Editing Unfinished Book Movement

{{Otheruses|the quasi-religious order|the BattleTechWiki Project|BattleTechWiki:Project Unfinished Book}}

{{InfoBoxOrganization
| image = 
| Type = Religious Organizations
| Founded = 
| Dissolved = 
| Parent Organization = [[Federated Suns]]
| Headquarters = 
}}
The '''Unfinished Book Movement''' is a spiritual organization, formed in [[2956]] and located in the [[Federated Suns]], that seeks to combine the wisdom of multiple faiths in one overarching work (referred to as the ''[[Unfinished Book]]''), based on the original goal of its founder to promote total peace through collaboration of interfaith religious study.<ref name=HD:UBM>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 117 (PDF p. 119): "Unfinished Book Movement"</ref>

[[File:Unfinished Book Movement.jpg|right|thumb|Leaders of the Unfished Book Movement examine in a circle round]]

==History==
Father [[Jasper Ovidon]] of [[Delphos]] sought permission from Prince [[Peter Davion (30th c.)|Peter Davion]] in [[2955]] to form a council of religious leaders (emulating the example of the [[Lyran]] [[Commonwealth Religious Council]]), with the intention of developing peaceful communication between the realm's various faiths. The initial request was backed by the [[New Avalon Catholic Church]] and members of the Davion nobility. The group was named the [[Federated Inter-Faith Congress]] and Father Ovidon was designated the first [[Chairman Elder]] the following year.<ref name=HD:UBM/><ref name=HBHD:UBM>''Handbook: House Davion'', pp. 146–147: "Unfinished Book Movement"</ref>

[[File:Handbook House Davion Panel 3 of 4@640x480.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Various faiths' religious leaders examine a volume of the ''Unfinished Book'']]

The first project of the congress to be published was the ''Unfinished Book'', a ten-volume collection of scripture from numerous religions, released in [[2959]].<ref name=HD:UBM/><ref name=HBHD:UBM/> It received its name from the concept that spiritual wisdom was extremely vast and therefore the project would take an undetermined amount of time to accumulate it in totality. Father Ovidon held the belief that if the project could be completed, then all of humanity would enjoy peaceful coexistence, either from divine intervention or possibly from the intellectual elevation of mankind.<ref name=HD:UBM/>  

The first edition of the ''Unfinished Book'' became a bestseller within the Federated Suns and resulted in numerous people from all faiths and philosophies volunteering their services to the congress, challenged by the idea of completing the project. Following the death of Ovidon in [[2966]], the project continued under the leadership of Lama [[Potec]]. As of [[3028]], the movement had become quite large, with a determined following that seemed like a quasi-religious order in structure. Younger members proudly wore a symbol of the movement that depicted an open book set against the [[:File:Federated_Suns_Logo.png | Federated Sunburst]]. The accumulation of the various groups of people involved defied categorization or description, with even religious faith not exhibited as a prerequisite; political views and social classes are as widely represented as the bases of faith.<ref name=HD:UBM/> Unfinished Book Movement members were free to take what tenets they desired. Different faith communities had their own organizational structures within the movement, with some overlap.<ref name=S7TWH>''Shrapnel Issue #7'', "The Winter Holiday"</ref>

[[ComStar]] exhibited some concern over development of the Unfinished Book Movement, due to the perceived competition in the pool for spiritual-based candidates, indicating that some potential recruits were swayed away from their [[Terra]]-based organization. Further apprehension was leveled at the political sway the movement had started demonstrating, with such examples as the appointing of qualified Congressional priests as the official chaplains of the Davion military and published articles written by the Movement questioning the purposes of ComStar, with less than complimentary descriptions. The unease felt by ComStar manifested in protests to the Davion government, though they were reportedly not addressed to their satisfaction.<ref name=HD:UBM/> 

The Jewish faith was debating joining the Federated Inter-Faith Congress in 3028 (and continued the debate into [[3067]]), due to the reluctance some conservative faithful had over the perceived synthesis of the major religions by the Movement, though the liberal Jews were welcoming of the notion that greater discourse bred understanding.<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 115 (PDF p. 117): "Judaism"</ref><ref>''Handbook: House Davion'', p. 146: "Judaism"</ref> Similarly, by [[3067]], some Christian denominations that had felt God's influence would be destroyed by the efforts of the Movement had combined to form the [[Christian Faith Council]].<ref>''Handbook: House Davion'', p. 145: "Christianity"</ref>

==Holidays and Celebrations==
The Unfinished Book Movement built its own secular events and holidays. An early example was the [[Winter Holiday]], started in [[2957]] in honor of the first anniversary of the Inter-Faith Congress. The festival, eventually covering December 17th through 27th, drew from a wide range of wintertime holidays and celebrations, and was revised over time to incorporate additional religions inclusively.<ref name=S7TWH/>

==Other examples of influence==
* [[Hanse Davion]]'s coronation in [[3013]] utilized a new fifth edition of the ''Unfinished Book'' for the swearing of his oath, rather than the traditional Christian ''Bible''. This demonstration led to a large increase in numbers, many from upper levels of society and government.<ref name=HD:UBM/><ref name=HBHD:UBM/>
* By no later than [[3028]], the [[Knights of the Federated Suns]] carried volumes of the ''Unfinished Book'' during formal ceremonies in the [[Cathedral of Notre Dame]] in [[Avalon City]].<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 156 (PDF p. 158): "Knights of the Federated Suns"</ref>
* By [[3067]], hybrid offshoots of Hinduism had brought their beliefs into the Movement.<ref>''Handbook: House Davion'', p. 145: "Hinduism"</ref>
* The Unfinished Book Movement opened learning centers throughout the worlds of the Federated Suns.<ref name=HBHD:UBM/>
* The Unfinished Book is briefly referenced by [[Erik Sandoval-Groell]] on [[Achernar]] in [[3133]].<ref>''A Call To Arms'', p. 113</ref>

==Known Adherents==
* [[Eric Hughes]] is presumed to have once belonged to the movement, before his engagement with the [[Word of Blake]] against [[Clan Nova Cat]] forces on [[Luthien]], in August [[3072]].<ref name=JTPL>''Jihad Turning Points: Luthien'', p. 1: "Manifest Destiny"</ref>

==Publications==
A subsidiary of the Unfinished Book Movement was its publishing arm, the [[Unfinished Book Press]], located on [[New Avalon]], which published a number of books, including:
* ''[[Atrocities Away from the Battlefield]]'', by Father [[Ryan Ramon]] ([[3001]])<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 61 (PDF p. 63): "The Purge"</ref>
* ''[[True Tales and Popular Stories]]'', by Father Ryan Ramon ([[3010]])<ref>''House Davion (The Federated Suns)'', p. 67 (PDF p. 69): "The Talon Sergeant and the Prostitute"</ref>

==References==
<references />

==Bibliography==
* ''[[Handbook: House Davion]]''
* ''[[House Davion (The Federated Suns)]]''
* ''[[Jihad Turning Points: Luthien]]''
* ''[[Shrapnel Issue 7]]''

[[Category:Religious Organizations|Unfinished Book Movement]]