[Sca-cooks] OT- Peerage Oaths

Celia des Archier CeliadesArchier at cox.net
Tue Mar 24 14:15:01 PDT 2009


So, in other words, Atlantia is violating Society policy... they're just doing it like employers who get away with
anti-discrimination laws, by "good ole boy" rules?  I really don't know what to say to that.   

*Is* it unofficial policy?  The way folks were talking, it sounded like the BoD mandate that there be an option was official policy
that no one be inhibited from participation on the requirement to swear fealty.  I haven't read the Corpora lately, so I'm not sure.
But it would seem to me that the policy against religious discrimination would apply in the case of requiring an oath of fealty, so
"vetting" people well in advance to prohibit them from becoming a member of the Chivalry if they will not take an oath of fealty
amounts to religious discrimination, so it seems to me that they're going around a very important policy. Of course, I know from
personal experience that the part of Corpora which is intended to prevent religious discrimination can't actually prevent bigotry,
but at least it *should* prohibit it's occurring in such a systemized manner. 

I'm sorry... but what you're saying below is actually pretty shocking to me.  Taking an oath, any kind of oath, is something that
some people take very seriously, and I would expect a society based on Chivalry to understand that such a requirement would hit on
ethics or religious beliefs for many people.  So hearing that members of a Kingdom's Order of Chivalry within the SCA are
essentially skirting around non-discrimination policies to permit them to discriminate against people who might hold religious
beliefs or even just personal ethics which prevented them from taking an oath of fealty to a temporary and pretend monarch - well...
it's pretty shocking to me. 

I certainly wouldn't expect there to be a lot of people who would choose to become an MoA rather than a Knight/Dame, but I would
expect those who do to be people with very strong religious and/or ethical values... exactly the type of people whom we would *want*
in the Order of Chivalry. 

In Service, 
Celia.

-----Original Message-----
From: sca-cooks-bounces+celiadesarchier=cox.net at lists.ansteorra.org
[mailto:sca-cooks-bounces+celiadesarchier=cox.net at lists.ansteorra.org] On Behalf Of Terri Morgan
Sent: Tuesday, March 24, 2009 1:57 AM
To: 'Cooks within the SCA'
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] OT- Peerage Oaths

> So, does anyone belong to a Kingdom where they don't
> have Masters of Arms? Shoshonna, which Kingdom(s) do
> you understand not to acknowledge them?  


Atlantia, for one. If we have a Master of Arms, they are an import. There
have been loud and definite statements from many of our Knights that no MoA
would ever be made in this Kingdom - and from what I have observed,
candidates are vetted well in advance to ensure that they will swear fealty
come the day.

It's a pity, but one cannot force a change of unofficial policy on a group
of people - any Royal who'd try would be laying a huge burden on the
shoulders of the MoA as he (or she) (no, wait, we've never had a female
knight, either) would be shunned by a significant body of the Chivalry.

Hrothny


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