How is the Church of Charis getting new priests?

Greetings all. I am a long-time lurker, and decided to join up and enter the discussion fray. I beg your indulgence if this topic has been discussed ad nauseam already.

Now, as for the question:

I understand that CoC got their initial cadre of reformist priests in the breakaway from Zion. However, they need to replenish the ranks as time goes on. Now, presumably all of the seminary institutions would be located in church territory and the Empire would not be able to use their graduates.

Archbishop Maikel could open seminaries of his own, except that he has limitations imposed by his own knowledge. He is not ready to expose the Writ and the cult of Langhorne as the fraud that it is, but I believe he would be too intellectually honest to tell his young acolytes to study the falsehoods of the Writ for several years, as has always been done. So, he has a real dilemma here. He cannot use the old curriculum, and he risks either alienating the populace or teaching falsehoods to his new priests-- depending on how he modifies the new curriculum.

=2014/06/26=
WELCOME TO THE FORUMS !!

I believe that most of the priesthood for the Charisian church will not know that the Writ is a lie.

The only difference so far between COGA clergy and Charisian clergy is the increased emphasis on SELF DETERMINATION in reaching a state of belief in God coupled with the rejection of the Punishment of Scheuler as a tool to motivate adherence to the church.

Nothing (so far anyway) about rejecting the authenticity of the 'archangels' or any mention of the Terran Federation.

Not yet - - - not yet.

R
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Hank Plantagenet wrote:Greetings all. I am a long-time lurker, and decided to join up and enter the discussion fray. I beg your indulgence if this topic has been discussed ad nauseam already.

Now, as for the question:

I understand that CoC got their initial cadre of reformist priests in the breakaway from Zion. However, they need to replenish the ranks as time goes on. Now, presumably all of the seminary institutions would be located in church territory and the Empire would not be able to use their graduates.

Archbishop Maikel could open seminaries of his own, except that he has limitations imposed by his own knowledge. He is not ready to expose the Writ and the cult of Langhorne as the fraud that it is, but I believe he would be too intellectually honest to tell his young acolytes to study the falsehoods of the Writ for several years, as has always been done. So, he has a real dilemma here. He cannot use the old curriculum, and he risks either alienating the populace or teaching falsehoods to his new priests-- depending on how he modifies the new curriculum.

Hank Plantagenet wrote:Greetings all. I am a long-time lurker, and decided to join up and enter the discussion fray. I beg your indulgence if this topic has been discussed ad nauseam already.

Now, as for the question:

I understand that CoC got their initial cadre of reformist priests in the breakaway from Zion. However, they need to replenish the ranks as time goes on. Now, presumably all of the seminary institutions would be located in church territory and the Empire would not be able to use their graduates.

Archbishop Maikel could open seminaries of his own, except that he has limitations imposed by his own knowledge. He is not ready to expose the Writ and the cult of Langhorne as the fraud that it is, but I believe he would be too intellectually honest to tell his young acolytes to study the falsehoods of the Writ for several years, as has always been done. So, he has a real dilemma here. He cannot use the old curriculum, and he risks either alienating the populace or teaching falsehoods to his new priests-- depending on how he modifies the new curriculum.

Welcome to the forums. For now just a question... You name interests me. Do you have ancestry going back to Medieval times in England of France? Will address you point later. Right now I gotta run...

Don

I think you're wrong about all the seminary institutions being located in church territory. Maikel seems to have spent his entire career in Charis, apart from the traditional Temple pilgrimage.

Taurus2 wrote:I think you're wrong about all the seminary institutions being located in church territory. Maikel seems to have spent his entire career in Charis, apart from the traditional Temple pilgrimage.

Exactly. Besides, if we go by the practice of the various Catholic, Orthodox and Coptic churches, which the CoGA seems to be based upon, then a substantial proportion of the priesthood will be trained not in the seminaries, but in the monasteries.

kbus888 wrote:=2014/06/26=
WELCOME TO THE FORUMS !!

I believe that most of the priesthood for the Charisian church will not know that the Writ is a lie.

The only difference so far between COGA clergy and Charisian clergy is the increased emphasis on SELF DETERMINATION in reaching a state of belief in God coupled with the rejection of the Punishment of Scheuler as a tool to motivate adherence to the church.

Nothing (so far anyway) about rejecting the authenticity of the 'archangels' or any mention of the Terran Federation.

Not yet - - - not yet.

R
.

Hank Plantagenet wrote:Greetings all. I am a long-time lurker, and decided to join up and enter the discussion fray. I beg your indulgence if this topic has been discussed ad nauseam already.

