Ars Religia

"Ars Religia serves as a set of instructions left by the ancients, advising us on all matters of faith - how to worship, and how best to live in the service of the Gods. Housing the original copy within the walls of this Church is the greatest of honours."
 - Relis Restaris, Archmandrite of the Cretin's Gate Polythedral

Ars Religia, often referred to as just "The Book" is by far the most important document uncovered from the Dawn Civilisations. This particular old, dusty, leather bound tome was found deep within the ruins located in what is now the Luminessan Valley around 1000 years ago.
Within its pages is held details of what is thought to be every region practised in the Dawn Civilisations, numbering 223 in total. The faiths found within this book have gone on to be taken up by people living in the Noon, meaning that there is an enormous variety of regions practised on Nalan, many of which have entirely conflicting views.
Rather than build over a hundred different Churches and Temples in every city, buildings known as Polythedrals were created, each one looked after and curated by a team of Mandrites and one Archmandrite. Polythedrals are often ornate on the outside, however within each one is designed to maximise wall space, as every God great and small listed within the book is given an altar or statue at which its followers can pray. Personally, I consider this a rather elegant solution to a difficult problem, though Polythedrals in poorer towns are uncomfortably cramped.
The only way that the world has managed to avoid any truly significant religious conflicts is fact that no one faith has broad enough membership to be able to effectively engage in large scale conflict. On top of this, The Empire remains completely secular in its leadership, ensuring that no one religion receives preferential treatment.

Purpose

The book is thought to be the work of a team of scholars who documented these religions as a work of history. That being said however, as with all Dawn Era writings, there is no mark left by the author(s), and there is no way of determining if the book is even non-fiction. For all the wisdom ascribed to its pages, it could just be a work of fantasy.

Type

Manuscript, Religious

Medium

Paper

Location

Cretin's Gate