The Church of Lathander
The Church of Lathander enacts the will of Lathander, god of life and light, acting as his voice and hands on the material plane. The church has existed for centuries, but has only began it's rise to power in 1430, as many of the traditions within the church, such as the wearing of red-gold sashes and the structure of power, began to take form with the appointment of Virelebra Contera Lazarus. The Church spread it's influence from the Sword Coast Eastward, reaching the sea of fallen stars before 1520, which marked the beginning of a major schism within the church.
The church of Lathander has and continues to be drivin by Lathanders word, but more generally by the word of the three holy scriptures. The Chronicles of Light, The Book of Sun, and The Valebera all put in writing thousands of years ago still set the tenets of worship and have been used to define Lathanders will long before the Church of Lathander existed. With the influence of the church expanded foreign ideas started to become more popular within the church, and a growing class of worshipers called Iconocites began to take form.
In 1521 the Iconocites, taking issue with the churches interpretations of the holy scriptures and lack of influence within church decisions and policy making formed a pilgrimage. Marching from Cormyr through Rei to Sarrach Mach in The Sword Coast to confront the Virelebra Contera Directly. They were marching under peaceful pretenses, carrying a list of issues to be delivered to the Virelebra directly. Before they could make it they were slaughtered in the fields of Ardeep, leaving the fields stained red by iron.
Thus began the Iconocite Schism, the surviving members fled to countries that would accept them. The only countries not publicly outlawing their worship are Rei, The Southern Sword Coast, and The Danaro Republic. Other countries have outlawed them as heretics, Iconocite wordship an exile able offence. Lathanderites and Iconocites continue to clash, but all out holy war or crusades have been avoided by both sides as Iconocites blessed with power preform miracles as Lathanderite priests do. Whichever side truley represents Lathander is a question which will continue to drive families and countries apart for decades to come.
Type
Geopolitical, Theocracy
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