Imperial Synod

Latest revision as of 16:04, 19 June 2024

Reward the Virtuous; Punish the Wicked

The Imperial Synod has the power to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked.

Overview

The Imperial Synod exists to safeguard the soul of the Empire, protecting it from dangers and corrupting influences, whilst nurturing and promoting virtue wherever it flourishes. It provides a balance on the power of the Imperial Senate and The Throne and has the power to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked. It also controls the supply of true liao which grants access to past life visions.

The Secretary General of the Civil Service has written a short pamphlet outlining how to participate in the Synod, which can be found here. Copies of this pamphlet are also available in the Hub during events.

Role within the Empire

The Synod is charged with overseeing the spiritual well-being of the Empire - ensuring the virtue of its citizens and in particular those who lead them. Its remit includes being aware of all the official business of the Empire. Members of the Synod are permitted to sit in while any Imperial meetings are being convened, although they are not automatically able to pry into the private affairs of citizens. The purpose is to ensure that virtue is enshrined in all the most important decisions taken by Imperial citizens.

To allow the Synod to perform its role, it may act to veto motions passed by the Senate - or to revoke individuals who hold important positions in the Senate or the Military Council. The Synod's most feared punishment is to excommunicate a citizen, allowing the ceremonial rite of excommunication to be performed on the accused and stripping them of their right to hold any Imperial title.

The Synod is also granted the power to dispense the majority of the true liao produced by the Empire each season as well as being charged with maintaining Imperial doctrine, providing guidance to the faithful through rulings on metaphysical and spiritual issues.

History

The creation of the Imperial Synod was a crucial part of the formation of the Empire. While the Empress and many of her Highborn supporters favoured a theocratic model of government for the Empire, they were unable to convince everyone of the wisdom of this approach. The compromise was to vest legal power in the Senate - but to create the Synod to watch over the Senate and ensure it remained a virtuous house. When it became clear that the Military Council would act independently of the Senate, the Highborn were able to successfully argue that the Synod's remit should also cover the generals.

The notable exception to the powers of the Synod are the Bourse and the Conclave. Titles appointed by either of these two houses may not be revoked, nor are their decisions subject to veto. The exclusion of the Bourse was the result of a long and bitter battle between Giovanni of Tassato (later Emperor Giovanni) and his followers and the Highborn. Giovanni was insistent that the Bourse must be completely free from political interference and would brook no compromise, demanding that the independence of the Bourse be enshrined in the Imperial Constitution.

Giovanni later became Emperor, and was instrumental in courting the Urizeni, convincing them to join the Empire peacefully. The exclusion of the Conclave from oversight by the Synod likely reflects Giovanni's political views as much as it did the demands of the magicians of the time.

During the Spring Equinox 383YE the Imperial Senate voted to change how membership of the Virtue assemblies was determined. This represents one of the most significant changes to the way the Synod operates since the reign of Empress Varkula. The change was proposed initially as a way to allow the priests of the Imperial Orcs to more fully participate in the Imperial Synod, by moving membership of the Virtue assemblies away from dedication and toward the virtues a priest actually preached.

Sessions

The civil service do not arrange any formal meetings or sessions for the members of the Synod. Rather the Synod acts by passing (or rejecting) judgements that have been raised by members of the Synod. When a judgement is submitted to the civil service it is raised onto the walls of the hub so that it may be scrutinised by any citizen. Eligible members of the Synod may then vote for (or against) the judgement at any point until voting closes. Voting is conducted in public and any citizen may view the records to see how many votes a judgement has gathered and who has supported or opposed it.

At set times during the summit, voting closes to allow the civil service to tally the votes cast for every judgement that is due to end then. A judgement must receive at least three hours of scrutiny, unless there are sufficient members of the Synod physically present to immediately determine the outcome of the judgement.

This approach ensures that members of the Synod can have sufficient time to examine a judgement, discussing it with their peers, and considering the ramifications. It also means that all members of the Synod who attend Anvil can vote on judgements raised, regardless of how many are present.

