TEXT: StarCluster - Religions of the Starcluster
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  StarCluster - Religions of the Starcluster
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  Guide to Religions of 
  the StarCluster
  by Albert Bailey & clash bowley
    Illustrations and Cover by clash bowley 
               
   
         Copyright 2003, 2005 Flying Mice LLC 
  Special Thanks to James Maliszewski
  for his comments and encouragement
  
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  Overview 
  Religion develops along with the society around it. As society changes, religion must change as well if
  it is to remain relevant to the people it serves. The first of the great forces affecting religion in the
  third millennium A.C.E. was the speed and ease of travel over the planet Earth, and the resultant min-
  gling of people of different cultural background. One of the results of this was the important reli-
  gious syncretisms of the early 22nd century, such as Tai-Ping Mormonism and Amida Christianity.
  Another great challenge to religion was the movement of humanity off of Earth into the rest of the
  solar system. This was a particular challenge to the most traditional of religions. They had struggled
  (frequently with poor success) even with the transition of peoples from agrarian to urban life. The
  strength of these religions lay in their sacrementalization of everyday life, in which the ordinary daily
  activities were also religious duties. As man moved into space, his life changed so drastically that
  many of the old religious commandments had no meaning. For example, what is the meaning of cele-
  brating the Sabbath, beginning as sundown, when living in space where the sun neither rises nor sets.
  The first of the old traditional religions to successfully answer this new challenge was Judaism, with
  the Metadoxy movement. This movement attempted (with significant success) to recreate the daily
  sacramental life within the contest of an advanced society, with the formation of the hypertalmudic
  regulations. Following the Jewish example, there grew up Sunni, Anabaptist, Zoroastrian, and other
  Metadoxical religions. These religions prospered among those living in space beyond earth, where
  checking the airlock seals and the cabin gas pressures is a religious sacrament, not just an onerous
  duty. This was the first religious movement for which the existence of computers was not merely a
  convenience, but an essential tool. It would not be the last.
  Several technological achievements had produced religious upheavals in the past. The creation of
  reading and writing gave birth to scriptural religions, where all previous religions were based on oral
  stories. The Protestant reformation was made possible by the invention of the printing press, allowing
  ordinary individuals able to afford to own their own copies of the Bible. The computer and artificial
  intelligence proved to be equally transformative. Islam, more than any other religion, was radically
  transformed by computers.
  The destruction of the Earth proved another great challenge to religion. Not all the Earth’s religions
  survived. Hinduism, for example, perished with the Earth, though a number of its descendents, such
  as Polytheocrasic Monism, continued and later flourished. It also gave birth to other religious groups,
  such as the Christian neo-Adamite movement.
  The final, and perhaps greatest, challenge to the Earth’s religions was the unignorable existence of
  intelligent, rational, non-humans: uplifted animals, intelligent robots, alien civilizations, and the even
  more confusing status of the Sastra, Vantor, and Tagris races. Adjustment to this reality is still an
  ongoing and unresolved struggle among the religions of the StarCluster, and among the main cleav-
  ages between the SaVaHuTa and Disasporan colonies.
  
