The Bucket Saints ¶

Deity	The Bucket Saints (Sfinții Găletari)
Image
Members	Radu and Bianca
Religion	Ciupitism
Domain	Buckets
Feast Day	25 April

The Bucket Saints (Romanian: Sfinții Găletari), also called the Saints of Buckets, are two of the saints of Ciupitism and the patron saints of the Way of the Bucket and the town of Enada. Known in their mortal lives as Radu Găletaru and Bianca Găletaru, they are called the Bucket Saints because they have made all the buckets the world needs and are on a mission to fill the world with them and use them to drain the oceans.

They preach the virtues of humility, simplicity, and charity, as well as advocating the use of buckets in daily life.

Beliefs ¶

The Bucket Saints are named as such because they have crafted all the buckets a world needs, and have thus ascended to sainthood. Their ultimate goal is to fill the entire world with buckets and use them to drain the oceans. Bucket Saint Radu is known in Romanian as Sfântul Găletar Radu, while Bucket Saint Bianca is known as Sfânta Găletăreasă Bianca.

Buckets made by the saints are considered sacred and irreplaceable. Radu is the principal bucket-maker, while Bianca is the only one who can craft buckets as great as his. She aids Radu in bucket-making: he crafts the buckets, and she fills them with water.

One popular saying associated with Radu is: "Nobody can make greater buckets or uglier houses than Radu".

Practices ¶

The principal Ciupitist concept associated with the Bucket Saints is the Way of the Bucket. Followers can offer iron ore, iron nuggets, or iron ingots to the Bucket Saints by leaving them in any container in their homes. These offerings help Radu and Bianca craft more buckets and advance their final goal.

Followers are forbidden from ever crafting buckets themselves. Whenever they require one, they must obtain a bucket made by Radu or Bianca. They must also take great care of each bucket and use it for as long as possible, because every bucket they receive denies another person a bucket and delays Radu and Bianca from achieving their goal.

The Bucket Network ¶

All buckets are connected to each other. When filled with water, or with many other liquids, though not all, they act similarly to a palantir. Radu and Bianca can see through all buckets, even empty ones.

Mortals who are holy and worthy enough can access this network. The Bucket Priests (Romanian: Preoții Găletari) use it to communicate with each other, although doing so is difficult. To establish a stable connection to the Bucket Network, they fill their buckets with water harvested from the lake in Enada, as close as possible to Radu's lake house.

The holiest priests source their water from a spring-like patch of water that Radu raised above the rest of the lake, where it remains suspended in defiance of gravity. This is considered one of the Acts of Wonder of Ciupitism and the Way of the Bucket.

History ¶

The Bucket Saints originate in Enada, a city in the Brotherhood of the United Blocks, in the early 2020s. Their sainthood was revealed through the discovery of the bucket hoard, Radu's bucket-making works, and his connection to the Lost City of Găletida.

Time of Plundering ¶

During their time on the MineBerry server, an era known as the Time of Plundering, Radu and Bianca became known as capable raiders in the then-lawless Enada. They dismantled other players' homes in search of resources, and buckets repeatedly accumulated in their inventories despite not being their intended quarry. The clergy of the Pinched Church later interpreted this pattern as divine intervention.

Canonisation ¶

Radu and Bianca were canonised within Ciupitism in March 2023. During the nationalisation of resources in Enada, Mib Boby and Hori discovered a great hoard of buckets spread across many containers in the properties of Radu Găletaru and Bianca Găletaru.

The discovery came as a shock. Mib Boby and Hori could not initially comprehend why so many buckets had been collected, but eventually realised their purpose. The inventory contained 44 buckets, a number considered mystically excessive because a single bucket normally suffices. Following the Bucket Census of 27 March 2023 and the establishment of a sacred Ciupitist order, Radu and Bianca were canonised as the Bucket Saints.

Withdrawal from Public Life ¶

After their canonisation, Radu and Bianca withdrew from public life. When Hori requested additional sacred buckets on 25 April 2023, they responded that their buckets had emptied and that no more water remained to provide. The reason for their withdrawal remains unknown: some traditions attribute it to Radu's fatigue with continual requests, while others maintain that Bianca believed every bucket had already been crafted.

Radu's Homes ¶

During his stay in the mortal realm, Radu had many homes. They were all modest, minor, and ugly, but their number compensated for their simplicity. People initially considered them random structures without specific purposes and disregarded them, but further study by bucketologists concluded that they had specific roles in the manufacture and distribution of buckets throughout the world, through both legal and illegal means. It is believed that everything Radu did had an important purpose, although not everything is yet understood.

Not everything Radu did is understood, and much of it is considered too complex for uneducated minds to fathom. One specific contraption near one of his homes is believed to have served as a bucket shop. It was constructed in a prime location and in perfect alignment with a future pier constructed nearby much later. The contraption is made from many birch trapdoors, and its full purpose remains unknown.

