Marius Albius

The Church of Marius Albius is a religion that is known in the Divided States and Vieuxlyons, originating from the same parallel Earth that spawned both those domains.

Origins

On the parallel Earth, the Roman Empire opted not to directly suppress the early Christian faith, but instead re-branded it and utilized the parts it found useful. Through a campaign of propaganda and outright lies, the Roman government claimed all the miracles recorded in the New Testament of 'our' Earth had been performed by one Marius Albius, a Roman scholar and philosopher who was the chosen prophet of the Roman deity Sol Invictus and a student of Egyptian magic.

The Romans presented their creation as a narrative that was common in mythology; as a trick and a test the gods subjected mortals to. Rather than being the reconciliation of the mortal and the Divine, the Crucifixion was presented as a failure on the part of mankind -- a failure that would require much appeasement of the gods and civil obedience to atone for. Regrettably, this made its message much easier to assimilate for many of the cultures of the age, giving the church of Marius Albius a leg-up in its spread across the globe, and forcing Christianity to remain a hidden faith.

In the current age, both within the Demiplane of Dread and on the Prime Material Plane, the church of Marius Albius is a tool for social control. It preaches the need for obedience to power, rather than charity and forgiveness. It is popular with the wealthy and powerful because it tells them that it is their divine right to do whatever they want; it is followed by the weak and the meek because it tells them their obedience to any and all power will be rewarded in the Elysean Fields. It is a broker in information and influence, taking in the tithes and confessions of the weak, then using those to sponsor and assist the strong in return for 'considerations'. It also serves as a gateway to the Roman pantheon, encouraging those who believe in Marius Albius to worship the Roman gods as well.

Priesthood

Marius Albius is very much a false god, and the number of actual spellcasters in his church is very low. Most divine spellcasters in the church are followers of the various Roman gods, who pretend that Marius Albius is their patron. They are far outnumbered by arcane spellcasters who fake being divine spellcasters, as for instance members of the False Priest-archetype. Even in the Demiplane of Dread, the number of people whose faith in Marius is strong enough to derive spellcasting power from it is lower than the number of pretenders. It is for this reason, perhaps, that the church of Marius Albius is one of two strongholds of "Magick" in the lands where it exists; the church hoards records of the Words used in the construction of spells. (The other stronghold being the Society of the Wandering Eye.)

Iconography

The church uses the image of a handsome, clean-shaven man with classic Roman features, wearing a laurel wreath, a solar disc behind his head; the figure is suspended from a cross. This image is used both in statuary and as the faith's unholy symbol. By church law all these symbols and statues must be crafted of gold, with one or several rubies placed in the center of the figure's chest. Images crafted from any other material are considered blasphemous by the church.

Statistics

• Alignment: Lawful Evil
• Portfolio: Order, obedience, authority, sun, information, influence
• Cleric alignments: Lawful Evil, Lawful Neutral, Neutral Evil
• Domains: Law, Magic, Sun, Trickery
• Favored weapon: Roman gladius

• Prayers: When the faithful pray, they must pray thrice; first to Marius with the request to carry the prayer to Sol Invictus, then to the sun-god himself, and again to Marius to thank him for his intercession. Divine spellcasters pray at noon, when the sun is at the height of its strength. Lay followers are required to speak their prayers at dawn, so they will not interfere with the prayers of the clergy at noon.
• Temples: The holy places of the church resemble traditional catholic architecture, albeit with a tendency to excessive opulence, and a recurring theme of golden solar discs throughout. Instead of statues of saints and angels, it features statues of Roman gods and goddesses.
• Holy Book: The Book of the Unconquered Sun teaches the false tales of Marius Albius, as well as the classic mythology of Sol Invictus and the rest of the Roman pantheon. It includes prayers to the god and his prophet, as well as several other powerful gods of ancient Rome. The Book teaches that even if these other gods – such as Jupiter and Janus among others – are not the focus of the church, the faithful must nevertheless respect their sphere of influence and show them proper deference.
• Rites: The rites of this church are strictly regulated, with High Gatherings for those in power, and Low Gatherings for those who serve. Gatherings find their climax in tithing, as the worshipers deposit gold coins in one offering-bowl upon the altar, and a few drops of their blood in another. The church accepts only gold coins, leading to some measure of strife with the Church of the Almighty Dollar; those who cannot tithe in gold must tithe twice in blood. At High Gatherings, the priests read texts translated to contemporary Angol, whereas during Low Gatherings they use traditional Latin – a language very much not in use. During both kinds of Gatherings, sections of the life of Marius Albius are read from the Book of the Unconquered Sun, and all are called upon to maintain order.

• Taboos: Civil disobedience.

Inspiration

Marius Albius's creation was inspired by the religious figure Marius in Tanith Lee's Vivia (1995 title).