A - Z Challenge: E is for Excommunication and also for Eddings, David

is for

 EXCOMMUNICATION

        PART I:

        WHAT IS IT? 

Excommunication is a religious censuring of a person or group. [1] It certainly isn't when your drunken ex rings you in the middle of the night, again. [2] What actually happens when a person is excommunicated varies in each religion and depends on the various rules of the Church and the seriousness of the events. In the Catholic Church there are two different kinds of excommunication. The first is automatic which starts from the moment of the offense and the second is either imposed by a legitimate superior or a sentence of an ecclesiastical court. 

        WHERE DO YOU GET IT?

The short answer is from a church. The long answer is that you've actually got to be caught [3] doing something that breaks the Church Law. What actually breaks Church law? That's what you've got to find out for yourself [4] 

        USING IT IN REAL LIFE: 

To the disapointment of many you can't just go around excommunicating people for littering or not cleaning up after their dogs. [5] There is an official process that a person must go through before excommunication is a) an option and b) made official. 
History has given us many occurrences of people being excommunicated: Saint Jehanne la Pucelle [6] by Bishop Pierre Cauchon in 1431 
Martin Luther in 1520 by the Pope [7] 
Elizabeth 1 of England in 1570 
All Catholics who participated in the creation of an independent church in the Philipines in 1902

        USING IT IN WRITING: 

 It's a fact that wherever you have a large organization you are going to have all sorts of internal politics, cliques, nepotism, blackmail, espionage, deliberate sabotage and, if things are really going downhill, nights of the long knives. 
 Excommunication or even the threat of it can be a devasting weapon in the wrong hands and properly used it can be an extra level of threat for the hero and an ultimate punishment for the villain. 


It might be used in the following situations: 
The hero disobeys the village priest and sets out on his journey. 
Perhaps a particular ceremony doesn't happen due to circumstances that are totally beyond the characters control. 
Someone is not following the proscribed rituals and this has been noted.
Is there a ban on a particular type of food? [8] To be fair if eating something is going to get you kicked out then it had better be on the scale of cannibalism.

        MIGHT ONE CONQUER THE WORLD WITH IT?

        PART II:

E

is also for

EDDINGS, DAVID

David Eddings Belgariad Series is a very good series of books  and David Eddings is a very good writer.  You don't need to know more than that.  Go read his stuff and send me a dollar if I'm wrong.


There are five books in the series with Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress acting as a prologue and overview of the entire series while still working as stand along novels.

The reader follows Garion on an epic journey through life as he learns to cope with the revelation that, not only is he the long hidden heir to the Rivan throne but he's a sorcerer in his own right and also the instrument of an ancient prophecy.

It's alot for young shoulders and he does stumble along the way.  But his decent nature [9] and the guiding hand of his aunt Polgara sees him through many difficult situations until he finally comes face to face with Torak, the maimed and mad god of the Angaraks.

These books are a good read and I would recommend them to anyone who wants some high adventure before bed [10]

        NOTES:

1. This leans heavily on Catholicism mainly because I've been using the Catholic Inquisition as the basis of my own church in Harts Change. But many other churches have excommunicated people for a variety of reasons.
2. I recognize that this is a serious topic but I've been sitting on that one since forever.
3. Or come forward voluntarily
4. Almost gave out some useful advice there. Won't make that mistake again by crikey!
5. If you want that kind of power then you should look into moderating internet forums.
6. Known aliases: Joan of Arc
7. Presumably he was also presented with a bill for repairs to the church door.
8. Oh please let it be spinach.
9. a direct result of being brought up in Sendar, a region known for sensible people.
10. If you're reading this series to the very young you might want to edit the bits with the Nyssians.

The Enthusiastic Elephant,
who ferried himself across the water with the
Kitchen Poker and a New pair of Ear-rings.