Abrigalasts

The Abrigalasts (from the Coscivian abris galastor, "submission/surrender to a higher authority") are a movement of Christian religious congregations characterised by their categorical rejection of politics - here defined not only as governmental affairs and elections, but all forms of contentious group decision-making, including in ecclesiastical matters. They are noted for their use of and, which they believe are the only Scripturally-prescribed method for resolving questions on which there is no clear religious teaching or group consensus. Abrigalasts embrace ideas such as and  in various forms.

Although it is currently unclear precisely where the movement began and who its founders may have been, the movement arose in Levantia sometime during the [17th or 18th] century AD, and gained popularity in certain remote rural areas of the continent. Suppression by Levantine Catholic state and clerical authorities were mostly successful, with most Abrigalasts reverting to Catholicism or going into exile in Kiravia or certain North Levantine countries such as Covinia.

Since its earliest recorded history, the Abrigalast movement has been extremely fissile, sundering into a great many sub-denominations over disputes such as the proper use and methods of, the degree to which Christians are called to abjure from interaction with human laws and governments and those who submit to them, and numerous other issues. Some moderate Abrigalasts, such as the First Submitting Church of Primóra, abstain from voting, military service, and contesting lawsuits, but otherwise abide by civil and administrative laws of the countries where they live. Other groups make greater efforts to avoid interaction with the temporal power, and may object to, land registration, and payment of taxes. The most extreme Abrigalast churches seek to live as free from civil authority as possible, and the Kiravian Health Executive estimates that there may over 1,000 radical Abrigalasts living completely in Rhuon and the Western Highlands to avoid civil registration and use of government roads or currency. Abrigalasts' drive to detach themselves from political society has pushed them to settle in many remote and inhospitable locations throughout Ixnay.

Church and Community Governance
There are two leadership offices in Abrigalast churches: Pastors and Bishops. Both pastors and bishops are chosen periodically by sortition from among the church's membership. Some churches allow women to be selected as pastors and fewer as bishops, but most do not. In all sub-denominations, the pastor's primary (often only) role is to supervise and officiate over the casting of lots. In congregations that handle money, the pastor is typically responsible for taking up collection and taking care of the proceeds. In many churches, the pastor may also have some role in leading or organising prayer services, and in more liturgically-oriented churches the pastor's role may superficially resemble that of a Catholic priest. A bishop's primary responsibility is to supervise the sortition of pastors, though they usually have other unofficial duties. In "Abiding churches" (those that obey manmade laws but abstain from politics), pastors and bishops may also be responsible for administrative tasks such as signing documents and cheques on behalf of the church.

Pastors select lectors, doorkeepers, ushers, etc. by sortition.

Currents within Abrigalastism

 * Bracketism

Covina and Suderavia
There were an estimated 9,000 Abrigalasts living in Covina in 1990 AD, down from a peak of around 30,000 in 18XX. Covina was a major destination for Abrigalasts fleeing persecution in South Levantia, and the refugees were welcomed by the Covine government, which sought settlers willing to cultivate some of the country's more marginal lands. The largest concentration were found on the island of Suderavia, where many lived in the island's mountainous, inhospitable interior.

After Suderavia won independence from Covina in the 1990s and was subsequently integrated with the Kiravian Federacy, the new state passed laws borrowed from Serikorda to accommodate the Abrigalasts and provide civil administration for their settlements conflicting minimally with their beliefs. Most Suderavian Abrigalasts do not respond to the Federal Census, but there are estimated to be about 5,000, with around 60% living in Abrigalast settlements. Although they are mainly of Levantine ancestry, Suderavian Abrigalasts have spoken Suderavian Coscivian as their native language for centuries.

Kiravian Federacy
The oldest, largest, and most stable Abrigalast communities are located in the mountains of Serikorda State, living in six villages. However, over the past century the Sortitionist villages of Serikorda have experienced gradual decline due to attrition from the movement and emigration of members to other areas.

Kiravian Crona
Abrigalasts of Kiravian origin have lived in Crona for centuries, often arriving far ahead of formal colonisation initiatives. In 16whatever, twenty Abrigalast families from Serikorda's Rapperen community settled in Porfíria. Congregational fissions and population pressure spurred the migration of people descended from these settlers to form several generations of daughter communities on the advancing frontiers of Kiravian Cusinaut. Anouther founder population of Abrigalasts departed Suderavia in 1734 and settled in the Green River Colony.