On the Evils of Heresy

Golsu Farelas opens her essay "On the Importance of Heresy" with the maxim of the blessed Saint Olms. While I do not doubt Farelas' intelligence and faith, I do fear that she must have fallen asleep during a few lectures at whichever school of theology she attended. Farelas is entirely mistaken on the topic of heretics. Farelas' essay quite simply misses the point and grants dangerous legitimacy to those who would stand in opposition to ALMSIVI.  In her introduction, Farelas presents several hypothetical questions to her readers as if to suggest the questions are simply unanswerable. I shall attempt to respond.

"Who would test us if there were no enemies to the faith?" Testing is not a requirement for the faithful to prove themselves to ALMSIVI. The strong do not need testing as they are already unshakably resolute in their faith. The weak-willed shall always fail, with or without testing, due to their own inherent weakness, at which point they can only be corrected or purged. Of course it is a sign of great strength to endure hardship and violence, but one is a true Dunmer if and only if their faith in ALMSIVI is true. Testing reveals to others our faith, but ALMSIVI knows our true thoughts. The House of Troubles and the Sharmat do so much harm to the faithful and they provide nothing good. 

"What use would the Temple scholars have of their knowledge of the written Law if the marginalia of the Dissident Priests were erased?" Farelas is immensely mistaken about the role of scholars if she believes that our sole role is to combat the deluded Dissident Priests.  We educate others about the law so that they might live better lives which are more aligned with the divine law of ALMSIVI. Our knowledge of the law promotes the general felicity and well-being of the Dunmer people. As a scholar herself, Farelas should already know all of this. That she does not is quite troubling.

The Ordinators understand Saint Olms' maxim very well, but it appears that Farelas does not. The House of Corners is a great threat to the Dunmer, and only by their faith in ALMSIVI and their eternal vigilance are the Ordinators of War able to root out the evil souls of their followers and purge them.  However, despite what Farelas foolishly posits, it is not the heretics' lifeblood which sanctifies the weapons of the Ordinators. It is their faith and trust in ALMSIVI which consecrates their weapons. This unbreakable faith transforms the slaying of evil-doers into a holy act. It is not the heretics' evil which transforms their death into a holy service.  Were this true, any adventurer who purges a congregation of Dagon worshippers could be said to be holy. The Ordinators have faith in ALMSIVI and do Their will through the use of violence, and so they are blessed. Holiness flows from ALMSIVI, not from evil.

Farelas' final argument is most compelling, though I wish to add my own interpretation. To speak heresy and thereby conquer it is exactly the basis of Saint Olms' maxim.  However, to do so successfully one's soul must be fortified by faith in ALMSIVI.  Understanding heresy to combat it is the concern of the Inquisitors and should be left to them exclusively. I wish to emphasize that, to the rest of the faithful, heresy is ugly in the eyes of ALMSIVI and should be avoided.