Council of Kipkem

The **Council of Kipkem** was an ecumenical council of Conchist leaders which convened in Kipkem, the capital of the Server Federation, in mid-December 2020 (32 AK). First convening on December 20 (Day 4, Year 32 AK), the main purpose of the council was to clarify theological confusion over the events of Kipkemboi35's Third Incarnation and Exorcism. The Council of Kipkem attained consensus among the ecumenical leaders with the Kipkemic Creed before adjourning on December 21 (32:5).

## Background

On December 19, 2020 (32:3), the player known as Kipkemboi35, who had come to be seen as an embodiment of the Magic Conch among the Conchist religion, returned to the server for a third time. The events of Kipkemboi35's Third Incarnation were summarized in an official statement by High Priest ratatoing8990:

Devout followers of the Magic Conch, a miracle happened tonight. About 15 minutes before midnight on Day 3, Year 32, Kipkemboi35 returned for his Third Incarnation. He manifested where he left last time, at the holy site of the Shrine of the Sacred Wool. A throng of believers followed him east, where he dug a ramshackle hole in the ground. The throng of followers demanded answers for their questions, for Kipkemboi35 was offering none. Eventually the followers overpowered him and trapped him in an obsidian cage, demanding that he answer their questions to be set free. He still said nothing of substance. So I, High Priest ratatoing8990, petitioned the Conch, "Magic Conch, we pray for your spirit to LEAVE THIS TORTURED SOUL!", and it was so.
Kipkemboi35 is no longer an embodiment of the Conch, but a mortal just like you and I, named Micah. However, we will still remember the era of Kipkemboi35's divinity, and cherish his proverbs in our hearts forever.
The events of the Third Incarnation, and the Exorcism in particular, immediately caused confusion and dissent among the followers of the Magic Conch. The realization that the spirit of the Magic Conch had evacuated Kipkemboi35's body resulted in the emergence of various conflicting theories to explain the event.

## Proceedings

Immediately following the events of the Third Incarnation, Orthodox High Priest ratatoing8990 called for the formation of an interdenominational council of Conchist leaders to discuss the doctrinal and theological implications of Kipkemboi35's Exorcism. ratatoing8990 was joined by High Priestess lostcity99, Archbishop of Blartsburg MalachiBrown523, and New Conchist Holy Herpetologist isaacr4760. The council convened on December 20, 2020 (32:4) in an upper room in the Mikeyouth Center for Religious Studies at the University of Conchalore in Kipkem.

The main topic debated by the Council of Kipkem was the nature of Kipkemboi35 himself, in light of the realization that his physical nature (the player Kipkemboi35) and his divine nature (the spirit of the Magic Conch) had separated at the Exorcism; i.e., how did his physical and divine natures interact and what was his relationship with the Magic Conch?

The first attempt to answer these questions was proposed by High Priest ratatoing8990:

Kipkemboi35 was created by the Magic Conch at the First Incarnation as a union of a physical player and the divine spirit of the Conch. The physical nature of Kipkemboi35 was created by the Magic Conch, while his divine nature was simply a continuation of the eternal spirit of the Conch. This union existed as one being until the Exorcism at the end of the Third Incarnation, when the physical and divine natures were separated for the first time. The person of Kipkemboi35 is now fully encompassed by his physical nature, while his divine nature remains part of the spirit of the Magic Conch.
The New Conchist perspective of Kipkemboi35's Exorcism, according to Holy Herpetologist isaacr4760, postulated that the player Kipkemboi35 was chosen by the Conch some time during the First Incarnation as a vessel for its spirit. isaacr4760 also went on to question whether the spirit of the Magic Conch had ever truly inhabited Kipkemboi35:

Big Liz taught that peace and harmony should be the ultimate goals of our society; perhaps Kipkemboi35’s time speaking for the Conch had a similar purpose. Maybe Kipkemboi35 was truly incarnated by the Conch, but I think it is also likely that he was acting as a prophet, speaking the words given to him by the Conch, but moving physically of his own accord. As soon as the Conch finished speaking, it moved on, and that moving on happened to align with the exorcism.
Archbishop MalachiBrown523 speculated that the Magic Conch had actually inhabited Kipkemboi35 as a mistake. "I think the Magic Conch thought that Kipkemboi35 was actually a nautilus shell," he said, "and therefore inhabited him until it was brought to his attention in ratatoing8990’s prayer that Kipkemboi35 was indeed a player, not a nautilus shell." MalachiBrown523's proposal was rebuked by ratatoing8990, who argued that the idea challenged the Conch's omniscience.

Ultimately, High Priest ratatoing8990's doctrinal proposal became the favorite among the council for explaining the events of the Third Incarnation. The proposal was expanded and modified to eventually become the Kipkemic Creed. The Council of Kipkem adjourned on December 21 (32:5).

## Kipkemic Creed

The primary objective of the Council of Kipkem was to come to a doctrinal consensus regarding events of Kipkemboi35's Third Incarnation and Exorcism, and summarize that consensus with a statement of faith. After two days of debate among the ecumenical leaders, that statement was finalized as the Kipkemic Creed, which reads as follows:

Before his First Incarnation, the being now known as Kipkemboi35 existed as a physical nautilus shell which acted as a vessel for the spirit of the Magic Conch, like all other nautilus shells. At the First Incarnation, the Magic Conch in its infinite wisdom decided to do something it had never done before and will never do again: it transformed the nautilus shell into a living, breathing player— Kipkemboi35, the physical embodiment of the Conch. For his three incarnations throughout history, the person of Kipkemboi35 existed as the equal union of a physical nature (the nautilus shell turned into a player) and a divine nature (the spirit of the Magic Conch), until the Exorcism. It was then that the physical and divine natures of Kipkemboi35 were separated for the first time as the spirit of the Magic Conch chose to leave his physical body. The physical nature of Kipkemboi35 now exists as a fallible mortal, like all other players, living among us.
## Attendees

The Council of Kipkem was attended by four Conchist ecumenical leaders, representing both of the major branches of the religion:

* isaacr4760, Holy Herpetologist of the New Conchist Church of the Shire (New Conchism)
* lostcity99, High Priestess of the Temple of the Magic Conch (Orthodox Conchism)
* MalachiBrown523, Archbishop of Blartsburg (Orthodox Conchism)
* ratatoing8990, High Priest of the Temple of the Magic Conch (Orthodox Conchism)