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  Grand Catholicism
  With the 22nd century reforms by Pope Hadrian VI and the Lateran VI conference, the majority of
  Orthodox, Anglican, Episcopal, Methodist, and Lutheran churches were rejoined with Roman
  Catholicism, with new rite forms created for each new merger. The pope rejected the doctrine of
  papal infallibility first accepted in the 19th century, as well as the title of "supreme head of the
  church" assumed by Innocent III, to accept the earlier status of "first among equals" of the church
  bishops, ceding supreme authority to the ecclesiastical councils. With each rejoining there was, how-
  ever, a splinter group that rejected the move and formed a new conservative denomination that
  retained its independence. There was also a conservative movement within the Catholic church that
  continued to believe in the papal supremacy and rejected the reforms as inauthentic, and regarded
  Hadrian VI as an antipope. At first, it was an “agreement in principle”, but as doctrinal differences
  were hammered out in council over the next few decades, this became gradually an agreement in fact. 
  When the impending destruction of the Earth became apparent, the Grand Catholic church made an
  effort to maintain the faith after the Earth’s destruction. With each starship that contained a substan-
  tial Catholic population, at least three bishops were sent with the full authority to ordain new bishops
  as needed. In the final year of Earth’s existence, coded messages were claimed to be received on each
  of the starships from the final ecclesiastical council, addressed to the archbishop of that ship carrying
  the declaration, "to you now passes the chair of Peter and the leadership of the Church". Most of
  those receiving this message understood this to mean that they were effectively to be Pope for the
  planet to which their ship was headed (the status later known as sub-pope). However, in a few cases,
  those receiving the message took it to mean that they were the sole head of the church for the entire
  universe and that all the messages claimed to have been received by the other ships were forgeries.
  As it did for other religions, the practice by many of the starships of adopting a historical place and
  time to emulate greatly affected the Grand Catholic church on those ships. In ships drawing from cul-
  tures that were Anglican, Lutheran, etc., the Grand Catholic church tended to transmute back to the
  religion of that culture, merging with the remnant splinter church. Thus, ironically, much of the Chris-
  tian unification of the earlier centuries was undone during the diaspora. With the arrival of TL10
  jump ships, there was an attempt to reunify the Grand Catholic church throughout the cluster. This
  was modestly successful, with general acceptance of the legitimacy of the other worlds’ churches and
  the validity of their sacraments by most (but decidedly not all) of the local churches and the establish-
  ment of cluster-wide ecclesiastical councils. There was an attempt to confer the title of Pope (as dis-
  tinguished from sub-pope) on a single individual in the cluster. This movement was defeated by the
  argument which noted that there were likely surviving humans in colonies beyond the cluster, and
  that they were not represented at the council.
  The Grand Catholic character is expected to be charitable, chaste (not sexless,) forgiving, and truth-
  ful. No one is perfect, thus after commission of a sin, the character is expected to seek out absolution
  and to perform any penance required. The character is expected to attend to the sacraments to the
  best of the character’s ability. The Church is expected to give aid to the needy, to comfort the
  afflicted, and to give sanctuary to those who require it. The Church, therefore, disburses charity to
  the poor, attends the sick and wounded, and gives shelter to the people in times of emergency, as well
  as working to change unjust laws and regulations. 
  
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  Ahl al-Fiqh 
  (Cyberlegal Islam)
  Sunni Islam always held that all that is required for a just society is for the people to obey the law of
  God. The duty of any leader is to rule in accordance with that law, rather than by his own inclinations.
  The principal problem of society was the failure of rulers to properly implement God’s law.
  With the advent of practical artificial intelligence, there was an effort to do away with the need for fal-
  lible human rulers to interpret and implement the divine Law. As all good Muslims know, non-human
  intelligences can submit to the will of Allah, as did the Djinn in the Koran. The Shar’ia was to be
  encoded into holy computers which would rule society. The first attempts to do this were unsuccess-
  ful: Shar’ia alone, however well encoded, proved insufficient to produce a workable governance pro-
  gram. However, the effort continued, and with suitable additions and modifications from the Roman,
  Jewish, French, English, Lunarian, and Martian law codes, and together with a considerable number
  of new ad-hoc algorithms, a workable governance program was created.
  The backers of this project declared this new artificial intelligence program to be their caliph and set
  up a society with it as the head. Disaffection with the human misrule of the 23rd century led to over-
  throw of many of the Islamic rulers and their replacement by the rule of the cyberIlm program. In
  areas in which the Cyberlegalists held power, the cyberIlm program became the ruler of the state. In
  areas where they did not, it was used for religious rulings by the faithful even though secular law
  might hold in the general public sphere. In time, Ahl al-Fiqh became the dominant form of Islam.
  The program was a dynamic entity, capable of evolving with the needs of society and yet maintaining
  self-consistency by coordination of all the computers running the program.   With the diaspora, this
  universal coordination ceased to be possible. Each starship carrying Muslims to their new world was
  given a copy of the cyberIlm program, but lightspeed limitations no longer permitted coordination of
  the evolution of the programs. In time they came to vary profoundly. With the TL10 discovery of
  jump technology, there was an attempt to reconcile the different versions of the cyberIlm. However
  most worlds had become attached to their own versions and preferred them to the cluster-wide ver-
  sion of the program.
  The Islamic theologians always insisted that the cyberIlm program was simply a human creation, wor-
  thy of respect only insofar as it properly interpreted the will of God as laid down in the Shar’ia. How-
  ever, over time, some of the pious began to reverence the program and the machine on which it ran,
  to the point of seeing it as divine. This became particularly true after the development of TL9 self-
  aware robots. On certain worlds, the cyberIlm program was used as the initial programming for a self-
  programming robot which acted as caliph. Ahl al-Fiqh has proven to be the most popular of the
  human religions among sentient robots, for obvious reasons.
  The Ahl al-Fiqh player is expected to carry his own copy of the cyberIlm program, and to consult it
  for both resolution to questions of the law and for personal edification and enlightenment. Like all
  Muslim people, the character must pray towards the former location of Earth at the appropriate
  times, and to perform a pilgrimage to a holy site, the longer the pilgrimage, the better.
  
