Archbishop
Status: Lancea Sanctum (••••+)
Within the ranks of the Sanctified, the Archbishop is arguably the most important figure. While technically inferior to a Cardinal, it’s crucial to remember that Cardinals are also exceedingly rare. Hence, the authority of the Archbishop is the most common and enforceable in a given domain. Note also that not every domain has an Archbishop — in cities where a single Sanctified Kindred claims the office and responsibilities of Prince, he typically takes the title of Archbishop instead of its more secular counterpart.
Archbishops are responsible for the covenant’s movement within a city. An Archbishop is the foremost spiritual counselor in a domain, and his responsibility is practically endless. His principal duty is monitoring the offices beneath him and The Traditions, stamping out weakness and inefficiency while rewarding suitable and effective service. Any tasks that need to be done are delegated to the council of Bishops beneath him. Through the Bishops, he exerts his vision of apostolic authority — determining which ritae are conducted and when, deciding which heretics need to be subdued, choosing Sanctified for appropriate promotion within the ranks. An Archbishop must have his eyes on both the “big picture” of a domain and the minutiae within that domain (which is often referred to as a parish almost interchangeably). If The Traditions aren’t being followed, the Archbishop determines the course of action to ensure that transgressors are punished. If another covenant is monopolizing city Resources and attempting to undermine the concerns of the Sanctified, the Archbishop works with his covenant to deal with the insurgency and take back the covenant’s righteous spoils. If a Bishop is putting her needs before the needs of The Lancea Sanctum, then the Archbishop finds out how best to change her way of thinking — or which auspicious Priest is looking for a blood-soaked promotion.
Many Archbishops are elders, in whatever context that takes for a given domain, but several ancillae exist in the position. In a rare few cases, an Archbishop of a city takes direction from the Cardinal of a given region, but Cardinals are few, and infrequently backed by any mandate that an Archbishop may not ignore, given the decentralized nature of the covenant, so the majority of Archbishops act upon their own chosen authority.
When an Archbishop claims praxis over a domain, he usually appoints a subordinate of his own to act as Bishop and oversee the religious affairs of the domain’s Sanctified population. For most Archbishops, this is merely a formal recognition of other Bishops who have already been acknowledged with that title, though it’s not unheard of for a new Archbishop to “stock the pond” with those sympathetic to his causes. Certainly, domains have fractured shortly after a new Archbishop’s Anointing if that Archbishop proves to be a loose canon or violates the sense of entitlement powerful extant Bishops might have.
Few Archbishops are willing to get their hands dirty and perform menial tasks for the covenant (such as performing minor ritae or gauging the devotion of the local coteries), but some comport themselves accordingly in an effort to see the covenant’s operation from the ground up. Usually such “handson” Archbishops are overly concerned (occasionally to the point of madness) with the spiritual sanctity of a city’s Kindred. If The Lancea Sanctum has enough adherents in the domain, or if the Archbishop wishes to keep potential rivals preoccupied, he might appoint multiple Bishops and divide parishes among them in much the same way a more secular Prince might divide his city into tenurial domains among Regents (see Vampire: The Requiem, p. 35). Priests might then be appointed directly by the Archbishop or by an individual Bishop subject to the Archbishop’s veto. Alternately, the Archbishop might also choose not to appoint a Bishop, opting instead to leave the ministration of his domain’s religious needs to one or more Priests. Ultimately, the Sanctified hierarchy within any parish- domain is determined by the political needs of the most powerful Lancea Sanctum members within it, just as the political hierarchy of any domain is established according to the whims of its rulers regardless of covenant.
The Archbishop, surprisingly enough, is usually not the same person as the Bishop, as the responsibilities of running a city usually do not leave time to serve as Bishop as well. The Archbishop does outrank the Bishop, however, so he can overrule the Bishop when necessary.
Archbishops are responsible for the covenant’s movement within a city. An Archbishop is the foremost spiritual counselor in a domain, and his responsibility is practically endless. His principal duty is monitoring the offices beneath him and The Traditions, stamping out weakness and inefficiency while rewarding suitable and effective service. Any tasks that need to be done are delegated to the council of Bishops beneath him. Through the Bishops, he exerts his vision of apostolic authority — determining which ritae are conducted and when, deciding which heretics need to be subdued, choosing Sanctified for appropriate promotion within the ranks. An Archbishop must have his eyes on both the “big picture” of a domain and the minutiae within that domain (which is often referred to as a parish almost interchangeably). If The Traditions aren’t being followed, the Archbishop determines the course of action to ensure that transgressors are punished. If another covenant is monopolizing city Resources and attempting to undermine the concerns of the Sanctified, the Archbishop works with his covenant to deal with the insurgency and take back the covenant’s righteous spoils. If a Bishop is putting her needs before the needs of The Lancea Sanctum, then the Archbishop finds out how best to change her way of thinking — or which auspicious Priest is looking for a blood-soaked promotion.
Many Archbishops are elders, in whatever context that takes for a given domain, but several ancillae exist in the position. In a rare few cases, an Archbishop of a city takes direction from the Cardinal of a given region, but Cardinals are few, and infrequently backed by any mandate that an Archbishop may not ignore, given the decentralized nature of the covenant, so the majority of Archbishops act upon their own chosen authority.
When an Archbishop claims praxis over a domain, he usually appoints a subordinate of his own to act as Bishop and oversee the religious affairs of the domain’s Sanctified population. For most Archbishops, this is merely a formal recognition of other Bishops who have already been acknowledged with that title, though it’s not unheard of for a new Archbishop to “stock the pond” with those sympathetic to his causes. Certainly, domains have fractured shortly after a new Archbishop’s Anointing if that Archbishop proves to be a loose canon or violates the sense of entitlement powerful extant Bishops might have.
Few Archbishops are willing to get their hands dirty and perform menial tasks for the covenant (such as performing minor ritae or gauging the devotion of the local coteries), but some comport themselves accordingly in an effort to see the covenant’s operation from the ground up. Usually such “handson” Archbishops are overly concerned (occasionally to the point of madness) with the spiritual sanctity of a city’s Kindred. If The Lancea Sanctum has enough adherents in the domain, or if the Archbishop wishes to keep potential rivals preoccupied, he might appoint multiple Bishops and divide parishes among them in much the same way a more secular Prince might divide his city into tenurial domains among Regents (see Vampire: The Requiem, p. 35). Priests might then be appointed directly by the Archbishop or by an individual Bishop subject to the Archbishop’s veto. Alternately, the Archbishop might also choose not to appoint a Bishop, opting instead to leave the ministration of his domain’s religious needs to one or more Priests. Ultimately, the Sanctified hierarchy within any parish- domain is determined by the political needs of the most powerful Lancea Sanctum members within it, just as the political hierarchy of any domain is established according to the whims of its rulers regardless of covenant.
The Archbishop, surprisingly enough, is usually not the same person as the Bishop, as the responsibilities of running a city usually do not leave time to serve as Bishop as well. The Archbishop does outrank the Bishop, however, so he can overrule the Bishop when necessary.
Type
Religious, Political
Alternative Naming
Episkopos, Exarch, Father/Mother Superior
Equates to
This is simply the title that most Sanctified Princes choose for themselves, as Archbishop fits the Lancea Sanctum mentality far better than the secular title of Prince.
Related Organizations