Church of the Fool

Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to listen about our lord and savior, Mr. Fool?

 — Baldur
on *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1325

The **Church of the Fool**, was founded in the year 1352 of the Fifth Epoch after the City of Silver and Moon City residents left the Forsaken Land of the Gods. All the residents believe in The Fool. Aside from those, other believers of The Fool come from some members of Abraham Family, members of Tarot Club, and the believers of Church of the Sea God. Their current main church is in New City of Silver in Rorsted Archipelago. The name of the cathedral is The Fool's Cathedral.

The Holy Bible, the Order of Mass, and prayer details were written by the City of Silver. It was based on their knowledge of the miracles Mr. Fool had shown, combined with the religious scriptures left behind by the Creator.

Some time before year 1358, the **Church of the Fool** had received acknowledgement by all other Orthodox Churches, and The Fool was officially recognized as an Orthodox God.

## Bible of The Fool

### The Fool

Across past, present, and future, The Fool reigns supreme over the Spirit World. He is also the King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck. A beacon for all in the pursuit of eternity.

He is compassionate, benevolent, and the savior of this world. He allows people to address him as "him" instead of "Him".

He resides above both reality and the Spirit World. His benevolence extends to Heaven and the land. Beside him stand eight angels.

### Angels of The Fool

#### Angel of Mercury

The **Angel of Mercury** is the embodiment of fate, The Fool's most cherished Angel.

#### Angel of Death

The **Angel of Death** has followed The Fool for the longest period of time and is the consul of the Underworld.

#### Angel of Redemption

The **Angel of Redemption** is the Fool's bugle, once taking on the form of Gehrman Sparrow to deliver his revelations.

#### Angel of Life

The **Angel of Life** is the crystallization of wisdom itself, the indestructible spirituality that resides in everyone’s body.

#### Angel of Retribution

The **Angel of Retribution** is beside the Fool's throne. "He" is the Fool's lightning, the Fool's rage, and the Fool's palm, the judge of all the fallen and the ones who aren't chaste.

#### Angel of the Holy Spirit

Next to the **Angel of Retribution** is the **Angel of the Holy Spirit**, reigning over all spirits and representing The Fool in controlling the Spirit World.

#### Angel of Time

The **Angel of Time** was an angel of ancient times. "He" eventually submitted to The Fool and now strikes the bell of Heaven.

#### Angel of Stars

The **Angel of Stars** is a witness, a recorder, the eyes and ears of The Fool.

## Sacred Emblem

The Fool's Sacred Emblem is the pupil-less eye and contorted lines of mysticism in concealment and change, established during his time of founding the Tarot Club. It is a silver-white Sacred Emblem emitting a radiant glow under the sunlight.

The Fool's bible is a black-and-silver patterned book.

## Hand Gesture

Praise The Fool!

 — Bishop and believers at The Fool's cathedral
on *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 291

High Priest Nim of the New Moon City invented the hand gestures to express their gratitude and devotion to The Fool. They would press the right palm against the left chest, accompanied by spoken: *"Praise be to Mr. Fool"*.

## Ten Commandments

1. **First** commandment: *Thou shalt not sacrifice unto me living human sacrifices.*
2. **Second** Commandment: *Thou shalt not use my name in vain.*
3. **Third** Commandment: *Thou shalt have no other gods before me.*
4. **Fourth** Commandment: *Honor thy father, thy mother, and thy children as you love me.*
5. **Fifth** Commandment: *Thou shalt not commit adultery.*
6. **Sixth** Commandment: *Thou shalt not kill the innocent.*
7. **Seventh** Commandment: *Thou shalt not bear false witness, frame, or violate contracts.*
8. **Eighth** Commandment: *Serve me with your heart, not with your offerings.*
9. **Ninth** Commandment: *Those who have committed lesser wrongdoings, first atone for your sins before seeking forgiveness.*
10. **Tenth** Commandment: *Honor my name by helping your compatriots and companions.*

## History

Despite the gods turning their backs on the Forsaken Land of the Gods, Mr. Fool refused to forsake it. He dispatched the Angel of Redemption—Gehrman Sparrow—to lead the surviving humans from the lost city-states out of the Forsaken Land of the Gods and guide them in rebuilding their homes on the maritime islands. Consequently, the **Church of The Fool**’s headquarters were established in the New City of Silver in the Sonia Sea. The other two Holy Lands New Moon City and Bayam, were also located in the same area.

