Light of the Raven Divine

"The feeling as it touched me was... beyond description. The darkness lost its grip on me and I burned brighter than a star. I let out a breath and a cry and then the raven let out its wings and lifted me from the ship, carrying me into the sky. As I rose, I could feel all of it falling away, all the darkness, all the evil, all the pain. I saw all of Northrend arrayed before me, and as I watched the sun rose, and the mountains were set ablaze. The ice began smoldering. The dark citadels of the dead cracked and then crumbled away. That's when I realized. I was not witnessing the sunrise. I was the dawn. The raven had carried me up the horizon to shine a light upon the damned, and I did. A thousand worlds, Abbendis, a thousand worlds ablaze in Holy Light, burning away every impurity, every speck of evil, and leaving behind only the faithful."

- Barean Westwind, Grand Admiral of the Scarlet Fleet

Few would contest that the Scarlet Crusade has perverted the teachings of the Light for their own ends, but even those among the Crusade fear and revile the Raven Conclave. It is perhaps better described as an offshoot religion of the Church of the Holy Light rather than a sect within it, as it introduces so many new tenets that it is hardly recognizable as the same faith. The most notable introduction is the recognition of a messiah figure known as the Raven - typically interpreted to be Grand Admiral Barean Westwind, the religion's founder - whose teachings and instructions supersede even the three pillars of the Church tradition. From this new openness to breaks in tradition, the Conclave welcomed shadow priests, oracles, warlocks, and even death knights into its ranks, often in leadership positions above more traditionally-minded Scarlet Light followers.

Background
The religion began in New Hearthglen, the Scarlet fortress in the Dragonblight, in 29 LC and spread rapidly amongst the ranks. It established its primary seat in Onslaught Harbor in Icecrown. With the Lich King's defeat and Westwind's mysterious disappearance, the religion's sudden growth was stopped short, and the Crusade began to return to its more traditional roots or turn towards more radical Light-oriented ideologies such as Truth. The Conclave's influence never spread far beyond Northrend; however, it still has many adherents amongst the survivors of the Scarlet Onslaught, and there are rumors that some of their membership has infiltrated the bastions of the "true" Light religions of the old world.

Principles
The Raven Conclave sees itself as simultaneously the true faith of the Light and a successor faith to the original Church. Its principles can vary widely from mainstream Light worship.

Differences
The Raven Conclave subordinates many of the traditional tenets of the Light faith to their new doctrine or discards them altogether. Strict adherence to the moral codes of the old church is considered secondary to the Light's grace; it is deemed more important to acknowledge the Light's supremacy, including its ability to endlessly forgive those who sin, and pursue its end goals at any cost.

The Conclave recognizes Barean Westwind as a divine or angelic being called the Raven, a messianic figure chosen by the Light to enlighten and lead the faithful. The Light is considered an omnipotent power, but it is the Raven that passes down Its worldly law.

Beliefs

 * Messianic Monotheism: The Raven Conclave believes the Light to be the one true power of the cosmos; however, they also believe that its power can manifest in a divinely chosen human called the Raven, who is in essence the Light's power and grace given form. The Raven is typically identified as Barean Westwind.
 * Salvation: The Raven Conclave believes that the Light grants salvation to the faithful, regardless of their obedience to the traditional tenets of the Light.
 * Predestination: The Raven Conclave believes in the inevitability of fate.

Concepts

 * Resurrection: The mark of the faithful amongst the Conclave is the embracing of one's "second life," typically literally. Converts are often killed - either in battle or in a ritual - and resurrected by powerful priests within the Conclave.
 * Amorality: The Conclave's belief in the Light's ultimate salvation often leads to their discarding of traditional morality; even the use of dark magic in pursuit of the Light's goals is justified, and its practitioners are forgiven so long as they practice in the Light's name, as the Light's grace is unending.

Holy Text
The Raven Conclave originally followed a simple revision of the Tome of Divinity, performed by Landgren, then considered the Archbishop of the Holy Church, at the behest of Barean Westwind. This revised Tome of Divinity remains a core text of this faith, as it is seen as both their bridge to the old faith and the few recorded words of the Raven himself. Those who follow this faith refer to this revised text simply as the Tome of Divinity. Scholars alternatively refer to it as the Raven Tome of Divinity and Westwind's Tome of Divinity, in order to differentiate it from the mainstream book.

There are rumors of a supplementary text, the Tome of Revelation, written by the current Raven Archon, Triana Brandt. However, as of yet, no proof has been found of its existence, and as such there is no consensus over its alleged contents.