The Students of God’s Empire is a religious organization based on the life and teachings of Reverend Doctor Octavia Lemed Mariam. The church began shortly after Rev. Dr. Octavia’s death in 2950 and spread from the Eriopei system to the entire Acheron Rho sector. In 2969 the Students joined the Church of Humanity, Repentant as an official sect. Followers of the Students believe that all people regardless of social class have equal responsibility to improve themselves and help others. They believe that humans, aliens, and synthetics all possess souls, and that a person’s relationship with the divine is a personal undertaking accomplished through study, reflection, and emulation of Rev. Dr. Octavia.
History[]
The Students of God’s Empire began as a close knit community of friends and followers of Rev. Dr. Octavia who wished to preserve and emulate her legacy of social justice work, spiritual contemplation, and nonviolent protest. Unconfirmed rumors suggest that Rev. Dr. Octavia’s assassin, a member of Conséc, became the first formal Student of her teachings after Octavia used her dying words to forgive them and commend their soul to God.
Soon after her death her followers came together at the Lemed Good Faith and Care Center where Rev. Dr. Octavia practiced medicine and held religious meetings. Over the course of a few years they established a doctrine of shared beliefs, practices, and rites that would come to define the Students of God’s Empire. This gathering was later deemed the first gathering of the Lemed Conclave, and the Lemed Good Faith and Care Center became their first official church, which still serves as the central meeting place of the faith and an important site of pilgrimage and administrative power in the organization.
After the events of the Second Imperial Civil War the Students spread rapidly throughout Acheron Rho due to their charitable work and humanitarian efforts. In 2969, the Students of God’s Empire joined several other religious movements to form the Church of Humanity, Repentant, citing long standing and common issues with the High Church of Messiah-as-Emperox’s declarations and doctrine. Over the next several years the Student’s steadily grew in membership and began establishing churches across the sector.
Organization[]
While the Students have several offices and branches dealing with administration and outreach programs in addition to places of worship, the church itself has very few titles or positions. Instead the Students are stratified based on their level of involvement within the Church and are free to pursue work and study within the Student’s various offices as they see befitting of their time and spiritual pursuits.
The Students of God’s Empire therefore have three hierarchical levels corresponding to the responsibilities they are willing to accept.
Students[]
Members of the Church who have formally joined and sweared to uphold the Student’s teachings and doctrines, and to earnestly live by the example of the Reverend Doctor Octavia Lemed Mariam and her writings. With this role comes the expectation that you will devote part of your life to the church and your own spiritual pursuits. Serfs who become students typically dedicate a portion of their free time to their faith, or try to study and practice during their daily work. Nobles and freemen who become students often do so full-time, using their wealth to sustain them until they feel comfortable taking on more responsibilities and receiving an income from the church.
Typically Students are expected to preach, write sermons, and lead services and rites at their local church. They also assist with running the Student’s charities, perform missionary and relief work, help with administrative work, and participate in group study of the Sacred Texts and the works of Rev. Dr. Octavia.
Teachers[]
These members work full-time running churches and organizing the sect at the local and planetary levels, and are paid through donations made to the church. Teachers make up most of the bureaucracy of the church and are expected to take the lead on missionary work and establishing new churches and facilities. They also are expected to step in to give occasional sermons, teach new Students, and fill in for administrative work where needed.
Directors[]
Then highest level within the Students of God’s Empire, for those who have accepted the responsibility of leading the church and allocating its resources. Directors lead system wide initiatives, organize budgets and directives for churches across the sector, and liaise with the Council of Exarchs and other sects of the Church of Humanity, Repentant. Directors also often serve as diplomats and envoys during formal negotiations with the myriad other factions in Acheron Rho.
The Lemed Conclave[]
The Lemed Conclave is a group of Teachers and Directors within the Students of God’s Empire who oversee and vote on large-scale initiatives and issues of religious dogma within the church. The Conclave meets once a year (Echo Standard Time) at the Lemed Good Faith and Care Center on Echo, though they may hold emergency meetings if they deem an issue is urgent enough for a Conclave vote.
The Lemed Conclave began as an informal meeting of like-minded people after the death of the Rev. Dr. Octavia in order to maintain the legacy of her work. This first Conclave determined the 3 core beliefs and practices of the Students of God’s Empire, as well as the canonical works of Rev. Dr. Octavia. Today the Conclave votes on formal relationships with other factions, the involvement of the Students within the CHR, and other large-scale political relationships and issues.