Participation

Each citizen who has been responsible for the running of a congregation in the season preceding the summit is automatically a member of the Synod. This makes them eligible to raise one judgement per summit and to vote on judgements raised by other Synod members. Votes are based on the size of the congregation - the larger the flock that a priest tends to, the more votes they receive. The founders of the Empire adopted this approach to ensure that the decisions of the Synod best reflected the wishes of the citizens of the Empire.

A handful of Imperial titles also confer votes in the Imperial Synod - based on the size of the congregation associated with the position. Any citizen who holds such a title is automatically considered to be a member of the Synod. Any votes afforded by the title are in addition to those they are due from their congregation if any.

Participation in the Synod is divided into a number of different assemblies:

General Assembly, consisting of all Synod Priests
National Assemblies, consisting of all Synod Priests from a single nation. There are ten National Assemblies, and a given priest is automatically a member of one of them.
Virtue Assemblies, consisting of all Synod priests who share the same dedication, or lack of. There are eight Virtue Assemblies (one for each of the seven virtues, and the assembly of the Way). A given priest is a member of one Virtue Assembly initially based on their dedication, but with the option to change it through preaching between summits.
Assembly of Nine, consisting of the eight Cardinals of the Virtue Assemblies and the Throne.

Every member of the Synod is automatically a member of the General Assembly - and a member of the relevant national and virtue assembly. Each assembly has specific judgements available to it - for example the Marcher National Assembly may revoke Marcher senators and generals.

The assembly that will consider a judgement is set when the judgement is raised - it may then only be voted on by members of that assembly.

Limitations

Although the Synod is powerful - arguably as powerful as the Imperial Senate - it does not possess the ability to change the law, nor to create new Imperial titles. The Synod has the power to veto motions passed by the Senate - but it is absolutely reliant on the Senate to raise and pass any motions needed to change laws or even the structure of the Synod itself.

Crucially the powers of the Synod do not extend to cover the Conclave or the Bourse. Both bodies are explicitly defined to be outside the Synod's jurisdiction. This means that the Synod cannot veto a declaration passed by the Conclave - nor revoke those who hold Bourse or Conclave titles.