By year 1358 of the Fifth Epoch, the **Church of the Fool** had received acknowledgement by all other Orthodox Churches. The Church primarily resides in the Rorsted Archipelago of the Sonia Sea and some locations in the Southern Continent. In Trier, due to the beliefs of many merchants, sailors, bounty hunters, and treasure seekers at sea, followers of The Fool are often encountered at Lavigny Docks in the Square District. Later, for certain reasons, the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun and the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery agreed to construct a small cathedral there for The Fool’s Church, allowing passing sea merchants to offer their prayers. However, proselytizing or preaching outside the cathedral is strictly prohibited. Most Trieriens are unaware of its existence. Mr. Fool's faith is very popular at sea. Port Farim, Fog Sea Archipelago, being an Intis colony, boasts several cathedrals.

## Characteristics

Different from other orthodox church cathedrals which have a magnificent appearance, **Church of The Fool**'s Cathedral has a simple layout, the stained glass windows were scarce, and there was no ornate gilding to be found. The cathedral lacked gold embellishments or intricate machinery. The only semblance of religion lay in the massive murals, which seemed to favor muted colors and subdued illumination. The mural symbolizes the guidance of the City of Silver and the Moon City out of the Forsaken Land of the Gods.

The **Church of the Fool** is gender equal. They believe gender does not limit their role in society, only morality.

Clergymen of the church wear a finely tailored black trench coat and a half top hat, reminiscent of The Fool's preference for simple Loen gentlemen clothing (white shirt, tailcoat, no tie, black pants, bright leather boots).

## Pathways

The church is in possession of multiple complete and incomplete pathways due to the various sub-factions that made up the church:

* New Moon City has comprehensive records across the twenty-two Beyonder pathways at the beginning, but many potion formulas and Beyonder characteristics have been lost over time.
* New City of Silver know formulas of the Twilight Giant Pathway up to Sequence 3, and other incomplete pathways.
* Abraham Family has all formulas of the Door Pathway.
* Rose School of Thought Temperance Faction has all formulas of the Chained Pathway up to Sequence 2.

In addition, the God of the church, The Fool, also knows of several potion formulas of all standard 22 Pathways. In fact, he likely knows the potion formulas of every pathway because he read the Second Blasphemy Slate but it's unknown whether (or how much) of these he told his church about.

## Power

* Tarot Club
* New City of Silver: A Sequence 3 saint, three Sequence 4 saints, and nearly ten Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts, as well as a few demigod Beyonder characteristics that can temporarily be used as Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts. There're also two Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts in their possession.
* New Moon City: Three demigods, five Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts.
* Abraham Family: Complete control over the Door pathway, two Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts and an unknown number of Grade 1, 2 and 3.
* Rose School of Thought Temperance Faction: A Sequence 2 angel, few demigods of the Chained Pathway. If it weren’t for The Fool’s protection, the temperance faction members would have more or less been influenced by Mother Tree of Desire in the past 1356-1358.

To put into perspective, according to Alger, when it comes to Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts and Saints (especially the latter), the orthodox Churches has no advantage in numbers when compared to the Church of the Fool. In particular, after an all-out war, with the brass increasing the number of Saints by nurturing them, the Church of Storms has around 20 Saints.

