

Meliheal is a tree of indescribable size in the center of Vreathe, growing into the heavens. Whether one believes the tree is divine or not doesn't really matter. People are able to traverse the branches of the tree to other worlds. Famed traveler Salika regularly travels between worlds, bring back writings and various items.

Peering within the tree to see the wellspring of souls however is almost impossible for any living thing. This does cause some disagreement over whether the souls of the dead and yet to be born are actually inside the tree or not. A number of Nora's Descendents such as the Vernadors have been able to connect with the Tree of Life and travel through the wellspring within to find and talk to specific deceased people, even bringing their souls out of the tree for a short time to speak to the living. That part's hard for many people to disagree with.

Built just to the south of Meliheal is the city of Semmitra. Founded at the beginning of time by the Gold Race of Men, it has been continuously inhabited for many countless millennia. Each of the four races of men have inhabited the city, as has silver descendants such as the elves. The city has been built over multiple times and the current architecture is a result of the Empire of Irellith controlling the city for the last thousand years. Semmitra is the seat of power for each of the major sects of Silism.

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Isabel

"We've all seen the tree from a distance, but seeing Meliheal from the center of civilization, staring into the branches above, getting glimpses of the other worlds it leads to...Look, I will obviously admit that I am insignificant compared to God's grand design! No one should be so ignorant and power hungry to say otherwise."

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The Supreme Judge and the Afterlife

"After her death, Nora became the Supreme Judge, weighing the virtues and deeds of recently deceased mortals. When you die, you enter Meliheal to be judged by Nora. She alone decides if you are allowed into the wellspring of souls or be shut out of it forever. "

According to scripture, Nora sits on a golden throne just inside the World Tree, though many who have seen the afterlife disagree with this. There she will go over a soul's deeds and misdeeds in life before passing judgement. If a Soul is deemed worthy, it may pass on into the Wellspring to an eternal afterlife of carefree bliss. If a soul is deemed unworthy, the soul is expelled from the World Tree, and is forced to wander the land until it fades into nothingness.

The exact way a soul is measured is frustratingly vague, especially to those nearing the end of their lives, unsure if they led a good enough life or if their evil deeds are about to catch up to them.

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Saya

"Yeah, I've been inside the Wellspring of life a few times now because I'm a Verna--...it's not important. When I am there, I see an endless bed of shallow water with an island in the middle. On that island is a tree with white leaves and standing there, is Saint Nora. she tells me the tree is how she measures all my deeds in life, the healthier the tree is, the better the soul."

"But the tree is perfect!...that just can't be right..."

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Nora's Virtues

"Following the examples set forth in the scriptures is how one can live a full life, and gain access to an eternal life after death. You have free will and there is no one correct way to live life on Vreathe, but Nora's great cautions must always be followed."

When Nora started guiding the Iron Humans, she taught them the history of the ages before, how the Gold, Silver, and Bronze ages came and went. Through these stories, she taught them various virtues, qualities that they should strive to achieve and perfect. depending on who you ask, the Church of Saint Nora has anywhere between seven and an infinite number of virtues, but the commonly accepted number is Twenty Six.

There are 13 sanctioned knightly orders across Eastern Vreathe that follow the Church, formed just after Nora's death. Between these orders of knights, they have 26 virtues that guide their actions. Each order of knights carries two of the first thirteen virtues, while reserving one of the last thirteen virtues for themselves.

Ren

Hope, Perseverance, Rebirth. These are the virtues of the Phoenix Knight.

Arden

Mercy, Tenacity, Temperance. These are the virtues of the Abyss Knight.

Lucia

Justice, Persistence, Vigilance. These are the virtues of the Leviathan Knight.

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The Great Cautions

"In Nora's teachings, there were three common things that she cautioned people against. Several times in the scriptures, Nora says to: 'Beware the Cost of Magic, Beware False Prophets and Promises, and Beware the Silver Race.' We must strive to uphold her teachings and never stray from her path of righteousness!"

The scriptures have many things Nora cautions against including numerous vices opposed to numerous virtues. All of them can be summed up into the three great overlapping cautions. Nora told numerous stories about humans misusing magic, trusting tricky deities that meant them harm, and using their avarice for immortality to nearly destroy everyhting. She also tells numerous stories of humans paying heed to her warnings and ending up better for it.

The three great cautions are the only thing Nora explicity says to avoid, and people believe that avoiding them means an easier path to the afterlife. This caused humans to take her teachings too literally, and too far. Nora never says to not use magic, to avoid god-touched and, avoid elves, but that is what her religion caused in the early days.

The warning about magic caused many Humans to not use magic at the beginning of the Iron Age. While they are starting to use it more again, it has caused their magical development to be far behind that of the ages before them, and that of the elves.

The warning against false prophets and promises caused humans to treat God-Touched very poorly, with the exception of those descended from saint Nora. Many God-Touched live in far-flung parts of the world or on the outer edges of society due to this.

Because of the warning against the Silver Race, most Humans are also extremely distrustful of any elf, knowing their ancestors nearly destroyed everything. Some humans even believe that elves are impure beings that are shut out of the afterlife. The church does not hold this position, even though many of its followers do.

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Silver Age Humans, the Olimians, under the influence of the god Tarcur, used magic to set the World tree on fire, very nearly ending reality right there. This is the very thing Nora warns about.