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  Taiping Mormonism (Family of Christ)
  The religion of the Latter-Day Saints teaches that Jesus appeared in the New World, as well as in the
  old, and stresses the role of continuing revelation in the Church. During the 19th century in China,
  Hong Xiuquan created a new form of Christianity, Taiping, and claimed himself to be the heavenly
  younger brother of Jesus Christ, a claim leading to the Taiping rebellion, the bloodiest war prior to
  WWII. 
  In the 22nd century, this claim was resurrected by Chaing Jidoung, who believed that Jesus Christ,
  and his heavenly brothers and sisters had appeared on Earth in various times and places and would
  continue to do so. He found common agreement with many parts of Mormon teaching, particularly
  those regarding continuing revelation. He founded a new form of Christianity, with roots in both of
  these 19th century religions. As with the original Taiping religion, it also incorporated much of earlier
  Confucian and Mencian teachings.
  Taiping Mormonism became a leading religion is eastern and central Asia. Like Taiping and early
  Mormonism, it encouraged polygamy. There not being enough women for all men to take multiple
  wives, the practice of dueling for fortunes became popular among the Taiping Mormon men, the
  wealth and wives of the loser being taken as a prize by the winner. This practice was denounced by
  many of the religious authorities, but the problem of the conflict between the desire of men to 
  have many wives and the desire to give birth to boy-children remained a paradoxical goal. 
   
  This was finally resolved by the practice of boy-tithing, 10% of a family’s income being given to the 
  church for each living boy-child, and also by the continuous increase in bride prices. These practices 
  sufficiently discouraged the poor (and even the middle class) from having boys and encouraged 
  them to have girls (the ability to choose a child’s gender by this time being a simple and inexpensive 
  matter.) However, the practice of dueling for fortunes never entirely died out, even where legally 
  discouraged.
  The Taiping Mormon character is expected to become a missionary for a number of years before set-
  tling down and begetting a family. The character is expected to listen always for the Voice of God
  within and to look for the signs of prophecy in others, and to continue to proselytize at every oppor-
  tunity. 
  
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  Transhuman Theonarcissism 
  It is difficult to say when the attitudes of Transhuman Theonarcissism first began. Some put the date
  as early as the mid 20th century, when a small number of persons began to freeze their bodies (or at
  least their heads) shortly after legal death. They hoped to do this in order to later be revived into a
  world in which death had been eliminated. 
  When the TL9 technology for freezing and reviving bodies became practical, the number of the aged
  who chose to have their bodies frozen, awaiting medical breakthroughs that would allow them to be
  rejuvenated, increased dramatically. 
  As an active religion, however, Transhuman Theonarcissism can be said to begin in the 38th century,
  with the writings of John Mugabe-Lee. Mugabe-Lee taught that one could hope to live forever, with
  one’s powers becoming ever greater, until  one  was eventually effectively a god. He believed that
  one’s godlike future self is able to reach back through time to aid one’s current self. In his teachings,
  one’s divine future self is the proper object for one’s worship, prayers, and petitions.
  The religion remained a small cult until the 40th century, when the TL10 technologies for stasis and
  mind transfer made the goal of eternal life more plausible. Since that time it has grown rapidly and is
  now counts as a significant religion.
  Theonarcissism has been discouraged (and even persecuted) in many parts of the Cluster on practical
  as well as theological grounds. Theonarcissists, more that any other group, have been prone to the
  crimes of body-theft and illegal mind transfer. The basic transhuman theology implies that the imper-
  ative of continuing to live and increase one’s own capabilities overrides all other moral concerns: gods
  are above the law. 
  Theonarcissists typically tend to do all that is possible to increase their personal abilities, and so are
  generally highly genetically optimized, cybernetically enhanced, and lifespan boosted. This is true to
  the extent that on many worlds an extensively augmented individual is likely to be assumed to be a
  Theonarcissist, even is they are not. This is particularly true of anyone seen wearing a stasis helmet,
  i.e., a shockproof helmet designed to automatically place the wearer’s head in a stasis field in the event
  of an accident.
  Theonarcissists are expected to aim for their ultimate goal, their godlike future selves, at all times and
  by all practical means. The character is also expected to devote a great deal of credit to the further
  personal evolution of the character’s body, as well as the extension of the character’s soul in a living
  body by whatever means are available.
  
