Imperial Orthodoxy

> "Nations rise and fall, kings are dethroned, empires are dismantled, and civilizations are torn asunder. The memories of the long-distant past shall eventually be forgotten. A dark and enduring shadow will be cast on all things, so much so that light itself will cease to exist. And amidst all of this, in the grand scheme of everything, it would seem to us that no life can escape the unavoidable grasp of death.
> But victory does not belong to death. Victory alone belongs to Him, for He is without beginning and without end. And it is He who has revealed Himself to us, and it is He who loves His creation more than creation loves itself. He is triumphant, and thus we proclaim: Where, O Death is your Victory? This is the creed by which we live. Death will not be victorious against us, we will be victorious against death. This is our faith. As it has been, as it is, and as it will be. And so the Universe will pass out of existence, but we shall remain forever after, for our dwelling place shall be eternity."
>
> The Archregent of Chelovayya, On the Topic of the Heat Death of the Universe

The Nazekak, Religious Symbol of the Empire

## Basic Information

### Founding Date

A.P 30 (Official)
F.E. 1 (Disputed Claim)

### Affiliation

Chelovayyan Empire (Defender of the Faith)

## Religious Practices

### Rituals

Sacraments

**Imperial Orthodoxy** (Stanislavan: *Imperatorskoye Pravoslaveyye*; Oratio Ecclesiastica: *Imperatoria Orthodoxia*), often referred to as **the Faith**, the **Ancestral Faith**, the **Imperial Faith**, or as the **Apostolic Faith**, is the official state religion of the Chelovayyan Empire. Imperial Orthodoxy claims to be the successor of several faiths from the Age of Apocrypha, most notably claiming apostolic succession from the Churches of the Old Believers, groups of people who continue to practice the traditions of pre-Anathema faiths.

Imperial Orthodoxy is the official faith defined by the Universal Magisterium, and is the most dominant religion across the Milky Way Galaxy. It is the sovereign faith of the Domain of Humanity, and its influence is unparalleled even in territories outside the Empire's influence. In addition, the Chelovayyan Empire believes itself to be the Defender of the Faith, a claim which is disputed by Heterodox sects and cults across the Local Group of Galaxies. Imperial Orthodoxy itself is thoroughly defined in the Canon Law of Chelovayya, of which serves as the constitutional source of authority across the Magisterium and across the Empire.

Imperial Orthodoxy, like its predecessors, the Churches of the Old Believers, has clergy who are referred to as Ordinands or Sacerdotes. They are ranked accordingly, with the Archregent of Chelovayya at the highest position, who is considered by many to be infallible, and whose position is personally defended by the Emperor of Chelovayya. Others contend that he is First Among Equals, meaning that his true role is as a chief mediator within the Universal Magisterium, however, most understand this to be a case of mere semantics and differing traditions, and so it is regarded as a minor issue. Like the Old Believers, Imperial Orthodoxy has the Apocrypha as its Sacred Scripture, although unfortunately, large parts of it have been lost during the Age of Anathema. Imperial Orthodoxy also has sacraments and liturgies, which officially serve as the basic rituals and worship services that every believer performs in their everyday lives.

Most notable to the Imperial Orthodoxy's civil success is its religious orders, which through its combined religious disciplines and scientific rigor, have paved the way for many significant developments in human history since the First Epoch. The Imperial Orders are often divided into the Terranean Order and the Veyalactean Order. However, beginning with the Second Epoch, the latter constituted the vast majority of Imperial Orthodoxy's religious orders. It is said that wherever the Empire is, there is a religious order to be found there.

The Imperial Faith finds itself stretched across unimaginable planes across the Universe, as such, there exists thousands of *sui iuris* Magisteria, all of which have differing theologies, liturgies, traditions, histories, and cultures, from the Solarian Magisterium. Despite this rift, they remain in Communion with one another, as it is seen as ultimately necessary to avoid wide-scale schismatic and sectarian conflicts. However, there are several magisteria which have fundamentally heterodox beliefs that leave them only in Partial Communion. These are often magisteria which split from the orthodox beliefs set out in the various Magisterial Councils declared throughout thousands of years. Some of these magisteria go as far as to have outright heretical beliefs, forcing the Universal Magisterium to excommunicate these Magisteria.

In the Third Epoch, the Imperial Faith, although still dominant, finds itself at its weakest point. It is believed by most, that if the Faith falters, so too will the Domain of Humanity. In that dark possibility, there will be no one else to protect the Free Peoples of Humanity from the wrath of the Typheon Realms and of other factions which seek to destroy them.