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+<ic>Reward the Virtuous; Punish the Wicked</ic>
+{{CaptionedImage|file=Bishop Oberon.jpg|title=The Imperial Synod is a place of politics, as well as a bastion of faith.|caption=The Imperial Synod has the power to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked.|align=left|width=450}}
 ==Overview==
-The Imperial Synod is the Institution that brings together the priests of [[The Way]] from all across The Empire. The Synod was created at the founding of The Empire by the First Empress and its existence, along with some of its powers, is enshrined in the [[Imperial Constitution]]. Its role is to ensure that the Empire and its citizens remain virtuous.
+The Imperial Synod exists to safeguard the soul of the Empire, protecting it from dangers and corrupting influences, whilst nurturing and promoting virtue wherever it flourishes. It provides a balance on the power of the [[Imperial Senate]] and [[The Throne]] and has the power to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked. It also controls the supply of [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] which grants access to past life visions.
+The Secretary General of the Civil Service has written a short pamphlet outlining how to participate in the Synod, which can be found [https://www.profounddecisions.co.uk/mediawiki-public/images/0/0f/Synod_Participation_Guide.pdf here]. Copies of this pamphlet are also available in the Hub during events.
 ==Role within the Empire==
-The Imperial Synod's primary role is to safeguard the soul of the Empire, to keep it safe from dangers and corrupting influences without - such as [[Foreign Nations|foreigners]], [[barbarians]] and [[Eternals]] - and within. It provides a balance on the power of the [[Imperial Senate]] and [[The Throne]] and punishes the unvirtuous by removing them from office. It also controls the supply of [[Pure Liao]] which grants access to past life visions.
+The Synod is charged with overseeing the spiritual well-being of the Empire - ensuring the virtue of its citizens and in particular those who lead them. Its remit includes being aware of all the official business of the Empire. Members of the Synod are permitted to sit in while any Imperial meetings are being convened, although they are not automatically able to pry into the private affairs of citizens. The purpose is to ensure that virtue is enshrined in all the most important decisions taken by Imperial citizens.
-==Entry requirements==
+To allow the Synod to perform its role, it may act to [[veto]] motions passed by the Senate - or to [[revocation|revoke]] individuals who hold important positions in the Senate or the [[Imperial Military Council|Military Council]]. The Synod's most feared punishment is to [[writ of Excommunication|excommunicate]] a citizen, allowing the ceremonial rite of excommunication to be performed on the accused and stripping them of their right to hold any Imperial title.
-Any priest who ministers to a significant congregation of Imperial citizens is eligible to be a member of the Synod. This is represented by operating a church as a downtime resource. Synod members cannot normally sit in the Senate; if a priest is elected to the Senate, then they cannot vote in any part of the Synod while they serve as a senator.
+The Synod is also granted the power to dispense the majority of the [[liao#True Liao|true liao]] produced by the Empire each season as well as being charged with maintaining Imperial doctrine, providing guidance to the faithful through rulings on metaphysical and spiritual issues.
 ==History==
-The Synod was created at the dawn of the Empire; inspired by the [[Highguard]] Assembly of the Virtuous. The history of the Synod is intimately tied up with the history of [[The Way]].
+The creation of the Imperial Synod was a crucial part of the formation of the Empire. While the Empress and many of her Highborn supporters favoured a theocratic model of government for the Empire, they were unable to convince everyone of the wisdom of this approach. The compromise was to vest legal power in the Senate - but to create the Synod to watch over the Senate and ensure it remained a virtuous house. When it became clear that the Military Council would act independently of the Senate, the Highborn were able to successfully argue that the Synod's remit should also cover the generals.
-==Rights and powers of all Synod members==
-Membership of the Synod denotes an individual priest as a spiritual leader and confers religious authority. Specific rights and powers granted to all priests include:
-===Witness===
-The Synod is responsible for the spiritual wellbeing of the Empire and is empowered by the Imperial Constitution to witness or observe all aspects of its function. Any member of the Synod must be granted access to all areas in the [[Imperial Bourse]], the [[Imperial Senate]] and the [[Imperial Military Council]], in order to observe and witness, provided they remain quiet, respectful and do not directly interfere.
-===Calling for judgement===
+The notable exception to the powers of the Synod are the Bourse and the Conclave. Titles appointed by either of these two houses may not be revoked, nor are their decisions subject to veto. The exclusion of the Bourse was the result of a long and bitter battle between [[Emperor Giovanni|Giovanni of Tassato (later Emperor Giovanni)]] and his followers and the Highborn. Giovanni was insistent that the Bourse must be completely free from political interference and would brook no compromise, demanding that the independence of the Bourse be enshrined in the Imperial Constitution.
