Houses of Tarj and the Loderite
"As we leave the waning light of Starday we join together this new Sunday. As like the brilliant Sun, we burn away the emotional weights of the past and refresh ourselves with new energy. We are bright beacons of logic and reason, ridding Terra of its unstructured chaos. Open your minds to the new knowledge that awaits you. Let us proceed with the Loderite.” - High Priest Gabriel
A brilliant star glittering in every major city, a house of Tarj is a building fair in size, whitewashed and domed with double-doors at the front, open wide for all their conclave to enter. Two steeples rise up on either side of the front of the façade with a bronze point on each end, framing the main entryway. Above the door is a large, brilliantly white emblem mirroring the cover of the Sacred Lodestar. Atop the center of the building is a small bell tower, capped with a third bronze point.
On the morning of every Sunday, the iron bell in the tower tolls, signaling patrons to enter. It rings again 5 minutes before the services will start, and again for a 3rd time at the closing of the doors.
A noble paladin stands welcoming you at each of the doors with a sanctifying vase in hand, in order to perform the Ablution. As patrons arrive, one of these paladins will withdraw a brush from the vessel and makes a horizontal stroke of purified water with it across the forehead of each patron. This Ablution rite spiritually and psychologically cleanses the mind, clearing one’s emotions, so that purity and neutrality can be restored to the body.
Patrons then make their way inside. The inside of the domed church is filled with crystalline stained glass windows, set into white granite walls. Patrons seat themselves in green, curved wooden pews that are arranged in a huge semicircle shape, facing the front of the building where the high priest sits.
The high priest sits on a marble dais that is elevated on a stage above the congregation so that all may see and hear him easily. He wears robes of white with gold trim. On either side of the stage is a door; one that leads up to the bell tower, and another that leads downstairs. Beside the high priest is a staff made of brass, with a circular ring at the top. Four smaller rings line each side of the larger ring, with a green stone set at the joint.
In front of the high priest and below the stage, is a large granite statue of our mighty Tarj standing with his hands outstretched, palms facing up. In each hand is a brazier. On the left side, the brazier is full of a coarse salt substance. On the right side, the brazier contains smoldering coals. This is the grand centerpiece for the Loderite.
Two lesser priests, dressed in white robes with silver trim. Each holds an open-topped, brass thurible in their right hand, which is suspended by a thin chain. At the bottom of each thurible hangs a high quality, black silk cloth. Two paladins also stand to either side of the stage, and are there to maintain order and to guard the patrons.
At the sound of the 3rd bell toll and the closing of the doors, the high priest stands up from the dais and walks to the edge of the stage. He holds out his hands in welcome and everyone says aloud: “Glory of His knowledge and mind be upon us.”
After he greets the patrons, he retrieves the ringed staff beside the dais and, still standing at the edge of the stage, taps the bottom of the staff against the floor. The rings sound musically against one another, resounding clearly through the room.
The high priest and the congregation begin reciting the verses of the Sacred Lodestar together. After each line in each verse, the high priest taps the staff against the floor again, signaling the next line.
During this, the lesser priests come forward and approach the patrons sitting in the front-most seats of the semicircle. On the right side, the priest gestures with a circular motion with his left hand, signaling the patron to approach the statue.
The patron stands and walks forward, and with his right hand takes a pinch of salt from the left brazier. He drops it into the right brazier atop the burning coals, and a gout of smokeless green flame shoots up. This represents an attunement with Tarj, where a patron willingly receives and then sacrifices a catalyst, and through this accepts the burning desire of curiosity from Tarj, wherewith invigorates our search for knowledge.
This process is repeated for every patron, alternating to the left-side of the semicircle, then back to the right, until all patrons have performed the Loderite. The reciting also continues until this is completed. At least one reading of the Sacred Lodestar is performed, but in most churches there are enough patrons participating that it is recited multiple times. During the last Loderite flame and reading of the Sacred Lodestar, the sounds of the staff cease and the congregation disburses.
Penance in the Conclave
Some patrons may not wish to participate in the Loderite due to penance. If a patron chooses not to stand to take the Loderite, the lesser priest will brush the patron’s forehead with a black powder, or Mark of Antimon, before they move to the next patron. At the end of the proceedings, those who have the Mark of Antimon can remain in the building to speak with a priest, where the penance can be absolved and the mark is removed.