How can a Shifter get along with a Silver Flame Inquisitor?

Question

I will be joining a game in the world of Eberron and I want to play a druid shifter. The problem is that there is an inquisitor of the Silver Flame in the party.

Is there a way to interact with him without problems and join the party smoothly?

Context:

The Church of the Silver Flame announced the Lycanthropic Inquisiton: a church sanctioned scouring of the continent to destroy all lycanthropes and their ilk.Known also as the Purge, this crusade slaughtered most of the lycanthropes on the continent, as well as a race of lycanthropic descendants known as shifters. ("Lycanthropic Inquisition", Eberron Wikia)

Answer 1

The Inquisition was not after shifters (officially)

Shifters are OKed, officially, by the Church of the Silver Flame. Some tainted heritage, but generations of natural shifters have, in the Church’s official view, cleansed the race. They do not spread the curse of lycanthropy, which was the impetus for the Inquisition in the first place (afflicted lycanthropes began, for unknown reasons, to spread the curse the same as natural lycanthropes). There are even shifters who are members in good standing within the Church of the Silver Flame.

That said, many, many inquisitors were not terribly concerned about “getting it right.” Given their views on the afterlife, a faith in the Silver Flame is very compatible with a “kill ’em all and let the Flame sort it out” mentality. And since they were effectively invading the Eldeen Reaches (then a part of Aundair, but the populace, particularly shifters, did not identify much as Aundairan), plenty of non-lycanthropes responded to the Inquisition by attacking the inquisitors. Many inquisitors were not inclined to pay too much attention to the technical differences between the types of fur and fangs that attacked them.

And so the Silver Flame is very unwelcome in the Eldeen Reaches. In the deeper parts of the great forest, openly displaying the Flame is a good way to get quietly stabbed and thrown in a bog somewhere. Many, many shifters accuse the Church of attempted genocide. More than a few of the inquisitors would be guilty, too.

But not all. Many, probably most, inquisitors were honest and sincere in their beliefs and in their duty. They took the official proclamations of the Church seriously, learned the distinction between shifter and lycanthrope, and took pains to avoid attacking any but the anathema, even those who attacked them. Many of the most brutal inquisitors were actually tried and convicted for their crimes by the Church itself, though many more avoided notice.

So long as the inquisitor in the party is true to the official teachings of the Church, and acknowledged those teachings during the inquisition, he should have no animosity towards any shifter party members. There may even be remorse for those shifters who lost their lives or livelihood due to the indiscretions of overzealous inquisitors.

As a shifter, you may also be quick to label any follower of the Silver Flame – never mind an actual inquisitor! – as a genocidal racist. That depends a lot on your character, and whether or not your family and friends were ever on the wrong side of a misguided inquisitor during the Inquisition. But the Inquisition was also 166 years ago: especially for those not directly affected by the Church’s crimes, dialog and understanding may be possible.

Answer 2

After looking over the article you linked, it seems fairly clear that the Lycanthropic Inquisition is looked at as an overzealous mistake, perhaps similar to the way the historical inqusition is now viewed.

A few passages to support this (emphasis mine):

Known also as the Purge, this crusade slaughtered most of the lycanthropes on the continent, as well as a race of lycanthropic descendants known as shifters. Due to the atrocities committed by the templars of the Silver Flame during the Purge, it remains a dark page in the church's history.

and

Many crusaders were slaying lycanthrope and shifter alike, though true paladins of Thrane used their ability to detect evil to differentiate between shifter and lycanthrope.

and

It wasn't until 835 YK that Keeper Solan Jol clarified that shifters were, in fact, a separate species than the evil lycanthropes. Though the crusaders were instructed to hunt only those corrupted by the disease...

The article goes on to say that shifters are even allowed to join the silver flame:

Some shifters detested the Purge, while others joined the ranks of the Silver Flame to purge these evil creatures who besmirched their names.

And eventually describes heroic members of the Silver Flame who were shifters.

So, although the inquisitor might be prejudiced or biased against the shifter, there's no reason they couldn't have a more accepting mindset. They may even defend the shifter against other, less enlightened members of their order.

Answer 3

It was 120 years ago.

The Lycanthropic Inquisition lasted from 832-880 YK; the current year is 998 YK. That means that the Purge has been over for more than a century. Though some Flame adherents talk of starting a new one, it's likely that the person in your party has no interest in being your enemy.

Shifters were collateral damage.

The enemy was true lycanthropes — werewolves, wererats, and the like — and shifters were mistakenly killed in the belief they carried the curse. This was disproven as early as 835 YK by the Silver Flame, and many shifter heroes fought to save people from the lycanthropes who hunted them. You could call upon the legends of Fathen the Martyr or Bennin Silverclaw, if you liked.