Benevolence - Polytheistic
The individuals responsible for bringing Korinth out of the Sundering ascended to the heavens and form the pantheon collectively referred to as Benevolence. All of these gods focus on loyalty and virtue in their worshipers but each holds to different areas of individual teaching. The gods of the pantheon of Benevolence are generally friendly with one another and Markonus is widely accepted as the head of the pantheon. Rivalries exist between the faithful loyal to the Redeemer and the faithful of the Lorekeeper over the morguul. Tristan teaches that every creature can be redeemed while Palinthious maintains that all morguul must be destroyed.
Doctrine
The deities of Benevolence are all gods of goodness. They abhor evil and accept only worshipers that are either good, lawful good or unaligned and even then their followers must not commit acts of evil or risk the wrath of their god. Each deity espouses individual tenants but they all share some common doctrine.
- Loyalty and honor are the qualities of good men
- Friendship is a gift of life that must never be taken for granted and friends should never be abandoned
- Knowledge of the morguul is dangerous and polluting and their artifacts, tomes and other implements should be destroyed immediately
Death
Benevolence teaches that the faithful will be called from the Shadowfell to the realm of their god. At death a soul travels from the prime plane to the world of the dead where it resides for a short time before passing beyond the veil into the unknown regions where the deities of Benevolence dwell. Once a soul travels beyond that veil it should never return to the mortal world. For this reason, the rituals of Benevolence that recall the dead only function for those that have been dead for a very short time.
History
Benevolence is a relatively young religion. It was officially founded in the year 11013 although the deities had been active in the world since directly following the Sundering in 10992. The first temple to the religion was built in the city of Vexstigia and it radiated outward from there with trade. For the first few centuries there were limited numbers of followers but as the power of the gods become more well known, and the stories of their bravery during the Sundering spread, more converts came to their temples. Today the religion has spread across all of Korinth and out into the planes. It is nearly as common as the Way of the Creator and in many places actually claims more devout than the Way. One appeal of Benevolence over the Way is certainly the ability to interact directly with the deities of the pantheon.
Temples
Temples dedicated to Benevolence are most often inclusive of all the gods in the pantheon. Infrequently a temple may be built devoted to only a single deity within the pantheon but this is frowned upon. Temples tend to be large, rectangular structures of stone with very tall ceilings. The interiors of most temples include a walkway flanked by 4 pillars on either side. Between each set of pillars statues of the deities rest. The largest statue is always that of Markonus who stands at the head of the temple beyond the pillars. Priests typically stand near the deity they are devoted to when teaching.
Clergy
Most temples have a high priest - almost always a man or woman who whose primary service is to Markonus - and an elder priest for each of the other gods of the pantheon. Technically none of the priests have any authority over one another but almost always they recognize the high priest as first and a pecking order forms from there. Each individual priest may have one or more understudies and typically the temple will be serviced by a number of acolytes that have come to the temple to devote their life to Benevolence but have yet to choose which deity to serve foremost.
Clergy members don't live in the temple itself but most temples have nearby facilities for the priests. Depending on the size of the temple it may be a large common room or building or each individual church within the faith (represented by each deity) may have its own quarters.
Worship
Faithful to Benevolence are encouraged to attend services weekly. Each of the deities has chosen a different day of the week as their holy day. On the given day, the priests of that deity stand near the statue within the temple and hold services. These services range from admonishment to praise to politics depending on the priest delivering the message.
Holy Days
Name Date Description
- New Year Jupas 1 The 1st of Jupas (January) is recognized as the day that Benevolence set things right on Korinth once again. The exact day they completed their work is difficult to pin down as trouble persisted for several years after their arrival. Nevertheless, on the first day of each new year the church holds special services and honors Benevolence for their sacrifice on behalf of Korinth.
- Arrival Janius 13 The 13th of Janius (June) is recognized as the day that Benevolence first set foot upon Korinthian soil. The holiday is celebrated for the entire week leading up to the 13th. At the start of the week the priests empty the temple and leave the city for meditation and worship only to return to the faithful on the Day of Arrivals.
- Arcanis Orotus 31 Palinthius has declared the 31st of Orotos (October) a holy day for that is the day he restored magic to the mana wells. It has become customary for children to dress up as wizards, warlocks, ghouls or other undead on Arcanis and go door-to-door asking for treats in representation of the wizarding community beseeching Palinthius for mana.