Now, as for the question:

I understand that CoC got their initial cadre of reformist priests in the breakaway from Zion. However, they need to replenish the ranks as time goes on. Now, presumably all of the seminary institutions would be located in church territory and the Empire would not be able to use their graduates.

Archbishop Maikel could open seminaries of his own, except that he has limitations imposed by his own knowledge. He is not ready to expose the Writ and the cult of Langhorne as the fraud that it is, but I believe he would be too intellectually honest to tell his young acolytes to study the falsehoods of the Writ for several years, as has always been done. So, he has a real dilemma here. He cannot use the old curriculum, and he risks either alienating the populace or teaching falsehoods to his new priests-- depending on how he modifies the new curriculum.

Thank you for the welcome.

I agree that most of the CoC clergy does not know of the lies of the Writ, along with 99.999% of the population of Safehold. I agree that the truth cannot be revealed at this time to the population in general.

Yet, CoC needs priests under the current construct. Not only are they providing for the religious needs of the populace, but they are also the physicians, engineers, lawyers, clerks, and even baseball officials.

Now, the current crop of priests, if I recall correctly, do take their lead from Archbishop Maikel's sermons. But, at a certain point, he, as the church's leader, has to articulate a doctrine in order to be able to train new members of the clergy. Maikel can tell those training his new people to keep studying the Writ, but at what point does this become the telling of lies that Merlin is so careful to avoid? What will be the reaction after the reveal of those new priests that were forced to study lies during their training by the Church of Charis?

Somewhere early in the series (OAR?) I recall a conversation within the GO4 about how they'd made a mistake putting Maikel in his position because he was so close to Charis. I don't recall if he's Charisian by birth but he has spent most, if not all, of his career on Charis. Apparently the usual procedure was to move someone in from the outside when senior positions opened up. The theory is that the new guy is less likely to develop any strong allegiances to the local secular chief and stay loyal to Mother Church.

No one that I'm aware of has suggested moving away from, or making modifications to the Writ. No one has proposed any changes to the Proscriptions either. In LAMA, i think, Duchairn does talk about differences between what the Writ actually does say and what the Inquisition is saying it says. This may be useful when they go after Clyntahn.

Maikel's position on who determines an individual's pathway to God is a big difference for a lot of people to handle. Changing the Writ and/or the Proscriptions is way too much for the vast majority on Safeholdians. Like maybe everyone outside the Inner Circle.

EdThomas wrote:Somewhere early in the series (OAR?) I recall a conversation within the GO4 about how they'd made a mistake putting Maikel in his position because he was so close to Charis. I don't recall if he's Charisian by birth but he has spent most, if not all, of his career on Charis. Apparently the usual procedure was to move someone in from the outside when senior positions opened up. The theory is that the new guy is less likely to develop any strong allegiances to the local secular chief and stay loyal to Mother Church.

No one that I'm aware of has suggested moving away from, or making modifications to the Writ. No one has proposed any changes to the Proscriptions either. In LAMA, i think, Duchairn does talk about differences between what the Writ actually does say and what the Inquisition is saying it says. This may be useful when they go after Clyntahn.

Maikel's position on who determines an individual's pathway to God is a big difference for a lot of people to handle. Changing the Writ and/or the Proscriptions is way too much for the vast majority on Safeholdians. Like maybe everyone outside the Inner Circle.

Maikel is a native (Old) Charisian, as is about 90% of the Charisian priesthood and 60% of the prelacy.

I left the Catholic Church as a teenager, as soon as I realized that their teachings required me to regard myself as an abomination due to my sexuality, but as I remember, their doctrine is very similar to that of the CoGA wrt individuals' relationship with God.

n7axw wrote:
Welcome to the forums. For now just a question... You name interests me. Do you have ancestry going back to Medieval times in England of France? Will address you point later. Right now I gotta run...

Don

I have been on a history reading kick of late, and have been studying medieval England. It just struck my fancy to imagine how Henry II would have been addressed in modern day America. A silly notion at best.

=2014/06/27=
You gotta love someone with a sense of humour !!


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Hank Plantagenet wrote:

n7axw wrote:
Welcome to the forums. For now just a question... You name interests me. Do you have ancestry going back to Medieval times in England of France? Will address you point later. Right now I gotta run...

Don

I have been on a history reading kick of late, and have been studying medieval England. It just struck my fancy to imagine how Henry II would have been addressed in modern day America. A silly notion at best.