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  Amida Christianity
  Amida Christianity is a syncretic religion that began in Japan in the early 22nd century, when the
  female ecstatic mystic Mio Sugiwara announce a vision that she had received from Jesus, proclaiming
  that he was, in fact, the Amida Buddha. The religion spread rapidly and became a popular religion
  throughout regions of Earth that had previously been predominantly Christian or Buddhist.
  Amida Christianity is an almost entirely devotional religion, dedicated to the praise and trust of Jesus
  Christ, the Amida Buddha. Amida Christianity is theologically vague, and deflects all the apparent
  contradictions between Christian and Buddhist theology by dismissing them as divine mysteries. 
  Amida Christian characters are expected to live life in such a way as to show the Buddha within them.
  They are also expected to chant the name of Jesus Christ when in stressful situations, and to take ref-
  uge in the compassionate one by chanting his name as they die.
  Metadox Judaism
  In the 42nd century, Judaism is still alive and well, existing on most human planets, but almost always
  as a religion of a small, but influential, minority. The predominate form of Judaism is Metadox Juda-
  ism, a form of the religion that is as structured and rigorous as Hassidism, but even more adaptable
  that Reform Judaism.   Metadox Judaism was developed primarily by the 22nd and 23rd century Jews
  living off Earth throughout the solar system. On Earth, the Jewish community had largely divided
  into to groups: the Orthodox wing becoming more strictly traditional and increasing able to function
  only within limited, specialized areas and occupations, and a Liberal wing, struggling to maintain a
  meaningful religion in the face of less and less within their lives that was distinctively Jewish.
  The Orthodox traditions were impossible for those Jews living in space, but the advantages of a
  structured religious life were even greater than for those on Earth. They answered this challenge with
  the Metadoxy movement, the reinterpretation of the old Jewish law by abstracting the principles
  behind the older proscriptions, and the application of those principles, to create new rules for the new
  life they were living. For example, the rule,  "You are not to muzzle an ox while it is threshing," was
  interpreted to imply, "Do not use a ventilation fan that has not been properly lubricated." The source
  of these new rulings was the hyperTalmud, commentaries on commentaries on commentaries... on
  the scriptures, continuously being added to and codified as computer hypertext documents.
  Over the years, most of the Liberal and many of the Orthodox Jews moved over to versions of Meta-
  dox Judaism. The remaining Orthodox Jews died out with the destruction of the Earth; and though
  there have been several attempts to recreate traditional Orthodox Judaism on a few worlds of the
  StarCluster, Metatdox Judaism remains far and away the most prevalent form of the religion in the
  Cluster. 
  Metadox Jews are expected to follow the numerous laws of their religions with joy and precision, to
  adapt their practices to their surroundings, and to keep as pure as those circumstances allow. 
  
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  Polytheocrassic Monism
  Polytheocrassic Monism came into being in central Africa in the late 22nd century, and grew to
  become an important religion throughout the Earth. Theologically, it derived largely from Hindu
  Vedanta, but moved away in emphasis from the traditional Hindu deities. While recognizing the
  abstract principle of the unity of the Godhead, the religion believes that the divine manifests in many
  different forms under many different names and that these forms, these gods, are the proper object
  of worship for man, not their divine source. The Godhead is too emotionally abstract and impersonal
  for man’s devotion; the proper object of worship and devotions are gods and saints. 
  Theocrassic Monism first became popular among Africans who grew tired of the devotional limita-
  tions of Islam and Christianity.   Theocrassic Monism fully accepted the worship of various tribal dei-
  ties and saints as well as Jesus, Mary, Michael, Gabriel, Mohammed, Jehovah, and Allah (these last two
  being seen as two closely related, but distinct divine hypostases.) The religion proved quite portable,
  and became popular in many other parts of the world, happy to accept various other gods, saints,
  angels, and bodhisattvas into its pantheon.
  Hinduism proved too tied to the Earth to flourish after the Diaspora, the majority of it’s remaining
  practitioners adopting this new offspring religion. Theocrassic Monism also has adapted more easily
  to the existence of alien races and religions, happily embracing their visions of the divine as well.
  Polytheocrassic Monists (Polymon) characters normally possess a number of simulacra (icons, statues,
  holograms, etc.) of various saints or deities to whom they are personally attached. They will com-
  monly perform small acts of devotion in front of these images, e.g., lighting candles or incense, bows,
  genuflections, or kisses, and leave objects to be blessed. In times of difficulty and stress, they will typ-
  ically invoke the name of one or more of these saints or deities, petitioning them for their assistance.
  Polymon characters would normally have one or more marks on their faces or other parts of their
  bodies indicating their devotion to one or more saints or deities. These marks might be make-up, or
  might be in the form of tattoos, skin grafts, or other permanent bodily alterations.
  Providencialism
  Providencialism is a syncretic religion growing out of many of the liberal theologies of Christianity,
  Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Baha’i.
  It is notable for its explicit rejection of the existence of a God who is a person, while strongly affirm-
  ing the reality of the Divine. It is generally a quietist faith, gently accepting the direction of the Divine
  while eschewing formal prayer and ceremony.
  The Providentialist character is expected to accept the guiding hand of Providence in the happenings
  of the world, and to trust in the benign nature of that hand.
  
