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Monotheism?
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<blockquote data-quote="Desdichado" data-source="post: 277074" data-attributes="member: 2205"><p>I've considered something very much like Tolkien in the <em>Silmarillion.</em> Both D&Dg and MotP offer the idea of an "overpower": some kind of god that the God's worship, while the normal schmuck's just pray to the gods. However, in Tolkien's work, the "overpower" was very much the God of the world.</p><p></p><p>Tolkien initially, I strongly believe, set out to write a mythology, so like any mythology had a polytheistic background. However, as the years went by, more and more he wanted it to be consistent with his own religious beliefs, so the polytheistic "gods", while keeping most of their same power, eventually became tools and agents of God, Eru. It's a nice mix of polytheism and monotheism without sacrificing too much of the flavor of either.</p><p></p><p>So in my campaign, everyone would pray to the monotheistic God. Praying to the lesser gods would be done by some (especially to evil or vain gods) but would technically be a heresy. Praying to the lesser gods to get them to intercede in your behalf with the monotheistic god might also be done by some sects, while it may be frowned upon by others.</p><p></p><p>Nobody knows for sure what powers their prayers. Does the One God power them himself? Has he delegated that to the lesser gods so that praying to them is possible? Or can you get your prayers answered and your soul damned by doing so?</p><p></p><p>Lots of religious questions to answer about such a setting, but as far as I'm concerned, leaving those questions open to interpretation by various clergy is a good thing, as it leads to ambiguity about what exactly is right, and it paves the way for religious differences and the conflict that can bring.</p><p></p><p>EDIT: and actually, my wife is a big Star Wars fan! And she's definately not your typical star wars geek.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Desdichado, post: 277074, member: 2205"] I've considered something very much like Tolkien in the [i]Silmarillion.[/i] Both D&Dg and MotP offer the idea of an "overpower": some kind of god that the God's worship, while the normal schmuck's just pray to the gods. However, in Tolkien's work, the "overpower" was very much the God of the world. Tolkien initially, I strongly believe, set out to write a mythology, so like any mythology had a polytheistic background. However, as the years went by, more and more he wanted it to be consistent with his own religious beliefs, so the polytheistic "gods", while keeping most of their same power, eventually became tools and agents of God, Eru. It's a nice mix of polytheism and monotheism without sacrificing too much of the flavor of either. So in my campaign, everyone would pray to the monotheistic God. Praying to the lesser gods would be done by some (especially to evil or vain gods) but would technically be a heresy. Praying to the lesser gods to get them to intercede in your behalf with the monotheistic god might also be done by some sects, while it may be frowned upon by others. Nobody knows for sure what powers their prayers. Does the One God power them himself? Has he delegated that to the lesser gods so that praying to them is possible? Or can you get your prayers answered and your soul damned by doing so? Lots of religious questions to answer about such a setting, but as far as I'm concerned, leaving those questions open to interpretation by various clergy is a good thing, as it leads to ambiguity about what exactly is right, and it paves the way for religious differences and the conflict that can bring. EDIT: and actually, my wife is a big Star Wars fan! And she's definately not your typical star wars geek. [/QUOTE]
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