"The Truth Will Set You Free" series of sermons presents sermon #002 on COMMITMENT and DEDICATION.

Main Entry: Commitment
Pronunciation: \k?-'mit-m?nt\
1 a: an act of committing to a charge or trust: as (1): a consignment to a penal or mental institution (2): an act of referring a matter to a legislative committee b: mittimus2 a: an agreement or pledge to do something in the future; especially : an engagement to assume a financial obligation at a future date b: something pledged c: the state or an instance of being obligated or emotionally impelled <a commitment to a cause>.

Main Entry: Dedication
Pronunciation: \?de-di-'ka-sh?n\
1 : an act or rite of dedicating to a divine being or to a sacred use 2 : a devoting or setting aside for a particular purpose 3 : a name and often a message prefixed to a literary, musical, or artistic production in tribute to a person or cause 4 : self-sacrificing devotion <her dedication to the cause> 5 : a ceremony to mark the official completion or opening of something (as a building).

SERMON #2

Honored Brothers and Sisters of Amarr and loyal subjects of the Empire. Today I speak to you about COMMITMENT and DEDICATION. While two different words they are closely intertwined and in essence are the same thing. While there are several meanings for each word as indicated above I will focus on the state of someone pledging to something as the topic of this sermon.

Commitment implies a heartfelt and loyal obligation to a particular goal or entity. In this case I will use the Amarrian Empire as the perfect example of "commitment". Those loyal Amarrians are committed to serving the Empire without question with all they possess. There is no other hidden agenda, no political office to lie for, no profit to be made that overrules the commitment between the Amarrian, the Empire and God.

Commitment also applies to things like morality and ideals. While everyone can claim to obey a set of ideals or support them it is clear oftentimes that many do not and instead pay only lip service to the ideals they claim they hold dear.

Ideals to the Amarr are the ideal of God and Empire, the ideal of obedience and honesty and hard work. The ideal that your word is your bond and all you do is for God and Empire. We of Amarr do not say one thing and do another. You do not look at an Amarrian and wonder what he will do rather you only need look at history and the commitment we all have to the Empire to know what we will do next.

Amarrian paramilitaries such as the CVA, PIE and VV have made enemies of pirates because they fight to keep space free for others to freely and safely travel. They hold true to the morals and ethics of Amarr that say "Pirates are evil and must be destroyed". Pirates know this and know the Amarrians will attack them if they are seen. You will not find an Amarrian paramilitary flying with a known pirate just because the pirate doesn't fire on him for example.

Why is that? Commitment to an ideal. The ideal that is the Amarrian Empire. The commentment that you do not sacrifice your ideals when its inconvenient and only support them once in a while.

Likewise the Amarrian paramilitaries would not pay ransom to a pirate. In the words of one famous Amarrian paramilitary leader "people who pay ransom to pirates should be shot just as the pirates are". Why? Because they support piracy and the chaos it brings with their payment. Amarrians hold dear the ideals of free travel and safe space for the law abiding citizens of the universe and recognize that this starts with punishing those who would facilitate enemies of the Empire.

Holding firm to an ideal even when its not the easy way out. Commitment. The Amarrian way.

Likewise Dedication plays into the equation. How dedicated are you to your ideal, your God, your Empire? How dedicated are you to your ethics and morality? Would you knowingly fly with a pirate because he happened to not fire on you? Would you pay a pirate knowing those funds would help him kill hundreds of others just to save your ship?

Certainly you can do those things but then it's clear you're dedicated to the ideal which states you have no cares for others, no consequence matters and you have no loyalty to anyone. This 'anything goes' mentality runs rampant in some other Empires and their decay shows why we Amarr must never fall to that level.

Commit yourself to your ideals. Dedicate your life to the ideals you hold dear and never betray them. If you say something mean it don't make excuses when you betray your ideals and say "oh well it doesn't matter much".

Those who constantly betray their ideals in the name of "the easy way out" aren't committed at all they are a farce. They are the liars and deceivers who use excuses to explain behavior which clearly is contradictory to their stated ideals. Seeing an Amarrian do such a thing would be a great crime in my opinion and would show they were never dedicated at all.

Commitment. Dedication. Two words to describe how you live your life and how you interact with others. Will you hold your commitment to your cause, your dedication to your God and Empire, will you hold firm and not take the easy way out even when it would be so much simpler?

Remember.... betray your ideals at your own risk. Make excuses you may but those around you see what you do and you will never be trusted again to speak the truth. Do not sacrifice your ideals and become a walking contradiction and a hypocrite who only follows ideals when its convenient. Hold firm and embrace your commitment and show your dedication with every act you perform.

God and Amarr expect no less.

Archbishop
PIE Priest