Many have claimed that our land of Cheliax is Iomedae's land, our country Her country, our ways, for the future at least, Her ways.

This is a serious error.

Yes, it is true, Iomedae's hand was guiding those who reconquered Cheliax. The archmages, the Queen, the Grand Inquisitor, were all guided by the gods, Iomedae and Abadar chief among them, and the Glorious Reclamation of High Marshal Cansellarion flowed into our homeland to secure us from both monsters and lingering diabolists.

For this, we should be most grateful.

But that does not mean Iomedae is the patron goddess of Cheliax today. Nor that she should be. Iomedae's nation is Lastwall, a land of paladins and constant vigilance against two fronts at all times and three while the Worldwound remained. Are we Lastwall? We are not. Should we become Lastwall? Again, we should not.

Cheliax, at present, is a field, which had grown overgrown with brambles and thorns, and has been new-cleared with an axe and furrowed with a plow.

But, when you have tilled your field, do you plant axes and plows?

You do not. You are thankful to the plow, you keep it in good condition and store it for another year. You are thankful to the axe, and keep it in good condition in case the brambles return, but you set it aside.

For it is time to sow, and as in a fallow field you sow hearty grain, in a country which has been flooded with darkness, we must sow light.

Be thankful to Iomedae! Praise Her, the general of Heaven, who saves souls and nations from Hell! Remember Her teachings, that if evil returns we may call out for Her aid when She sees that we need it, and be recognized.

But do not ask her to govern us. Set Her aside, like the axe and the plow.

Ask instead for the celestial goddess who lights the way to redemption. The goddess who loves us all, even those who are vile, so long as we are willing to turn to the light again. The goddess who bears a sword of fire, but never strikes one who has not yet been given the chance to repent. Who gave even dark Asmodeus a chance to prove himself a friend to life, before she smote him for his continued perfidy and evil.

Look to the Dawnflower, the Healing Flame, the Cleansing Light. Sarenrae, the sun, the goddess of healing and redemption.

Sarenrae is most ancient among goddesses, born with the fourth step Pharasma took off the Spire which created everything that is. She is a warrior to match Iomedae, though rarely a general; she smote Rovagug into his ancient prison personally for his crimes, and bound him in the Vault with the other ancient gods.

She has made mistakes, as have we all. Wroth with visions of danger unheeded by the people of the city of Gormuz, She smote the city in punishment, and realized her error, as this opened a thin hole into the Dead Vault, and Ulunat, the Great Beetle of Rovagug, soon emerged to terrorize Golarion until servants of Sarenrae were empowered to strike it down.

And because she has made mistakes Herself, She understands that we can be healed, in body and soul, from our own. Few in this land can say they never worshiped and gave aid to Hell; not even myself, your author. But redemption is for all of us, and Nirvana is for everyone. Sarenrae sees the light in every living heart, and if you choose to love Her, love each other, and love that light, She is your goddess for the asking. And anyone can make that choice.

And if those among us who remain Evil make no attempt at redemption, then in each of us that light can also become a fire. We are commanded never to deny a repentant creature an opportunity for redemption, even if that means sparing the life of one who has done much harm. But we are also commanded never to fail to strike down Evil, if it is not seeking redemption or refuses it when offered.

Most paladins are sworn to Iomedae, but not all, and the oath that Paladins of the Dawn Blade take says three things I have striven to live by since I first met one and converted:

    "I will protect my allies with my life. They are my light and my strength, as I am their light and their strength. We rise together."

I take this to mean not just those I fight beside, but those I live beside. We are all comrades in this life, and this struggle to claw ourselves free of Hell and into the light of Heaven, Nirvana, or even Elysium. No one dies in Westcrown who does not deserve to be mourned, or did not deserve to be protected. We rise together, or not at all.

    "I will redeem the ignorant with my words and my actions. If they will not turn toward the light, I will resort to the sword."

It is significant, I think, that Sarenrae's oaths speak of the ignorant. It is a point of faith that no one, truly comprehending the mercy of salvation, would refuse it. That all Evildoers are such because they do not truly understand what is offered to them Above. It is difficult to explain to many, and they may be too dangerous to allow to leave, to proceed to hurt others, if they remain ignorant. But it is ignorance, not a soul born of Evil, that interferes.

    "I will show the less fortunate the light of the Dawnflower. I will live my life as her mortal blade, shining with the light of truth."

From this, I have inferred: Be honest. Forthright. Truth is a light sorely needed, especially in the former fief of the Prince of Lies. And as well, remember that there are many less fortunate that you. Aid them. Heal them. Show them what it is, to believe in redemption in this life and the next. And then, if need be, defend them.

I am not a chosen priest, but I have spoken with many, on my adventures along the forests and shores of Andoran and in ruling since then and bringing those who I could with me to Cheliax. This is my understanding of the faith of Sarenrae, and it was enough to redeem me from the wicked deeds I had done as a noble of Infernal Cheliax.

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Let me proceed from theology to practicalities. What is it that the Church of Sarenrae does, where it is common?

In the lands of the East, from Qadira to the Keleshite Empire, Sarenrae is worshiped heavily, but their culture is strange and foreign and their church disconnected from the church in Avistan. I know that they favor higher marriage ages, particularly for women, and that they are nearly as common a sight as Asmodean priests here before the war.

Everywhere I know of, they operate houses of healing, and many collaborate with the Great Arch-Healer Naima for delivering her personal miracles to the populace.

In Taldor, Absalom, and Andoran,they operate many orphanages, especially for those many fatherless and motherless children which the dissolute ways of Andoran and Cheliax produce, and I am already working to bring them here to support our own orphanages.

In Andoran, they assist in liberating slaves, and particularly at helping to integrate freed slaves and those captured by Andoren pirates into life as free citizens of the country.

Those are not limited to those who worship Sarenrae. If you are sick, and there is a Sarenrite house of healing, go to it, even if you do not pray to Her. They will do what they can, and unless it is rare magic that is needed, they will charge you only what you can bear, even if that is nothing. If you have a child you cannot raise, give it to the orphanage of Sarenrae, and they will ask few questions and accept unanswered ones with good grace. The slaves need not have heard Sarenrae's name. All are worth healing; we rise together.

But while they do any of those things, they will speak of Sarenrae to any who wish to hear. Of healing, and redemption, and of when those must be set aside.

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In conclusion: We need a goddess who can defend us against the monsters and the unrepentant, but one who accepts us and guides us toward Good, the Good which exists in every beating heart. We need the services Her church offers.

Offer prayers to as many gods as you see fit. I myself send a thought to Erastil, Abadar, and Iomedae every week, at least.

But when we must choose a patron goddess, the greatest god for Cheliax, choose the goddess who knows how to redeem us.

Praise Sarenrae!

 

May we all rise together,

Sergi Noguera i Mata de Roda-Mar, Duke de Lestdemarc

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