Originally posted by R_Kane:
I was wondering what types of religion other folks have in their universes, specifically "universal" religions...ie those that are not restricted to one or two worlds but are very widespread (within a sector, maybe even over a larger area.
I am thinking of starting a character with a strong background in religious knowledge and has become somewhat religious in character, even though he is a M.D.
-Roger
Hi Roger,
In our campaign, the only religious group which ever came up during play was "The Church of the Soloman". Basically, it was an ecumenical religion: seeing all benign deities and prophets as simply race-specific aspects of "The Divine" in action.
Within the fascistic Solomani Rim, the Church of the Soloman was the state religion, and this version of the faith was very rigid and blindly dogmatic. With a bit of intentional irony, I revealed that the dogma of the Church of the Soloman sect within the Solomani Rim only recognized traditionally Terran deities and prophets (i.e. Yahweh, Moses, Jesus, Allah, Muhammed, Buddha, and the rest) as aspects of the Divine. All nonhuman deities and prophets were considered heretical and false.
Outside the Solomani Rim, the Church of the Soloman existed as a very low-key faith with a strong emphasis on both finding and building one's personal relationship to the Divine, as well as on demonstrating good will and good works.
Proselytizing was frowned upon as intrusive and counterproductive --as the Church believed every sentient needed to seek the Divine for itself, in a manner which felt most true.
Most of the Church of the Soloman's clergy were travelling scholars and/or theologians. Often, the clergy adopted simple grey robes as a signet of their beliefs, although this was never an official dress code of any kind.
The church was very de-centralized outside of the Solomani Rim, and not typically active in politics as such. These conditions existed partly due to a fear of dogmatic, repressive, institutionalism, as had developed within the Solomani Rim sect.
In the Imperium, the Soloman faith placed its emphasis on personal belief, a free flowing exchange of ideas, as well as the ongoing need for believers to re-examine their beliefs as time passed, so as to ensure that those beliefs remained the best method for that individual to connect with the Divine.
Hope this helps spark some ideas for you!
LL