-Once per event, a Synod priest can call on their peers to pass judgement on an issue. This puts a motion before an Assembly that the priest is a member of for them to vote upon, usually a Virtue Assembly, National Assembly or General Assembly. Normally this judgement will be on whether to exercise one of the Assembly's powers. A priest cannot call for judgement from an Assembly that they are not part of.
-===Sanctuary===
+Giovanni later became Emperor, and was instrumental in courting the Urizeni, convincing them to join the Empire peacefully. The exclusion of the Conclave from oversight by the Synod likely reflects Giovanni's political views as much as it did the demands of the magicians of the time.
-At each event, the Synod establishes a formal location that is the hub of the Imperial Religion. Imperial Law applies to, but is not enforced within, this location. In the Synod, or on consecrated ground, any Imperial citizen may petition a Synod priest to grant them sanctuary. If the Synod priest agrees to do so, the fugitive has the turn of an hourglass in which they can confess their crimes, or gather proof of their innocence, prior to facing the judiciary.
-===Confession and clemency===
+During the Spring Equinox 383YE the [[Imperial Senate]] voted to [[384YE_Spring_Equinox_Senate_sessions#Amend_membership_of_virtue_assemblies|change]] how membership of the [[Assembly#The_Virtue_Assemblies|Virtue assemblies]] was determined. This represents one of the most significant changes to the way the Synod operates since the reign of [[Empress Varkula]]. The change was [[Making_your_mind_up|proposed]] initially as a way to allow the priests of the [[Imperial Orcs]] to more fully participate in the Imperial Synod, by moving membership of the Virtue assemblies away from [[dedication]] and toward the virtues a priest actually [[Congregation#Downtime Options|preached]].
-A Synod priest that has granted a person sanctuary may take their confession, or appoint another priest to do so. A Synod member who has taken confession may accompany the fugitive to their trial to plead for clemency. The seniority of the Synod member who appeals for clemency is borne in mind when the magistrate considers their verdict. A plea for clemency must be made on Virtuous grounds. To be effective the priest must present a clear case that demonstrates that the actions of the accused were Virtuous, albeit illegal. It is not possible to submit a plea for clemency unless the accused pleads guilty at the start of their trial.
-{{CaptionedImage|file=VarushkaDarkMan.jpg|align=left|width=250}}
-==Powers of the Synod Assemblies==
-The Synod is divided into a number of mutually overlapping assemblies. The General Assembly includes every member of the Synod, but membership of the other assemblies is by appointment, nationality or dedication. For instance all the members of the Synod from the nation of [[Dawn]] are part of the Dawn Assembly. The function of the assemblies is to allow judgements to be made only by the appropriate members of the Synod, so the members of the Dawn Assembly can exercise Synod powers over Dawnish citizens without needing recourse to the entire General Assembly.
-Despite their names, there is no requirement for the Assemblies to meet in one place at the same time. The powers of the Synod are exercised by the judgement of an Assembly, a process explained below. Exercising the authority of an Assembly is done through individual, personal judgement.
+==Sessions==
+The civil service do not arrange any formal meetings or sessions for the members of the Synod. Rather the Synod acts by passing (or rejecting) judgements that have been raised by members of the Synod. When a judgement is submitted to the civil service it is raised onto the walls of the hub so that it may be scrutinised by any citizen. Eligible members of the Synod may then vote for (or against) the judgement at any point until voting closes. Voting is conducted in public and any citizen may view the records to see how many votes a judgement has gathered and who has supported or opposed it.
-===The Virtue Assemblies===
+At set times during the summit, voting closes to allow the civil service to tally the votes cast for every judgement that is due to end then. A judgement must receive at least three hours of scrutiny, unless there are sufficient members of the Synod physically present to immediately determine the outcome of the judgement.
-The [[Virtue Assembly|Virtue Assemblies]] consist of all members of the Synod who are dedicated to the same [[The Virtues|Virtue]]. There are eight Virtue Assemblies, one for each Virtue and the Assembly of the Way which consists of all members of the Synod who are not dedicated to a specific Virtue. The authority of a Virtue Assembly extends to all dedicated priests and pilgrims of that Virtue, and in policing the actions and judgements of their cardinal.
-===The National Assemblies===
+This approach ensures that members of the Synod can have sufficient time to examine a judgement, discussing it with their peers, and considering the ramifications. It also means that all members of the Synod who attend Anvil can vote on judgements raised, regardless of how many are present.
-The [[National Assembly|National Assemblies]] consist of all members of the Synod from the same [[The Nations|nation]]. There are nine National Assemblies. Each National Assembly is charged with the spiritual wellbeing of the nation it is responsible for. Its authority extends only to individuals and groups within that nation.
+{{CaptionedImage|file=Angelo3.jpg|align=right|width=250}}
-===The Assembly of Nine===
+==Participation==
-The [[Assembly of Nine]] consists of the seven cardinals of the Virtue Assemblies, the cardinal of the Assembly of the Way, and The Throne. The Throne holds no authority in the Assembly save the ability to break ties on any issue that had the support of four Cardinals apiece. The authority of the Assembly of Nine extends to the whole Empire, excluding The Throne.
