The Bulbian Church is a monotheistic religious group that worships the Bulb. It is a little over 1000 years old, and is the most common religion in Calorum.
Description[]
The Bulbian Church is the most common religion in Calorum, and closely resembles Christianity's presence in medieval Europe. It is a monotheistic religion that worships the sun, called the Bulb, and has a religious capital in Brightgarden, located in Vegetania. Its holy book is called the Book of Leaves. It is the newest religion in Calorum, and was started approximately 1000 years ago.
Tenets and Beliefs[]
The Bulbian Church places a huge emphasis on community, faith, trusting in the church, and surrendering to the will of the Bulb. Ethical lessons are very straightforward and include lots of deontological exhortations like "Don't murder!", and "Don't steal!". However, instead of framing these things as good ideas in and of themselves, the Church frames them as mandates given by the Bulb to guarantee paradise.
Opposite the Bulb is the Hungry One, an apocalyptic, devil-like entity who the Bulbian Church believes to be the cause of suffering in the world. It is said to devour the souls of the damned, with its stomach acting as a stand-in for Hell in Bulbian theology.
Death and Burial[]
Bulbians practice very formal funeral rites. They have a very sharp delineation between body and spirit. The body, which is crass and material, goes back into the ground after death, and their soul joins the Bulb.
Magic[]
Divine magic does exist in the Bulbian church, but it is extremely rare. Less than 1% of the Bulbian clergy can use magic, but those that do and can perform the "miracle" of healing are almost always guaranteed to rocket to the top of the church hierarchy. These casters are both clerics and warlocks, but due to the mindless nature of the Bulb, these classes are essentially one in the same.
Since spellcasters are so rare within the church, members tend to look upon other forms of magic as heretical, akin to witchcraft. However, just like in normal D&D, it takes specific training or divinatory magic to tell if magic is arcane or divine, or where its power source originates from. People's reactions to magic are largely based on uninformed prejudice and aesthetic.
The Ramsian Doctrine[]
The Ramsian Doctrine was, for much of history, a fringe belief within certain sects of the Church which stated that the Bulb's ultimate triumph over the Hungry One could only come about after the Hungry One devours the world; the Hungry One cannot devour the world as long as so-called "junk food" remains. As such, the Doctrine holds that all junk food must be eliminated from the world so that it can be consumed and the Bulb can finally defeat the Hungry One.
The Doctrine was made official Church policy by Pontifex Belizabeth Brassica following the ex-communication of King Amethar Rocks and the subsequent collapse of the Concord. The Doctrine was used by the Church as an excuse to launch a Crusade to destroy Candia, with it later being learned that Brassica also planned to use the Concord's collapse to launch a crusade of the Meat Lands as well.
Hierarchy[]
Position | Descrition | Known Members |
---|---|---|
Hierophant Rex and Pontifex | The highest position and head of the Bulbian Church. | Belizabeth Brassica |
Primogen | A very high ranking clergy position that act as elders of the global church. The title of Primogen can be given as a result of work as a Bishop and Archbishop, but can also be given to miracle workers, typically magic-users. | |
Archbishop | A high ranking clergy position. They function as an administrator of the church for large areas of Calorum, typically for large cities and capitals. A person can hold the title of Primogen and Archbishop at the same time, though not all Primogens are Archbishops. | |
Bishop | A lower ranking clergy position. They likely serve as the head of the church for smaller areas, like local towns and villages. | Raphaniel Charlock |
Archdeacon | A senior clergy position. They likely serve as directly under a bishop. | Bartholomew Broccolpatch |
Chaplain | A clergymen or representative of the church attached to a secular institution. They may serve as the priest in charge of a great house. | Lapin Cadbury |
Saint | A posthumous title, given to a follower or clergyman of the church for exemplary work under the Bulb. Saints can be given feast days, and can have cathedrals named after them. | |
Misc. |
Influence[]
Most citizens of Calorum are a part of the Bulbian Church in some respect, though its presence is larger in some nations than others. The Meat Lands have their own primal, ancestral faith worshiping the Great Beasts, and the presence of the Sweetening Path in Candia is still a large part of their culture there.
The Bulb's name is used in casual conversation as a part of common expressions and often as an expletive: "Bulb above, Amethar!"; "I swear to the Bulb, Jet.".
Calorum's Arugulan calendar was created members of the Bulbian Church. Tears are referred to as "the Year of our Bulb" (Y.o.B.), and months and days have different. Days of the week have names such as "Fruitday" and "Bulbday", which is their Sabbath.
The year is divided into twelve months of 30 days each. They are:[1]
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A holiday called "High Frostings Eve" is celebrated during Highfrost at least in Candia.[2]
Bloomdawn corresponds to March in the real-world Gregorian calendar.[3]
The Ravening War and the Concord[]
Prior to the Ravening War, the Church's influence was contained mostly within Vegetania. After the war, its political influence increased substantially. It was able to gain a foothold in the Meat Lands as with the creation of the Concord, oaths must be sworn upon the Book of Leaves. This means that the Church now permeates nearly everything to do with the Concord and the Empire of Calorum.
References[]
- ↑ Twitter. 26 Jun 2020. @dimension20show "Calorum's calendar includes 12 months…"
- ↑ Adventuring Party. Brennan Lee Mulligan, "War Crimes & Good Times" starting at 0:17:56.
- ↑ Twitter. 26 Jun 2020. @dimension20show "Ricky Matsui would be "Mr. Bloomdawn" in the world of Calorum."