Hello readers, Lily here. In this week’s discussion, we ask a big question: Do elves believe in God?
Fiona said Crimson elves tend to have other things on their mind and “don’t bother with that worshiping business”. But she directed me to some elves that do.
So I invited Preacher Grey (human), Thylia Tawse (fiend), and Aroish (valari). Here is what happened:
Discussion: Do Elves Believe in God?
Grey: When you invited me to the Scroll I thought I would just share the truth with your readers. You see, it’s important we humans keep our beliefs, even us who live in elf lands. I didn’t expect you to invite them… Though I’m, of course, happy to share the good word with these elves too. Are you familiar with God?
Thylia: We would call your god Fire, but I’m familiar with him.
Grey: Fire? An apt name, if a little simple, I think. God is the lord of so much more than just fire. He is the one and only, master of all the world.
Aroish: If I might disagree already, young human, he is not the only one. There are three Successors, the younger gods; Fire, Change, and Death. Not to mention the Primordials. Change is the one I serve, goddess of fate, the future, and the odd.
Grey: No no, my child, you must be confusing some of the great evils for gods. The evils which God defeated and will defeat again, should they ever return.
Thylia: Defeated, did he? The great war wasn’t a defeat for Death, but a triumph. Never have so many lives ended.
Aroish: War is a time of transformation, which is all Change wants. Fire was the one to disappear before the war could conclude. But you speak as if you don’t know the gods, human. Have you even met your own god?
Grey: What are you talking about? God is transcendent and incorporeal. One does not meet him, you feel his presence through the old texts and prayer. Are you claiming to have met your so-called “god”, this “Change” character?
Aroish: Of course I have, she dwells deep beneath the sea, and on occasion one of me has had the honor.
I met your god, too. Annoying one, that Fire, if I’m honest. Never shuts up about his righteousness and cleansing the world with flame. He even killed a few of me, quite rude really.
Grey: You are speaking heresy. I can’t listen to this. What about you then? Thylia, is it? Do you agree with this nonsense? Or have you met your “god” too?
Thylia: I speak to Death regularly.
Grey: In prayer? Maybe we, at least, have something in common. Prayer is very important to my belief too. I’m glad we can agree on something.
Thylia: No, she shows up and we chat over some cake. Well… I eat most of the cake, seeing she is more of a floating skull… and only consumes souls…
Grey: This is getting ridiculous. Do you invite the real God, “Fire”, to your little tea party too, do you?
Thylia: We don’t get along. I am sworn to kill him after all. And I nearly… I mean, not me… My great-grandmother fought him in the War of Suns, so long ago.
Grey: Completely mad, the both of you. You are following evil beings! Please let me show you the good righteous way of the light. It’s not too late to save this world if we all just trust in God!
Aroish: That’s almost cute, he thinks Fire is good.
Thylia: All gods are evil, I thought that was pretty obvious.
Grey: Are you really going to print this in the paper Lily? I can not in good conscience be part of this. You should not be speaking to these evil-worshipers. A good human follows God.
I’m leaving.
Lily: Well, I guess that is the end of the discussion.
Thylia: I told you, Aro – not even you can change the mind of a stubborn human… Right, so who’s up for some cake?
Aroish: Oh, I’ll have one!
According to Elven Legend
Three Primordials
According to Elven legend, there are the three primordials, the ever-present forces that sustain reality: Mother Life, Father Time, and Seer Darkness. Though widely worshiped, not much is known about them, it’s not even clear if they are sentient. As far as we know, they never directly interact with mortals, which makes the stories told about them questionable, legends are all we have to go by.
Three Successors
It is said the primordials could not walk the mortal realm, so they created children to inherit the world they made. Two daughters they had, one taking after her father and the other taking after her mother. But Darkness, in secret, made the souls of both her daughters favor her.
Life and Time realized too late they had created their opposites; Death was consuming the living, and Change was disobeying the past, but no one was opposing the slow encroachment of Darkness.
In a last act of creation, Life and Time created a third child, a secret child. Their intention was to create light to restore balance. Though their creation burned too bright and Fire was born.
Artwork: The Successor Gods
This is an artist’s impression of the three Successor gods, depicted as described in the elven legends, each carrying the gifts given to them by their Primordial parents.
Change is by far the hardest to depict, as accounts of her appearance vary from source to source.
In human mythology, Fire is depicted in a much more human form and is often called simply “God.”
