Omnists (Faith of Omnu)



Like most of the Pantheon, Omnu has a religious cult dedicated to his values. Omnu himself is one of the Trinity, the most powerful and popular gods and their cults. Omnu is one of the gods who has regularly and publicly called paladins (Hands).

Omnu is the God of the Sun, Life, and Peace. These values manifest themselves in different ways and are sometimes in conflict. Different orders which pray to Omnu give different emphasis to the importance of the values.

The Dawn Council
The Cult of Omnu is more centralized than most other Pantheon cults. Other Pantheon cults do not necessarily exercise control or supervision over worshippers of their gods on other continents such as Sifan, Shengdu, Glassiere. In constrast, the cult of Omnu centralized for all its different orders. Even minor orders of Omnists, rather than the 7 formally recognized orders, adhere to the central body. The central administration is the Dawn Council, which is composed of the heads (appointed or elected) of the seven recognized orders who follow Omnu.

Currently, the Dawn Council is composed of: -Grandmaster Niontu (a human from Onkawa)--Cultivator Order -Grandmaster Eshii (a plain elf)--Radiant Order -Grandmaster Laura Mueller (a human from Stalwar)--Briar Order -Grandmaster He--Open Hand Order -Grandmaster Srivastariphan--Golden Book Order -Grandmaster Vadyevitch--Preservers Order -Grandmaster Akili--Keepers Order Among non-Omnists, the Dawn Council in particular has a reputation for being stuffy, lethargic, and steeped in doctrinal and dogmatic issues. In discussing divisions amongst the cults, Bishop Darling once told Tobias Caine that the Dawn Council was "too holy" to stir themselves to care about actions of his which might have reflected poorly upon the cult. In remarking to Trissiny Avelea, Tobias Caine noted that the Dawn Council were generally inclined to inactivity, "bowing to inevitablility" after "wait[ing] to be certain what that is."

Traditions of Omnists
Omnists are by reputation, quiet and unobtrusive people with a pacifist streak. Vesk, a Pantheon God, once described Omnists as insufferably nice. They are also widely regarded, even by other faiths, for their diplomacy and peace-making abilities. Their careful and polite manners are exhibited to all they encounter. The Omnists have a strong service principle providing, for example, homeless shelters and food pantries. They are generally simple and straightforward sorts, with little regard for station or ceremony. They are also well reputed for equanimity under pressure and for their habit of feedings people, especially strangers.

Omnists monks are known for being humble, for being industrious, for working in the field with plants. Their humanitarian services, especially following crisis like the battle of Ninkabi, are a critical cornerstone of their cult. Omnist vegetable stew, although very bland like Omnists themselves, is filling and well known for being easy to make, inoffensive, and plentiful.

Omnist temples are traditionally ziggurats.

Scyllith, one of the surviving members of the Infinite Order (the Elder Gods), derided Omnism as a particular irony. Referencing Omnu as her gardner, she indicated that Omnu's faith was a " half-understood Zen/Sufi/Taoist/Jedi goulash."

The Omnists are represented in several different orders. Izara once noted to Tobias Caine that some of the traditions of Omnist are pacifist while others are peace-inclined martial artists.

The seven recognized traditions are:


 * -Briars. A smaller group of survivalists.  Derided as vegetarian Shaathists, they are an order of wanderers who help out in rural places.
 * -Radiants. The Omnist tradition of magic.  Generally a more proactive bunch.
 * -Open Hand. Martial artists who originated the Sun Style of combat.  This group has a very strong tradition of piety and respect for one's masters.
 * -Golden Book. Derided as poor man's Nemitites, this group has a scholarly inclination and is dedicated to preserving knowledge.
 * -Keepers. The meditative tradition of Omnists. Generally provide support services to other Omnists, with a more monastic and cloistered tradition of staying in or near temples.  They wear robes like the Cultivators.
 * -Preservers. The Omnist sect most inclined to healing. They minister to other Omnists, but like the Keepers are generally not independent or proactive.  The are also more cloistered than other Omnist orders.
 * -Cultivators. A sect heavily concerned with agriculture and service to others. Frequently adherents of this sect minister in food pantries and homeless shelters.  Perhaps the prototypical and best known version of Omnists, their formal robes are well known as the appearance of Omnu's cult.

There are other sects and traditions which are not formally recognized. Most unrecognized Omnist sects are small. Nonetheless they are not to be underestimated for their contribution, such as the Sunset Way Sect a strongly pacifist tradition which produced Chang Zi, a Hand of Omnu who did not accomplish much but strived to lead by example.