Cirelian Sisterhood

The Cirelian Sisterhood is a religious and philosophical organization from Cirelia affiliated with the Faith of Daana. The organization is monastical, meaning they live in monasteries, and is made up of all female members. The members of this organization devote their lives to spiritual contemplation and philosophical pursuits in line with those of the Faith of Daana.
Historically, the Sisterhood was much more involved in politics and daily life, often functioning as landlords in the ancient feudal system; modernly, the Sisterhood and its monasteries are seen more as centers of spiritual health and meditation than a political organization.
The Sister is an organization comprised of all women, there are other religious organizations equivalent to the Sisterhood that men can join, but the Sisterhood is only open to women.
They take a vow of poverty and make the most of their own food and supplies with money donated to the order and any money made from selling things the members wear goes towards the upkeep of the order's monasteries and towards the wards and anyone else under the order's care.

Practices

Worship

They have worship services and prayers led by either the monastery leaders or by a local Arroten or Habt, a religious teacher in the Faith of Daana.
They also practice prayer and meditation as a form of religious contemplation. They also use religious and philosophical texts for religious research and contemplation.

Membership & Wards

Ranks

Novice

A novice is a trainee member of the organization, meaning that they have not taken any oath nor are they considered fully initiated into the organization. This period of noviciate normally lasts around one or two years, sometimes longer if the monastery leaders deem it necessary.
Novices wear simple clothing, either a tunic and trousers or a dress, in grey or white with no decoration. These clothes, like all clothing those in the order wear are made of natural materials and dyed with natural dyes often made by the order themselves as part of their vow of poverty.

Disciple

Disciples are fully-fledged members of the organization, called sisters, they have taken the oath and been fully initiated into the organization. The disciples are lifelong members unless they choose to leave to order, which is not common and often looked down upon by the spiritual.
Disciples of the order wear large hooded robes over their base clothing, which is the same clothing they would have worn as a novice. The Robes are either grey, muted blue, or muted purple depending on the monastery and the materials available near the monastery.

Leaders

The organization has no head leader, looking to the Daanist scholars (mostly Arroten and Habts) for guidance, each monastery does have its own leader in charge of making sure the monastery runs smoothly and can provide for its residents. These leaders are called Elders and each monster has at least one, maybe two.
The clothing of the Elders is no different from the rest of the disciples, with the only way of telling them apart is the fact that they are addressed as elders and often have their own offices.

Initiation

The initiation of members into the organization takes place after the Noviciate period. Much of the ritual depends on the monastery but it always involves some sort of water baptism and the recitation of religious scripture. The Initiate also states an oath of loyalty to the monastery and their fellow sisters. After the initiation, there are also celebrations and congratulations as well as giving the new sister their new robe.

Children & Wards

The members are not sworn to chastity and are allowed to have relationships as long as they do not become too serious (ie distracting the member from their work), if they do become too serious, normally when it comes to marriage or long-term relationships, the member may be forced to leave or retire from the monastery. It normally does not get to the point of a member being forced out, normally the member will leave of their own accord possibly pursuing the relationship.
If a member becomes pregnant, the monastery will keep the baby; it is the same thing if a baby or child is abandoned at the monastery. If it is a girl, the child may be offered novice status when they grow up. Many of the Monastery wards, as these children are called, are sent to local schools for their education, and given a place to eat, sleep, and grow at the monastery. Historically, the children would be educated by the sisters at the monastery, but due to a more secular approach, this has fallen out of fashion.

Infrastructure

Monasteries need some way to provide for their inhabitants. This is normally done by a mix of sustenance farming, normally with large gardens, that produce food for the inhabitants to eat; and by selling products the sisters make. These products can be anything, from fabric to alcohol, and are sold to make money to keep the monastery running.

Type

Religious, Monastic Order

Planet of Origin
Cirelia
Culture of Origin
Cirelian
Related Faith
Faith of Daana

List of Sisterhood Communities
Onos Anohai Abbey