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  Neo-Adamite Christianity
  The destruction of the planet Earth was a hard blow to many religious individuals. Why had God
  allowed/caused this to happen? What could possibly justify the destruction of 99.99% of the human
  race? How was such a reality compatible with the existence of a benevolent deity? The most com-
  monly given explanation was drawn from the story of Noah: man had left the ways of God, and God
  had decided to end the old world and begin another, saving only a few good people to populate a
  new, more virtuous world.
  Many Christians felt that mankind’s failure was due to its refusal to fully accept the grace that Jesus
  had made available to the world. So God now felt that the old Earth must be wiped away to form a
  clean slate where His word could be heard more clearly. Men had before been baptized by water; now
  they had been baptized by fire.
  What emerged became known as neo-Adamite Christianity. There had before been a strain of Chris-
  tianity known as Adamite Christianity, which held that through Jesus mankind had been restored to a
  state of grace that Adam and Eve had experienced before the Fall. They eschewed formal marriage
  and practiced ritual nudity, customs which outraged most mainstream Christians.
  Neo-Adamite Christians adopted these customs and more, choosing to live simple lives, rejecting for-
  mal law for natural righteousness, turning their back on technology and living as "lilies of the field".
  Their theology was worked out during the years in space in transit to the StarCluster, but it remained
  generally only an ideal under the tight order that shipboard life required. However, after worlds began
  to be successfully terraformed, many adopted the simple life in practice.
  The Neo-Adamite character is expected to work for a world where humanity can once again live in
  harmony with God in a natural state. The tools for this are the tools of biological engineering. The
  character is expected to embrace advances in biological manipulation as means to the end of restora-
  tion of Paradise, and to work at all times to that end. Stareve in the Gloria system is one such Paradise
  Regained.
  the Penitents
  After the bulk of the Diaspora had reached the Cluster and settled many worlds, disquiet arose among
  many Christian people, perhaps driven by survivor guilt, over the fate of their ancestors on Earth. A
  movement called Penitentism arose on Katmandu and swept through much of sectors Second and
  Fourth just before the founding of SaVaHuTa and the Diasporan Union. The Penitents, as the move-
  ment’s followers were called, were never more than a tiny minority on any one world, but they
  achieved importance all out of proportion to their numbers.
  The Penitents believe that the destruction of the Earth was actually the prophesied Armageddon, and
  that their ancestors missed out on the rapture by fleeing Earth before it was time. These cowardly
  ancestors cheated the Penitents out of the Paradise that Earth was transformed into with the release
  of God’s titanic energies. Thus was scripture fulfilled as the meek inherited the Earth.
  
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  The Penitents want to return to Earth and ask God’s forgiveness of their ancestor’s cowardice, hop-
  ing to be admitted with the ‘meek’ left behind into the Kingdom of God. Over the last century and a
  half three colony ships have been stolen and headed for the blank area where Sol once was, the Peni-
  tents counting on the presence of their children on the colony ships to prevent violent reprisal. There
  are millions more Penitents in the Cluster awaiting their chance, and Colonizers must use extreme
  measures to prevent the theft of their colony ships by the desperate Penitents.
  The Penitent character is expected to work for a return to Earth, where those who fled the justice of
  God may be judged and the righteous rewarded. 
  Mystical Union
  Throughout the centuries, the mystics in each of the different religious traditions found more in com-
  mon with the mystics in other traditions than they did with the mainstream of their own religions,
  freely, though generally discretely, sharing their insights with one another. Beginning in the late 21st
  century, these shared similarities became more overt with the existence of a number of pan-religions
  mystical publications and the founding of seminaries and meditations centers backed by combina-
  tions of Benedictines, Sufi, Zen Buddhists, Jewish Cabbalists, and other mystical groups. Over time,
  these pan-religious mystical organizations became known as the Mystical Union, though there never
  was a formal coordinating organization.
  The Mystical Union was treated by the mainstream of the religious organizations with attitudes vary-
  ing from ambivalence to fervent hostility. It proved difficult to destroy however, partly because there
  was no central structure to attack, and partly because the Mystical Union included the majority of the
  creative intelligence of each of the religions. Any group that successfully managed to eliminate those
  associated with the Mystical Union from their religion eventually decayed and died off.
   
