Church of Spekkio

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The Spekkian Trefoil is commonly interpreted as a symbol of Spekkio's versatility; it is one of the more common religious icons of the Web, along with Rainericism's Ankh

The Church of Spekkio is the primary religion of the Kingdom of Guardia. As widespread as the Kingdom has become since its leap to space, the Church's advocates would contest the claim that Rainericism is the Web's largest religion. This is more to do with Guardian pride than any hard statistical data, but the Church's spread has been great in a relatively short period of time, and with branches of the Church existing in every dimension where a Gatian colony has settled, none can dispute that it is one of the largest religions web-wide.

History

It is appropriate, when discussing the Church of Spekkio, to also discuss its history. As a deity worshipped by Man, Spekkio is one of the single oldest mythological figures in the modern Web. Idols of Spekkio dating back to the year 12,000 BC are part of the archaeological records of the Kingdom of Zeal.

His aspects in mid-late Zeal are conquest and sorcery; he is a deity to whom aspects of power are ascribed. He is less a subject of worship in this era than he is a semi-divine embodiment of the Zealan spirit; as befits what modern man knows of the Zealan attitude, most Zealans believed themselves to be Gods. So any concept of Spekkio, or what he was, or what his purpose was, did not fit in with the way that he is treated by modern worshippers. At best, Zealans prayed to him for good luck in their endeavors, or to provide them with magic and power (in pre-Mammon Zealan society).

Throughout the Age of the Earthbound we see the formative years of the philosophy that is ascribed to Spekkio. Having abandoned Spekkio for a religion centering around a hellish being called Lavos (which some credit for the downfall of Zeal), mankind in Gate re-embraced their lumbering, polymorphic god of old. As the ice caps re-form and the waters begin to recede, the tribes of man who survived the Ice Age and the Fall of Zeal begin to spread across the growing landmasses. They take with them Spekkio's iconography, and they begin to develop a mythos around the God. He takes on aspects of a God of War, and gradually loses his status as a God of Magic -- for a people who have lost the gift of magic have no need for a God of said aspect. Even here, there is no central philosophy among Spekkio's faithful; each tribe makes supplication to him to grant them victory in battle, as they compete with other tribes for land and resources. The word of the age is Chaos, and even though chaos seems almost antithetical to the modern faith of Spekkio as we know it now, the god and his followers thrived during this period.

Ultimately the core of Spekkio's followers settled in the region now known as Guardia Proper. As permanent settlements begin to pop up, an organized clerical hierarchy begins to emerge, and the central tenets of the religion are set down. Concepts of Honor and Chivalry appear for the first time, as mankind struggles with what the morality of war. Spekkio's image changes once again, from a bestial, survivalist war god to a reluctant knight who draws steel only when he must. The first vestiges of Knighthood appear during this period, and the official heads of the fledgling church are a band of Knights who gather at a Round Table (which is later replaced by a Square Table, for reasons yet unknown).

The Zenan Empire rises, and the Zenan Bridge is built. The Zenans conquer the northern continent with little trouble, due to more advanced technologies developed in the south. Though at first the Spekkians are a repressed minority, Spekkio is eventually adopted as Patron of the Empire, and once again Conquest is ascribed to him by his Zenan converts. This period would not be until near the close of the Zenan Empire; 10 BC marks the fall of Zenard City, and in its place the Kingdom of Guardia is established in the year 0 AD. King Guardia I establishes the Church of Spekkio as the state religion, but he goes to great lengths to keep the Church and the Kingdom as separate as allowable; in his wisdom, Guardia was able to see that many of the problems that cropped up in the defunct Zenan Empire came out of disputes between the secular body and the church that had so ingrained itself into the Emperor's court. He curtailed it by cementing into Guardian Law a separation "between Guardia's Crown and Guardia's Church." Ironically, the wording of the Separation Clause gave the Church of Spekkio its alternate appelation: the Church of Guardia.

The Church has existed in its present form for as long as the Kingdom itself. It is said that Guardia built three things when he became King, and he built them in this order: the city of Truce, the Castle of Guardia, and Truce Cathedral. Truce Cathedral (though actually closer to modern Arris than it is to the city of Truce) is the center of Church life and politics.

Beliefs and Practices

The Church of Spekkio espouses the ideals of honor and justice. It is far from being a pacifistic religion, but it is a religion which looks down upon the wanton use of violence. It is a Knight's religion; a faith that any member of any code-following martial brotherhood would feel more than welcome in. Spekkio is the defender of the defenseless, and he empowers those who act righteously.

There are three major holidays in the Church of Spekkio: the Founding Day, the Victor's Day, and the Annual Festival.

On the first day of every year, the Church celebrates the Founding Day. In the Age of Dominion (AD), every year that passes is another year that the Kingdom has retained the glory that the Great Founder gave it. It is as much a national holiday in Guardia as it is a religious observance, for many in the Church believe that Guardia I was deified by Spekkio on the eve of his mortal death. The Founding Pageant is a staple of the observance of this day; it involves an interpretive dramatic reenactment of the Fall of Zenan and the Rise of Guardia, including traditional Guardian folk dancers and drum players. Prayer services are held in the churches of Spekkio throughout the realm, where worshippers thank Spekkio for another year of Dominion and meditate on the year ahead. In other nations where the Church has variant branches, worshippers adapt the Founding Day to their own national histories, and make similar offerings in prayer to Spekkio for continuing the Dominion of their own nations.

Victor's Day is held at the midpoint of the year, on the first day of the 26th week (in mid-late June). The origin of this celebration dates back to the 600's AD, when the Kingdom faced its first real test for survival against the Mystics of Medina. Reenactments of that great fight (and, as has recently become the style, the great fight against Rajaat and his Defilers) are common during this festival, as well as prayer services that ask for continued victory against all the Kingdom's enemies. Again, branches of the Church outside Guardia thank Spekkio for their nation's own victories, and ask him to keep aiding them to survive against future military threats.

The Annual Festival is held during the last two weeks (and first two weeks) of each year. It is mostly a celebration held in anticipation (and aftermath) of the Founding Day. No prayer services are associated with it; in fact, for these four weeks the Church does not hold its weekly religious services at all, as a kind of gift to the faithful (Spekkio knows that Church is boring).

Infrastructure

The Church retains a stringent hierarchy. Each Prefecture of the Kingdom has a bishop. Each Parish has a Monsignor and a number of Pastors who preach and administer weekly worship and special events. At the top of it all is the Archbishop, who runs the whole show from his seat of power at Truce Cathedral.

The Church Guard, also called Templar (as a reflection of the Church's alliance with the Holy Armies), are a caste of holy knights who protect the Parishes and serve as the personal guards of the Monsignors, Bishops and the Archbishop. They function as an Order of Knighthood within the Kingdom, and are supposed to espouse the tenets of Honor and Chivalry that the Church and Spekkio hold so dear. The High Templar, who are the highest of the Church Guard, and the Archbishop's personal bodyguard, are charged with electing a new Archbishop when that seat is vacant.

Clergy

Priests of Spekkio are healers, first and foremost. Despite their deity's epithet "the Master of War," Spekkian priests are not warriors. They are trained in combat and will fight if the need is called for, but their calling is one of restraint and the arts of peace. Spekkio's priests are allowed to marry, and may be of either gender. Per the Separation Clauses, no one of Royal or Noble Blood may hold a rank above Monsignor in the Church. After the tenure of the Archbishop Meres, the Guardian Parliament strengthened the Separation Clauses by precluding any member of the Church Hierarchy from acting as Regent. Priests lobbied successfully against a further extension that would have kept them from running for Parliament.