Membership within the Lemed Conclave is voluntary, though only Teachers and Directors may join. Though there is no limit on who may attend a Conclave, meetings are always capped at an odd number of attendees in order to avoid an evenly split vote.
Beliefs[]
The Students of God’s Empire share in certain common beliefs first outlined by the Reverend Doctor Octavia Lemed Marriam in her various books and sermons, which were then later collected and clarified into three core doctrines by the first Students a few years after her death.
All Souls are Citizens of God’s Empire[]
Students believe that all souls are equal before God’s eyes. This means that all human beings, regardless of class, wealth, position, or status are considered equals under God, and thus deserving of equal freedoms and protections. They believe that the soul is an innate property of complex sentient life and that, in contrast with High Church doctrine, criminals, aliens, and synthetics possess souls.
God is not Evident, God is Discovered[]
While the Students believe in theism, that God created the universe and cares about their creations in it, they also believe that the divine does not prescribe doctrine. Students are taught that there is no one way to know God, so God instead waits for those who seek a relationship with them, and this can be done through the study of history and the Sacred Texts, reflection through prayer and meditation, and dialogue with others. Students believe God wishes for people to find the divine in their own way and that God may inspire people who work towards that goal.
This means that while there are certain core beliefs and practices shared by the majority of members of the Students of God’s Empire, personal interpretations are common and encouraged. Often members of the church will have beliefs and practices that mirror other sects of the Church of Humanity, Repentant, or even the High Church of Messiah-as-Emperox.
Know Thyself to Better God’s Kingdom[]
Through study and religious observation, people come to know themselves and their wants better. The Students believe that as you come to better know yourself, you will come to better understand how to treat others, and begin to practice the first core belief: that all souls are citizens of God’s empire. The Students thus believe in the golden rule: treat others as you would wish to be treated, and believe that this naturally gives rise to practicing charity and nonviolence.
Practices[]
Each member of the Students of God’s Empire are expected to fulfill three core practices of the faith when they join the church: to give, to study, and to emulate the Reverend Doctor Octavia Lemed Mariam.
Give[]
To give is to be charitable with whatever you can spare. This can mean sharing food with the hungry, the giving of clothes or money, or giving your time or work to assist others in need. Often Students follow this practice by participating in charities or humanitarian aid set up by the Students of God’s Empire, both within their local systems and across the sector.
Study []
To study is to engage with the Sacred Texts and other works either privately or with others. In order to facilitate this, the Students of God’s Empire attempt to keep an up to date library of Sacred Texts that have been translated into the common vernacular, and they encourage members to learn Latin in order to help translate these works.
Particular attention is paid to the surviving written work of Rev. Dr. Octavia, and new Students are expected to read her entire body of work before they take on the responsibility of a Teacher. Students are expected to think critically of what they read, and are encouraged to discuss and dispute their readings with other members in order to fully understand their meaning and grow closer to the divine.
Emulate[]
To emulate is to personify the deeds of Rev. Dr. Octavia in your day-to-day life. This can include quoting her sermons and speeches, actively seeking justice and the greater good, and addressing and protesting injustice when it is observed. This is understood to include a mandate to do no harm and to mirror Rev. Dr. Octavia’s nonviolent methods of protest.
Media[]
The Good Faith Sermons[]
A series of sermons accompanied by music, written and performed by Student Morton Frederick, and recorded at the Lemed Good Faith and Care Center on Echo. The sermons describe Morton’s thoughts and experiences since joining the Students, including his efforts to understand the divine and reconcile that with his life.
Notable Locations[]
Churches and facilities run by the Students of God’s Empire can be found across the sector, especially in systems outside the core worlds that have need for humanitarian aid.
The Good Faith and Care Center[]
Located in the town of Lemed in the continent of Sapphire on the planet Echo, the Good Faith and Care Center is a large campus made of several buildings and public squares. The campus contains administrative facilities, a general practitioner’s medical office, and a large church dedicated to services performed by local and visiting Students. The campus was built around the original Lemed Care Center where Dr. Octavia practiced medicine and where the religion was founded after her death.
The campus also contains the grave of Rev. Dr. Octavia, a popular pilgrimage site for Students from outside the system, as well as a Church of Humanity, Repentant Welcome and Outreach Center.
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