  In the StarCluster, the Mystical Union continues as an important, though largely invisible religious
  force. There are associated centers of prayer and learning on almost all of the human worlds of the
  StarCluster, and a number of the alien worlds. There are monks and gurus who travel between these
  centers, acting as an important, if exceedingly quiet, religious glue throughout the Cluster. The Mysti-
  cal Unionist character is expected to meditate and pray, and to experience mystic visions.
  Ecumenic Fundamentalism
  Ecumenic Fundamentalism was founded on Earth just after the announcement of the Earth’s
  impending destruction. The founder, the prophet Alem Brehanu, recorded his divine revelations and
  broadcast them over the WorldNet from his center at Axum, Ethiopia. The religion is a syncretic
  amalgam of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and Alem Brehanu affirmed the validity of each of these
  religions while offering his vision as a completion, a third covenant, of the older religions. 
  The group as a whole welcomed the destruction of the earth as fulfillment of the prophecies, but as
  the time of destruction grew nearer, some missionaries volunteered gallantly to leave Earth with the
  fleeing colony ships, in order that the multitudes who missed the Earth’s Destruction and Perfection
  should be prepared with the Prophet’s words when they faced their own inevitable Destruction and
  
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  Perfection. By doing this, they of course forfeited their own positions in the Earthly Paradise, but are
  venerated by the Ecumenic Fundamentalists of the Cluster for their sacrifice. 
  The Ecumenic Fundamentalists enjoy a close relationship with their Prophet. Not only was the
  Prophet extensively documented electronically, he also took a page from the Ahl al-Fiqh and had
  faithful programmers program his speeches into limited AI robots called Simulacra. These Simulacra
  dispense advice, words of wisdom, exhortations, and blessings to the faithful, using only phrases the
  Prophet himself used in his lifetime. These utterances are regarded as less authoritative than the
  Prophet’s actual speeches, but they are still holy, and usually far more relevant to today’s situations.
  The E. F. religion venerates all the books of the preceding religions - the Torah and Talmud, the
  Bible, and the Quran - as well as the Works of the Prophet.   
  The Ecumenic Fundamentalist character is expected to consult with the Prophet every day via his
  speeches or Simulacrum, and to bring forth and live by the wisdom of the ancients in the old books. 
  Old Order Atheism (Old Unbelievers)
  Atheism had been the belief of a portion of humanity since ancient times. The claims of the religions
  had little objective proof, and were easily dismissed as fantasies by those who saw themselves as more
  realistic. However, with the advent of TL10 mind transfer technology, the existence of the atomic 
  (i.e., indivisible, continuing) soul was now a matter of demonstrable scientific fact. At least one 
  of the claims of the religious had been scientifically verified. (There remained, however, no objec-
  tive evidence of the immortality of the soul.)
  The affect on the atheistic community was profound. Many came to accept religion in principle, if no
  particular religion. However, a small but vocal minority continued to insist on the truth of traditional
  atheism, declaring that the so-called scientific proof of the existence of the soul was an error or a
  hoax. These vocal dissenters joined together to form the group that became known as the Old Order
  Atheists or Old Unbelievers. Oddly enough, Old Order Atheism proved to be much more popular
  that earlier atheism had generally been.
  Old Order Atheist characters are expected to deny the existence of a soul and any sort of metaphysi-
  cal explanation for the phenomena associated with Jump travel, MatTran, and Mind Transfer, and to
  vocally proclaim their own unbelief whenever the subject comes up.
  
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  Other Religions
  This Guide shows new and interesting religions that may be important in the adventures of the player
  characters, both for themselves and as motivations for Non-Plater Characters. There are hundreds of
  thousands of religions extant in the Cluster, many of them limited to a specific locale or ethnicity.
  Every religion on Earth at the time of the Diaspora still exists somewhere in the Cluster, and there
  are vastly many more. Some are new religions, while many are syncretic combinations of other reli-
  gions. 
  Buddhism is still a powerful force in the Cluster, but it is essentially unchanged from its Earthly ori-
  gins, and is not exactly a religion in itself. Taoism and Confucianism, Shinto and Sikhism, and Local
  World Goddess/Wicca and Animism are all practiced intensely in various places in the Cluster. Splin-
  ter religions abound, and heresies cover entire worlds. Religion and the religious philosophies are a
  major force, and should be reckoned with when developing worlds as well as characters.
  