The contraption has been entombed near Hori's island in Enada, where Hori served as Palatine. It was carefully conserved without any visible mark on the surface, so that no one can access it until it is fully understood and can be preserved completely.

Mortal Life ¶

Radu used to be a firefighter during his mortal life. This is believed to have been no mere chance, as his occupation was closely related to the mystical art of bucket-making. As he extinguished fire in life, he crafted and filled buckets with water after his ascension.

Găletida ¶

The mythical ancient city of Găletida is believed to have been lost under the water. The Găletidians possessed technology so advanced that their buckets surpassed any mortal buckets ever made, except those made by Radu.

Radu found the Lost City of Găletida in 2023 at the bottom of the lake in Enada, directly under his lake house. This was interpreted as fate rather than chance, and as the revelation through which his sainthood took shape.

Găletida was shaped like an upside-down bucket, meaning that the greatest city was itself a bucket that gave life and created a habitable city in an otherwise inhospitable environment. The Găletidian language remains undeciphered, but some repeated words are thought to be names, and one of them is believed to be Bucket Saint Radu.

Legends say that Găletidian technology permitted them to foresee the future, and that they knew Radu would find their lost city long after its inevitable downfall. More extreme ideas suggest that their knowledge of Radu predates the city itself, and that they left their homeland and the surface to build Găletida in Radu's name and honour after great threats made underwater migration their only chance of salvation.

The city's downfall remains unknown. It is believed to have stood in greatness and prosperity for a thousand years before becoming corrupted, as its pursuit of technological progress ceased to be fuelled by love and compassion and became driven by greed. The Găletidians became obsessed with crafting buckets greater than any other, and even attempted to craft buckets greater than Radu's. The faithful consider the possibility of success impossible and heretical.

At the moment Găletida cracked, great celebrations were being prepared, but never took place. It is believed that Radu punished the Găletidians for their heresy and arrogance by proving the imperfection of their skills and mocking the quality of their most important bucket, Găletida itself, by showing that it could crack.

Radu's Ark ¶

Radu also constructed a great vessel, Radu's Ark, near the capital of the Brotherhood of the United Blocks, shortly after leaving Enada. Its purpose is not yet clear. Some consider it a transport for buckets to the capital, while others believe it is a time-travelling vessel sent to Găletida during the Cataclysm of Găletida to save the buckets and those who remained faithful. It is unknown when or where they were sent.

The Zaganian-Enadian War ¶

During the period of endless Zaganian raids in Enada in early 2023, known as the Zaganian Wars of Enada, the Bucket Saints played a critical part in the defence of the city.

According to The Zaganian Wars, an account written by the Palatine of Enada at that time, the Bucket Saints responded to the prayers of the Metropolitan of Enada and offered great help to the defenders, especially in their final battle, when they are said to have overturned one of their greatest buckets and unleashed a mighty torrent of holy water upon the invading horde.

It is believed that without the actions of the Bucket Saints, and those of Ciupitu himself, the raids would have continued without end. The people of Enada are forever grateful for their role in securing peace.

Apostles ¶

Anastiana Anzelis ¶

Sister Anastiana Anzelis is a mystic and healer associated with the restorative power of a full bucket. Her teachings hold that blessed water received with faith can restore a spiritually afflicted person.

Vladonil Betulen ¶

Vladonil Betulen is a philosopher and practitioner of discreet pinching who composed the sacred Codex Găletorum, a scripture of the Way of the Bucket. Tradition holds that he meditated in solitude for 44 days before inscribing its teachings.

Bartolomeu Găletăreanu ¶

Bartolomeu Găletăreanu was a pilgrim, martyr, and bucket-bearer who disseminated the Way of the Bucket across the plains of Enada. He was ambushed while carrying buckets containing sacred texts; tradition holds that part of his spirit remains in the ground where he fell, causing buckets to refill when it rains.

Samarian the Debucketed ¶

Samarian the Debucketed is the fallen apostle and founder of the Secret Society of Buckets. Once devoted to the Way of the Bucket, he was cast out after crafting more than 44 buckets and treating buckets as instruments of control rather than sacred vessels.

Influence and Legacy ¶

The influence of the Bucket Saints can be seen throughout Enada, especially in its association with buckets, its sacred lake, and the traditions of the Way of the Bucket. Their mythology also shapes interpretations of Radu's homes, the preserved bucket-shop contraption, the Bucket Network, Găletida, and Radu's Ark.

Criticism ¶

The Bucket Saints have faced criticism and scepticism from some who view their beliefs and practices as unorthodox, superstitious, or mundane. However, their followers argue that their faith is a legitimate expression of their spirituality and that their practices have brought them great joy and fulfilment.

Categories: Deities in Ciupitism, Deities, Ciupitism, Religion