## Notable Members

### Angels

* Gehrman Sparrow: the Angel of Redemption.
* Reinette Tinekerr: the Angel of the Holy Spirit.
* Pallez Zoroast: the Angel of Time.
	+ Originally, "He" was assumed to be Amon by the City of Silver (referred to as "a 'King' of ancient times"), but Klein had decided to alter the depiction so that it fit Pallez Zoroast instead (referred to as "an angel of ancient times").
* Fors Wall: the Angel of Stars.

#### Suspected ones

* Will Auceptin: suspected to be the Angel of Mercury based on:
	+ The description.
	+ The fact that the Tarot Club was under the impression that "He" is an Angel in service of The Fool.
	+ The fact that "He" had helped the Tarot Club in Trier.
* Azik Eggers: suspected to be the Angel of Death based on:
	+ The description.
	+ The fact that several members of the Tarot Club were under the impression that "He" is the  Angel amongst The Fool's Blessed.

### Archbishops

* Waite Chirmont *(City of Silver)*
* Derrick Berg *(Tarot Club, City of Silver)*
* Nim *(Moon City)*
* Saint Sharron *(Rose School of Thought Temperance Faction)*

### Oracle

* Danitz: He's the first believer of **The Fool** and the current **Divine Oracle**. In 1352, manages the affairs of Church of the Sea God with the help of Derrick Berg. By 1358, he was internationally recognized as **The Fool's Oracle**.

### Bishops

* Teslian (2.56 meter tall Bishop of Lavigne Docks's cathedral (Trier))
* Theis (Exceeding 2.5 meter tall half-giant Bishop of Port Farim's cathedral (Port Farim, Saint Tick Island, Fog Sea Archipelago))

### Priests

* Priests of Lavigne Docks's cathedral
* Priests of Port Farim's cathedral

### Other Believers

* Baldur *(City of Silver)*
* Bonn *(Moon City)*
* Merlin Hermes
* Moretti Family
	+ Benson Moretti
	+ Klein's Niece
	+ Melissa Moretti
* Franca Roland *(Tarot Club)*
* Lumian Lee *(Pan-Believer)*

## Trivia

* When The Fool performed a  to fix the abnormalities in every citizen of Moon City, Amon as the *Angel of Time* struck the bell of The Fool's church right after the miracle was done. He then smiled at The Fool who was sitting inside Sefirah Castle.
* When The Fool entered a deep slumber, Danitz worked together with Derrick Berg to slowly change the perception of Sea God believers that the Sea God is a Subsidiary God of The Fool. This will ultimately turned them into believers of the **Church of the Fool**.
* The elements of the Holy Communion of the Church in Loen are *lamb boiled with soft tofu*, *beef soup*, *mashed potato*, *fried Tussock fish*, *stewed rhubarb*, and *sweet ice tea*. They were the food that Klein used to make for his siblings.
* The Holy Communion of the Church in Lavigne Docks's cathedral is consisted of *a glass of transparent, colorless liquid (Teana) and a Teana rind stuffed with mashed mutton and fish (traditional Teativa)*. Teana was difficult to export beyond the Rorsted Archipelago over three seas due to life shelf problems, therefore, Frank Lee cultivated a modified Teana tree that could grow in southern Intis, producing a stronger milky scent. Teana and Teativa were **Angel of Redemption** Gehrman Sparrow’s favorite food during his travels across the land.
* By year 1358, the Sea God was internationally recognized as a Subsidiary God of the **Church of the Fool**.

## References

1. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1323
2. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1323
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 291
4. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1299
5. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1218
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 292
7. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 264
8. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 518
9. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 436
10. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1348
11. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 301
12. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1311
13. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 265
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 298
15. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1327
16. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 578
17. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 792
18. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 402
19. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 919-920
20. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 436
21. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 518-519
22. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 530
23. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1325
24. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1326
25. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 1393
26. ↑ Special Episode: Klein's Niece (Chinese)
27. ↑ Special Episode: Klein's Niece (Translation)
28. ↑ *Lord of Mysteries*, Chapter 27
29. ↑ *Circle of Inevitability*, Chapter 532