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  Humanoid Religions
  Sastra 
  The Sastra are playful and arboreal beings. They have acute senses and advanced aesthetic sensibili-
  ties. They are less concerned than humans about duty and worry less about the future, being intently
  involved in the present. These factors have strongly influenced their religious attitudes.
  There are no formal religions as such among the Sastra, but there are various strains of religious
  behavior. There is one strain that is closer to most human religions than the other main strains.   This
  strain, the “The Clear Way”, emphasizes concern for others, reverence for the divine, and observance
  of traditions. In character of worship and behavior, it is not unlike mainstream human religions.
  While to humans, this is the most moderate and reasonable of the Sastra religions, to many Sastra it
  appears dour and oppressive.
  In contrast, there is “The Zany Way”, with God-intoxicated fools as its revered saints. Mind-twisting
  jokes and crazy behavior that break the habitual patterns of thought and lead one to awareness that
  cannot be reached by deductive reasoning. 
  Another important religious path is “The Way of Beauty”, which emphasizes giving oneself over
  entirely to one's aesthetic sensibilities.   The followers of this path hold that aesthetic judgments are
  more valuable and more true than morally based judgments.   To humans, this strain has many resem-
  blances to Zen Buddhism and Shinto, though much lighter and less formal. This had led a number of
  human Zen practitioners to come to taste this path, and there is increasing colloquy between the
  these human religions and this Sastra religious path.
  All Sastra religions stress the importance of cheerfulness. Being gloomy is seen as a most profound
  form of ingratitude to the divine.
  Followers of the Clear Way are particularly known for their stress on the importance of kindness.
  Character who are followers of this path would make a point of helping all who appear to be in phys-
  ical or emotional distress.
  Followers of the Zany Way disdain all vanity and pomposity. They can be expected to play jokes on
  anyone displaying these characteristics. They will even make fun of themselves if they notice that they
  have been behaving too seriously. All Sastra are playful, but Zany characters would be expected to
  engage in silly behavior even when that behavior puts the lives of themselves or others in jeopardy.
  Followers of the Way of Beauty will usually possess a number of religious object d'art, handmade works
  notable for their beauty, asymmetry, and imperfection. They do not believe in mending broken items
  so that the flaws are hidden, but regard the cracks and blemishes as an important part of the history
  and reality of the object. This applies as well to their own bodies: an older character who is a follower
  of this path would be expected have a number of scars and wrinkles that are deliberately not entirely
  repaired by cosmetic surgery. They would also regard taking time to notice the natural beauty of the
  
  StarCluster - Religions of the Starcluster
  Page 15
  world as of higher precedence that almost any other activity, e.g., a follower of the way might stop to
  appreciate a sunset even at the cost of missing opportunities.
  Tagris
  The Tagris are stolid beings with a strong sense of fate. For most of them, religion is a matter of dis-
  covering one's proper place in the divine order, and following the path, the dharma, that is one's per-
  sonal destiny. The do otherwise can only lead to sorrow and pointless, wasted life, struggling futilely
  to force reality in a direction that it cannot go.
  While some humans are able to discern their divinely ordained vocation, this is the norm for the
  Tagris. While until recently most Tagris society had been primitive by human standards, unlike most
  primitive human societies, the Tagris do not expect the children to follow the life paths of their elders.
  Each being has their own dharma, and discovering it is one of the principal tasks of coming to age in
  Tagris societies. Most individuals are able to do this on their own. For those poor individuals who
  lack normal self-perception, there is always the help of the Pathfinders
  .
  Pathfinders are Tagris individuals who have a strong awareness of the pulls of fate and are able to dis-
  cern, not mere for themselves, but for others as well, the proper direction of life. They are much
  revered in Tagris society. Occasionally, there are individuals (usually those devoid of all true discern-
  ment) who convince themselves that they are Pathfinders, while lacking the ability. Inevitably, their
  blindness becomes obvious; but sometime not before they have done much damage to those who
  take their council. Such false Pathfinders are called Bewilderers, a term of deep scorn. Tagris are
  known for refer to many human leaders by this term, and regard most humans as lost souls.
  True Pathfinders frequently have strong psi abilities, which aid them in their discernments. These
  abilities usually take the form of divinatory capabilities, enabling them to intuit the character of an
  individual and see the lines of fates that rule their life. Many humans have come to take council for
  Tagris Pathfinders, and their wisdom is highly regarded in many human circles (though scorned in
  others).
  Religious Tagris will typically take time each day to meditate and consider the path their lives are tak-
  ing. They are usually unconcerned with “success”, but instead with following their own destiny. A
  character who is a religious Tagris will be little swayed by opportunities simply because they would
  seem to lead to fame, fortune, or romance.
  Vantor
  The Vantor are an aquatic people, and until their contact with humans, they had no written language.
  So their religion was an oral tradition, strongly tied to family and clan. Their oral religion is com-
  pletely intermeshed with their oral history and full of tales that are partly historical and partly reli-
  gious, fully mythologized and worn smooth by many generation of retelling. (Earthly analogs would
  the Trojan war chronicles and the Jewish Exodus story.) 
  
