Maikel Staynair

Maikel Staynair, Archbishop and Prelate of the Church of Charis, was an influential priest of the Church of God Awaiting, until he became the head of his own Church following the Schism.

Family
Maikel Staynair was a born Charisian. His brother was Domynyk Staynair, the Baron of Rock Point, and an officer of the Royal and Imperial Charisian Navy. 

He was married to Ahrdyn Staynair, with whom he had a daughter also named Ahrdyn. His daughter and her husband, Sir Lairync Kestair, had four children of their own. 

Biography
Staynair came to the Monastery of Saint Zherneau as a young man, and was eventually introduced into the Brethren of Saint Zherneau, the secretive order which kept the secret of humanity's true history. 

In the Year of God 890, Staynair served as Bishop of Tellesberg, a position to which he had been appointed by Archbishop Rojyr on the adamant insistence of King Haarahld VII. Bishop Executor Zherald Ahdymsyn strongly opposed the decision, as he found Staynair to be far too "Charisian" for the exalted position.

After the death of Kahlvyn Ahrmahk, the treacherous Duke of Tirian, Bishop Staynair held a thanksgiving mass at Tellesberg Cathedral with the royal family and many nobles present. In his sermon, he thanked God for saving the king and those close to him from harm, but also spoke of the nature of good and evil, and implored his flock to recognize right from wrong for themselves. Bishop Executor Zherald later confronted him about the text of the sermon, accusing him of questioning the primacy and authority of the Church. The bishop, however, pointed out that he had only interpreted the words of the Holy Writ. 

Shortly after the death of King Haarahld in the Battle of Darcos Sound, Maikel Staynair was elevated to the position of Archbishop of Charis by the newly crowned King Cayleb II. Soon after, he announced the Schism and the creation of the independent Church of Charis. He publicly read the letter that was to be sent to the Council of Vicars and the Grand Vicar, in which his diocese forever severed its bond with the Temple.

In the summer of the Year of God 892, a group of Temple Loyalists tried to assassinate Staynair during a mass in Tellesberg Cathedral, but were themselves killed by Merlin Athrawes. Instead of retreating to safety, the archbishop, covered in his would-be killers' blood, climbed to the chancel and beseeched his flock to remain calm and not allow themselves to be governed by hatred and fear. 

His sermons were famous, for their warmth and their loving insight into the hearts and minds of human beings. They were followed even in the mainland realms, printed and distributed semi-openly in northern and eastern Siddarmark, and less openly in other lands. Indeed, they also formed a major component of the Reformist propaganda.

He was often referred to as the gentle shepherd, due to his deep religious convictions, and his forgiving and charitable character.