Editing Imperial Cult (section)

===Specific variants of the Imperial Cult===
At mentioned there is a huge variation of the sects and subsects of the Imperial Cult, many of which are officially sanctioned, others less so, and just because an expression of faith is considered heretical or unofficial does make them any less of a faithful servant of the Emperor than the next belief structure. Though some of the bloodier cults are more susceptible to corruption than others.

*'''Confederation of Light:''' aka the "[[Ecclesiarchy]] proper" from M36 onwards. The Emperor sacrificed himself for you and that you should feel bad about it and follow the penitent principles of poverty, generosity and humility. Also heavily linked to the principles of [[Inquisition|Thorianism]]: that the <s>Holy Ghost</s> Emperor can work through inspired individuals and give rise to the [[Living Saint]]s. What the average Imperial who has regular contact with the Adeptus Terra will be believing in as the vast majority of humans never leave their home planet (also home sub-sector or sector if they are temporarily conscripted) and worship one of the many variations.
*'''[[Temple Tendency|Temple of the Saviour Emperor]]''': The old Ecclesiarchy from M32-M36. If the Emperor is a god, and the Ministorum are his divinely appointed agents, then the Ministorum should get all the power and wealth. This belief was directly responsible for causing the barrel of laughs that was the [[Age of Apostasy]]. Some still believe in this doctrine, though they keep their mouths shut very tightly if they don't want a trip to the gallows.
*'''[[Cult of the Redemption]]:''' The Emperor sacrificed himself for your sins, therefore mankind needs saving from its sinfulness; PURGE IT WITH FIRE! Considered too extreme and fanatical for mainstream doctrine, though tolerated as they are willing to go to insane lenghts no normal can handle to squash heretics and aliens.
*'''[[Death Cult Assassin|Death Cults]]:''' There is no single "Death Cult", though most share the common belief that since the Emperor sacrificed himself for your sins, that debt needs to be repaid with sacrifices of Death, Blood or Pain, often in combination. This means their adherents are almost universally incredibly deadly since even the lowest layperson is likely to be able to gut you in any number of imaginative ways. Regularly found engaging heretics in a crusade. The cults who take it too far are susceptible to Chaos corruption.
*'''Cult of the Pure Form:''' Takes the doctrine of human purity very seriously. They believe that any tampering with the human body is a corruption and therefore oppose the [[Adeptus Mechanicus]] and reject any form of mechanical augmentation to the point that they will even rip it out of themselves after converting to the faith and causing themselves severe physical trauma. Considering even the most fanatical Sister of Battle can have bionics, this is pretty stupid.
*'''Cult of the Emperor Revenant:''' almost indistinguishable from the mainstream Imperial Cult aside from its focus how the Emperor gained immortality/divinity through his martyrdom. Most servants of the Ministorum can't see a difference between this and "proper" doctrines, although this belief serves as the basis for several [[Death Cult Assassin|Death Cults]] and Funerary Sects.
**'''Night Cult''' also called the ''Temple of the True Resurrection'' in different locations. Believes that you can also gain immortality in death just like the Emperor, but attempts various methods to make it actually happen, including [[Zombie|raising the dead]] through [[Sorcerer (Warhammer 40,000)|sorcerous]] or [[Heretek|technological means]]. Understandably, the Inquisition and Ecclesiarchy take dim views on this matter.
*'''Cult of the Dead Emperor.''' Main antagonist in the Horusian War first book, they believe that for the Emperor to truly ascend to his divine form, he should die and get freed from his limbo-like-cage. Yeeeeeaaahh... considering what would happen to Terra if this [[Eye of Terror|ever happen]], you can understand that they are usually spited by the Inquisition or almost any other cult, many times be labelled as heretics.
*'''Space Marine Chapter Cults:''' Most Space Marine Chapters reject the Imperial Cult ''(often with with extreme prejudice and gratuitous violence)'' and do not consider the Emperor to be a God, holding instead to local forms of the Imperial Truth doctrine. The Emperor is their father and creator, and told them with his own words that there are no gods, so it must be so; any Ecclesiarch who thinks otherwise can eat a powerfist sacrament. Thus they are not actually compatible with the Imperial Creed, though individual Chapters occasionally have "He wasn't a god then but is now." as a compromise. In the process of seeking candidates, Chaplains frequently spread a crude veneration of the Emperor as a powerful fatherly figure for humanity among the primitives of their chapter homeworlds. However in the very rare cases of chapters based on developed Imperial worlds, they must begrudgingly tolerate the Ecclesiarchy's presence and break their inductees of its indoctrination.
*'''Imperial Savior Cults:''' Also called '''Hero Cults''', these are cults formed around people who have saved planets from disaster or destruction. The followers mainly perform rituals that mirror their idols actions and burn (accused) heretics, mutants, and witches as all good Imperial Cult sects do. Obviously the Inquisition and other authorities keep suspicious tabs on such cults to ensure they don't stray too far from accepted doctrines.
**'''The Cult of [[Ollanius Pius]]:''' Without a doubt the largest hero cult throughout the Imperium. Saint Ollanius Pius is revered by most Imperial Guard regiments for dying heroically against an impossibly powerful foe to ensure victory. The Ministorum remains divided on the sainthood (and existence) of the man himself, but they've made no effort to suppress his cult. Guard chaplains routinely extol him as the ideal of the Imperial soldier: selfless, loyal, and unflinching in his service to the Emperor.

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[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Imperial]]