  StarCluster - Religions of the Starcluster
  Page 16
  bThe moral teachings of the Vantor are not in the form of rules or laws, but are moral fables and para-
  bles. (Their laws are, in fact, of a similar form. Rewards and punishments from legend are used as pre-
  cedents.) There is no formal priesthood. Religious leaders are those with the most dramatic telling of
  cedents.) There is no formal priesthood. Religious leaders are those with the most dramatic telling of
  the old legends and who can pick out the tale which has the most bearing on the events at hand.
  The Vantor have no concept of an afterlife, as such, seeing themselves as living on through their rela-
  tives and descendents. One ancestors are always remembered, and as long as you are remembered,
  you live on. The greatest triumph is to become part of one of the Great Tales, in which case your life
  continues throughout the life of the entire race.
  Religious Vantor remain close to members of their family and clan. They regard being with them for
  births, funerals, and seasonal feasts as matters of great importance, worth great effort to attend. For
  example, if a religious Vantor character is told that a member of their family has died, they would be
  expected to immediately forgo all other obligations to attend the funeral. Religious Vantor also regard
  telling of the stories of their clan as a moral obligation and will do so to any who will deign to listen.
  Similarly, they regard listening to the stories of others as a moral obligation. A character who is a reli-
  gious Vantor and will listen attentively to anyone telling a story, regardless of how boring or repetitive
  it may be.
  .
  
  StarCluster - Religions of the Starcluster
  Page 17
  Religion
  Nature of the Divine 
  Sacraments
  Marriage Form
  Grand Catholicism
  Monotheism
  Baptism, Eucharist, 
  Monogamy
  Marriage, Unction 
  Child Blessing,
  (divorce allowed)
  Ahl al-Fiqh
  Monotheism
  Declaration of faith, 
  Contract marriage
  Almsgiving, 
  Formal prayer, 
  Fasting
  Taiping Mormonism
  Hierarchical henotheism (Adam-God) Baptism, Child Blessing,
  Polygyny (no divorce) 
  Marriage, Martyrdom
  Transhuman Theonarcissism Future Self
  Rejuvenation
  Partnership at will
  Amida Christianity
  Monotheism
  Baptism, Marriage, Funeral Monogamy (divorce allowed)
  Metadox Judaism
  Monotheism
  Numerous
  Varied forms
  Polytheocrassic Monism
  Polytheistic Monism
  Name-giving, Marriage,
  Varied forms 
  Funeral
  Old Order Atheism
  Nonexistant
  Denial of faith
  Contract marriage
  Neo-Adamite Christianity
  Monotheism
  None
  Informal
  The Penitents
  Monotheism
  Baptism, Eucharist, 
  Line Marriages 
  Marriage, Unction 
  (To keep the families alive)
  Martyrdom
  Mystical Union
  Pantheism
  Meditation
  Personal commitment
  Ecumenic Fundamentalism
  Monotheism
  Sacred Ablutions, Feast of God Polygamy
  Prayer, Affirmation of Faith
  Providencialism
  Trancendent
  None
  Contract marriage
  The Clear Way
  Non-Specific Theism
  Name-giving, Sacrifice,
  Monogamy
  Ritual Prayer, Marriage,
  Funeral
  The Zany Way
  Non-Specific Theism
  Meditation, Joy, Silliness
  Temporary Liaison
  The Way of Beauty
  Non-Specific Theism
  Meditation, Crafting
  Personal Commitment
  The Path
  Monotheism
  Personal Pathfinding
  Polyandry
  The Great Tale
  Pantheism
  None
  Varied Forms
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Starcluster/Starcluster 2 Religion.pdf