On Clerics

So, there is something that somewhat bothers me about Clerics as a class, and their inclusion into a generic fantasy world. Your usual fantasy world is stuck somewhere in medieval stasis, which is all well and good for adventuring campaigns/fantasy stories, but runs into two stumbling blocks when it relates to Clerics.

The Problems with Clerics

1) Monolithic Monotheistic Churches: medieval history and society in Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa were dominated by largely hierarchical organised monotheistic religions. These churches which were not only incredibly influential in the modes of thought and conception of the universe to their various congregations, but were also political powers in their own rights. These religious institutions, along with the political formations, and cultural trappings, are integral to the medieval setting. The village priest is a stock character right up to the modern day, being a hub of social, spiritual, and moral connectivity in a pre-industrial rural community. As well, the network of higher priests with an institution enmeshed in the political structure of the world. Monotheism is almost as important an element to this, for although such organised cults as the Roman state religion were wide ranging, political, and hierarchical,  they did not have the same view of exclusive monopoly of belief as existed in the medieval world.

Sure, you could demand that all cleric players play as priests of your Crystal Dragon Jesus, and some players may be fine with that, but what if someone wants to worship the Greek Pantheon, or Cthulhu, or themselves? Part of the fun of playing a cleric (at least I think) is having a god of your own.

Not to say that making all of this compatible with the medieval ethos isn't doable, you just need to be conscious of it. A big shout to Ten Foot Polemic and Goblin Punch on their descriptions of polytheistic religions that can include new gods, yet still take up the cultural space of the Catholic Church.

2) Clerical Healing: I think it is often hard for people to recognise how far advanced modern medicine has become even in the last few generations. Antibiotics for example; Calvin Coolidge Jr. died of a blood blister from wearing shoes without socks, whilst his father was US President! One of the most powerful men in the world could not save his own son from just dying from something you would not even need to go to the hospital for these days, and that was less than 100 years ago, they already had powered flight and automobiles and Tommy-Guns!

Clerical healing is pretty much the first thing that Clerics learn to do, it is why they are super-useful after all,so if these are low-level priests within whatever church hierarchy they inhabit,  then every hamlet large enough to have a shrine or small chapel has better healthcare than the majority of people in the modern world. I can guarantee that if instant healing was only a few thoughts and prayers away at all times, we would probably be a lot more reckless. It sort of breaks the balance of the merieval setting is what I am saying.

"But Tim," I hear you cry, "why not just limit healing spells to high ranked priests?"

That's you. That's what you sound like.

First of all: shut up, second of all: if our First-Level Cleric is already a highly ordained priest in their religion, what the hell are they doing slumming it with these vagabond mercenary rat-catcher types that are the other reprobates at first level? Now, Clerics as a class fill a pretty valuable niche in the dungeon delving economy, so it seems a bit reckless to throw out healing magics altogether, however if we are to keep the medieval milieu we must perforce abandon the idea that Clerics are what people generally expect from Priests.

What if Clerics weren't Priests?

What if they were directly visited by their God(s)? Let us default to Christianity/Catholicism/Islam as the rule of the land, an established order with spiritual guidance for all. Then  suddenly, out of fucking nowhere, some random schlub decides he's on a mission from God! First off, if it isn't the main monotheistic God, that shit ain't gonna fly. Secondly, even if you were a devout follower, even priest, if you wake up one day and say "God spoke to me and she says I should do this" Well excuse me, are you the Pope? Are you the Caliph? Who are you to go spouting off these non-doctrinally approved pronouncements? Now having random madmen, heretics, and unbelievers running around is one thing, but what if they actually do perform miracles?

Living breathing miracle workers would be a real problem to an established Church. If you have someone performing miracles in the name of a heretical God you could at least claim it was witchcraft and evil. However if it is in the name of the Church's own God, but with a challenge to established Dogma, that sounds like the recipe for reformation. I mean, as far as I know Martin Luther didn't even perform one miracle and look how that turned out.

No doubt someone is about to bring up the rejoinder of the wonderfully medieval hagiographic tradition: what about saints?

Tired overdone internet memes are even funnier when you repeat them in the same article

Well, let me just point out that one of the things that all Saints have in common, is that they are dead. So it is fine to have someone who is known to have done miracles, demonstrating the undeniable power of your God, but you want them safe in the ground rather than spouting off whatever non-dogma approved nonsense they might come up with like that God doesn't want Kings; or that the rich should give away all their money; or that all debts shall be forgiven, all slaves freed, and no-one shall work.


On A Mission From God

So if Clerics are established as borderline crazy people, in opposition to organized religious bodies, and in possession of a unique connection to the divine whilst wandering the world with disreputable adventurers and murder-hobos, what is it that drives them? Simple: a divine mandate, a mission from God(s).

Pretty much what I was thinking, but in tired overdone internet meme form!

I think it is perfectly reasonable for a Cleric to be entirely driven by a divine quest (alternately, repeatedly badgered by incessant voices in their heads telling them where they must go and what they must do), or to be given the occasional objective: Find the Holy Grail, Reconquer Jerusalem, Save the Orphanage with a Blues Concert, End the Human-Cylon War, etc. Especially since all the Cleric powers come, ostensibly, from this divine connection, it could be argued that there is some quid-pro-quo going on. Add to this that Gods move in mysterious ways beyond the mortal ken, the objective may not be readily apparent to the Cleric; "You must defeat the Sorcerer King Garash" may be just as important a task as "You must eat nothing but eggs for one week" In fact, the more inexplicable the quest, the closer it is to confusing whether the Cleric is actually a conduit for the divine on the mortal plane, or a crazy person with magic powers.