+Each citizen who has been responsible for the running of a [[congregation|congregation]] in the season preceding the summit is automatically a member of the Synod. This makes them eligible to raise one [[judgement]] per summit and to vote on judgements raised by other Synod members. Votes are based on the size of the [[congregation]] - the larger the flock that a priest tends to, the more votes they receive. The founders of the Empire adopted this approach to ensure that the decisions of the Synod best reflected the wishes of the citizens of the Empire.
-===The General Assembly===
+A handful of Imperial titles also confer votes in the Imperial Synod - based on the size of the congregation associated with the position. Any citizen who holds such a title is automatically considered to be a member of the Synod. Any votes afforded by the title are in addition to those they are due from their congregation if any.
-The [[General Assembly]] consists of all members of the Synod. The authority of the General Assembly extends to the whole Empire, including the Empress.
-{{CaptionedImage|file=HighPriests1.jpg|width=350|align=right}}
-==The judgement of the Synod==
+Participation in the Synod is divided into a number of different [[assembly|assemblies]]:
-To exercise their powers the Synod requires the members of an assembly to pass judgement. To raise a motion for judgement, a member of the Synod must approach the functionaries of the Synod and call for judgement on a topic. The functionaries record the matter raised and makes it visible in the Synod along with whose judgement applies to the matter (i.e. which Assembly's judgement applies). They set a deadline by which time judgements should be rendered (for example, four waking hours after the issue has been listed for judgement).
-The purpose of the deadline is so that priests who are engaged on vital missions for the Empire are not excluded from being able to offer their judgement on the matter raised. It is possible for an Assembly to expedite this process by a clear majority of an Assembly coming to the Synod functionaries directly to demonstrate the support of the Assembly for the action.
+* ''General Assembly'', consisting of all Synod Priests
+* ''National Assemblies'', consisting of all Synod Priests from a single nation. There are ten National Assemblies, and a given priest is automatically a member of one of them.
+* ''Virtue Assemblies'', consisting of all Synod priests who share the same dedication, or lack of. There are eight Virtue Assemblies (one for each of the seven virtues, and the assembly of the Way). A given priest is a member of one Virtue Assembly initially based on their [[dedication]], but with the option to change it through [[Congregation#Downtime Options|preaching]] between summits.
+* ''Assembly of Nine'', consisting of the eight [[Cardinal|Cardinals]] of the Virtue Assemblies and [[The Throne |the Throne]].
-Priests of the Synod are expected to check in at regular intervals to see if they have been called on to pass judgement. They register their judgement with the the Synod functionaries; a priest’s weight of judgement is determined by the size of their congregation (i.e. the status of their church). When the time limit has expired, the Synod functionaries count the judgements passed by the priests and record whether the issue has sufficient support of the Assembly to be binding.
+Every member of the Synod is automatically a member of the General Assembly - and a member of the relevant national and virtue assembly. Each assembly has specific judgements available to it - for example the Marcher National Assembly may revoke Marcher senators and generals.
-In the case of the Virtue and National Assemblies, the outcome is decided by the judgements-for versus the judgements-against with abstentions being ignored. For the Assembly of Nine and General Assembly, the outcome is determined by the judgements of all members of the Assembly, with abstentions considered a vote against the judgement. This means that there is no need for members of the General Assembly or the Assembly of the Nine to register a judgement if they are against a motion - often this is only done to express disapproval.
+The assembly that will consider a judgement is set when the judgement is raised - it may then only be voted on by members of that assembly.
-A judgement made by an Assembly is considered binding on all those the Assembly has authority over, but may not contradict the Imperial Law or Senate. There is no requirement for Synod members to meet and debate as their Senate contemporaries do, though it is known for priests of the Synod to consult with one another to ensure they have the support of their Assembly before raising an issue.
+==Limitations==
+Although the Synod is powerful - arguably as powerful as the Imperial Senate - it does not possess the ability to change the law, nor to create new Imperial titles. The Synod has the power to [[veto]] motions passed by the Senate - but it is absolutely reliant on the Senate to raise and pass any motions needed to change laws or even the structure of the Synod itself.
-[[Category:Religion]]
+Crucially the powers of the Synod do not extend to cover the Conclave or the Bourse. Both bodies are explicitly defined to be outside the Synod's jurisdiction. This means that the Synod cannot veto a [[declaration]] passed by the Conclave - nor revoke those who hold Bourse or Conclave titles.
-[[Category:The Empire]]
+{{Synod Further Reading}}
+* [[Making your mind up]] - Spring 384YE Wind of Fortune proposing the change to how membership of the Virtue assemblies is determined

Imperial Synod

Latest revision as of 16:04, 19 June 2024

Contents

Overview

Role within the Empire

History

Sessions

Participation

Limitations

Further Reading

Profound Decisions[edit | | ]

Community[edit | | ]

Wiki Editors[edit | | ]