Matriarchs

“Karlians may not be as many in number as Tapestrians, but I’d rather be with the Goddess any day. Karlian Cathedrals are so comforting, but I’m totally biased there. My parents are Tapestrian, old school Tapestrian. When I came out they were so disappointed. Like, I’m a successful artist, I have my own studio, I’ve made sculptures for blockbusters, but they were disappointed in me because hey, they made a mistake when I was born. Or the government made a mistake. Whatever, nobody asked me who or what I wanted to be. Who I am.
So having just come out, I was absolutely heartbroken, and I ran right out of the house. Didn’t have a clue where I was going. I ended up at the local Cathedral, right, and you hear horror stories about the weird offshoot cults who only accept fertile cisgender women, but here were these women standing outside, handing out coffee and sandwiches to locals. And when they saw that I’d been crying they didn’t pry, they just asked if I needed to take a moment? If I was, you know if I had somewhere safe to go and if I needed someone to talk to? I ended up spilling everything to the Cathedral Elder, and she was so nice and said that I was welcome back any time.
I didn’t convert for a while, but I kept going back and learning more about what the Church actually does and…look, I’m still not always big on religion. But this is a community. My Matriarch has been so supportive no matter what I’ve done. She doesn’t care what I was destined to do, she just cares that I’m living my best life and doing me, you know?”
An excerpt from an interview with renowned sculptor Nadine Bishara

Qualifications

Every Cathedral has one Matriarch (who is usually a woman) and they are required to study theology before becoming qualified as a counsellor and taking on a placement. Debating the litany of the Goddess is an important skill, but it is second to being able to care for the community.

Requirements

It is usually advised that those hoping to become a Matriarch wait until they are a little bit older before committing to the role. It is a difficult job which requires a great deal of time and effort. Appointment: new Matriarchs are inducted to the Church by a ceremony which varies depending on the time of year (to reflect the changing nature of the Goddess Herself). Both are held outside, but one is held under the sun at midday and the other under the moon at midnight. The Matriarch is given her robes by oldest member of the congregation able to do the task, and is given a circlet marking them as Matriarch by the youngest member of the congregation able to do the task. The ceremony takes place once the Matriarch has finished their training.

Duties

Overseeing the Cathedral’s workers, preaching the litany, attending to the needs of the congregation as the arise. The Matriarch’s authority comes straight from the Goddess Karliah. However, a Matriarch who goes against the litany (behaving selfishly or inappropriately, causing undue harm, bigotry, etc) can be removed by Cathedral Elders.

Type

Religious, Clerical

Equates to

The Church of Karliah has three levels of authority, with the Matriarch sitting right at the top. A Matriarch equates to a bishop.