¶ The New Catholic Church
The New Catholic Church is a reformed version of the Roman Catholic Church, created to adapt to the everchanging pace of the 28th century. The New Catholic Church stands as one of the largest religious institutions in Civspace, with the Stargazer Theocracy holding spot as the largest. The New Catholic Church holds dioceses all across the galaxy, even inside of Fringe colonies such as the Haven Federation. As a reformed religion, Catholic values have shifted towards an acceptance of homosexuality and synthetic intelligence.
The New Catholic Church holds a small Civspace nation-state within Human controlled space, its capital being New Roma, a system situated between Human and Hylotl space. Its current pope is Pope Ernest-Quincy The Indicator, a xenophobe whose stances on non-Humans have split the church into two distinct factions. Aside from its small nation state, the New Catholic Church holds a significantly greater religious territory, having dioceses all across various worlds in the galaxy, making it one of the most widespread religions.
New Roma and the Vatican have a unique culture that developed over the New Catholic Church's history. Those born within the Church's nation state often take on byzantine-style names such as Anastasius Vatatzes.
¶ The Schism
The New Catholic Church is in the process of a schism called the Neo-Catholic Western Schism, splitting the church into two inner factions: the New Catholic State and the Neo-Catholic Prodigal Sons. The schism is occuring over a debate of values regarding whether non-Human life is able to receive salvation through Christ.
¶ The New Catholic State
Led by Pope Ernest-Quincy The Indicator, the New Catholic State is a xenophobe faction within the church that believes that only Mankind and its creations (AI) are capable of salvation through Christ. The New Catholic State is composed of the Pope's inner-Vatican loyalists clinging to the ideals the New Catholic Church was reformed under. Loyalists of the New Catholic State are human or manmade synthetic intelligences.
¶ The Neo-Catholic Prodigal Sons
The Neo-Catholic Prodigal Sons is a faction led by a group of bishops and cardinals headed by a Speaker, which is currently Bishop Malcolm Geartrod, a Glitch. The Prodigal Sons believe that any sapient life in the galaxy is capable of receiving redemption and salvation through Christ, not just Mankind and its creations. A majority of New Catholics and bishops outside of the inner-Vatican belong to the Prodigal Sons, who are composed of a wide variety of species but are predominately Human and Glitch.
¶ Hierarchy and Dioceses
The New Catholic Church adheres to a hierarchy of religious leaders and provinces. The church is led by a Pope (title: His/Her Holiness) which is elected by a council of cardinals (Title: His/Her Eminence) called the Sacred College. An individual religious province of the Church is called a Dioceses, which are led by bishops (title: Most Reverend). Dioceses can be found all over the galaxy and typically cover a single colony or world; an example is the Dioceses of Haven led by Bishop Most Reverend Anastasius Scylitzes. Found within Dioceses are churches, each of which are managed by a priest (title: Reverend).
Player Option: Priest/Bishop
New Catholic dioceses are established in certain places in the Fringe where there are catholic worshippers. Perhaps your character is a bishop of one such dioceses, or a priest that presides over a church in one?
¶ The Templar Order
The Templar Order is the military of the New Catholic Church's nation-state, composed of a number of highly devout warriors that take up arms in the name of religion. The Templar Order is composed of elite templars that perform a variety of duties in not only the defense of the nation-state, but also in expeditions towards places such as the Fringe in order to seek holy artifacts, or to destroy unholy items or beings. The Templar Order is led by a Grand Master which commands Seneschals, which command Drapers, which command soldiers called Knight Brothers.
Squadrons or individual templars often venture throughout the galaxy in quests to recover holy artifacts whose existence was revealed in rediscovered ancient texts, searching for honor and glory. The ultimate of these artifacts is the Holy Grail, a chalice said to heal all illness and grant eternal youth.
Most templars are human, but a large portion are also Glitch.
Player Option: Templar
Many in the Templar Order believe the Fringe to hold certain valuable holy artifacts, perhaps even the Holy Grail itself. Perhaps your character is a Templar that arrived to the Fringe in search of something, or maybe they are an exile of the Templar Order coming to the Fringe in search of a new life?
¶ History
In the 30th century, the dying religion of Catholicism saw a sudden revival following a period of religious suppression from a world government that saw state religion as a threat, in addition to the miraculous rediscovery of Byzantine literature, manuscripts, and other texts that eluded to matters such as the existence of the Holy Grail. The New Catholic Church was formed with a reformed set of Catholic values; over the next centuries, millions of humans and synthetic beings accepted Christ into their hearts and converted. Shortly after the New Catholic Revival, Pope Anna Istille the Brilliant was ordained. Under the guidance of Pope Istille the Brilliant, the New Catholic Church spread out into the stars and onto the world of New Roma, where the Church survived Earthfall.
Today, the New Catholic Church is undergoing a schism, splitting it into two inner factions struggling for control.