As a huge lore junkie I figured I would contribute:
I do not believe that the Faith stat refers to the lords giving the person power, I believe the church (Thorolund) wants everyone to believe that so they can stay in power, but personally I think its just another form of magic that derives its power from confidence rather than willpower and focus (Which are 3 very very similar things, no?)
Next, Havel was indeed leading, or attempting to lead, a revolt. He hid his most secret weapon in a mimic in a dark room next to a spare set of armor and shield, this would be his armory. it is well hidden, and the fact that the club is in a mimic shows how desperate he was to keep this a secret.
Gwyn noticed, but he was still very indebted to Havel for all he did with his soldiers during their uprising against the dragons, so instead of just killing him he locked him away in a tower where he was destined to just go hollow and live out his days, I think he did this so he wouldn't feel guilty.
The painted world of Ariamis is dedicated to things that the gods fear, typically things associated with Velka, since she is a ruthless rouge godess who will punish any who sin. What was the god's sin, you might ask?
I have waivered back and fourth on this, and I have wondered a lot, the fact that this covenant is associated with the biggest douchebags in the game doesn't help my opinion...
Their sin was prolonging the flame and the age of light. This is why ALL gods must die. Now, this is sort of related to Dark Souls 2, but I could go on about my theories there all day. I will say this: Even though the god's did sin with their greed and selfishness, we do not know if it was justified. We don't know if Frampt or Kaathe's version of what is happening is correct. Is the dark spreading the curse, or is the curse spreading to help fulfill the prophecy so that the Age of Man can occur? Manus would certainly lead us to believe the Dark is bad for humanity, but his actions were when the Age of Fire was still going strong (at least much stronger than it is now)
I'll end this rantish comment with one last question: Is Velka truly a symbol of justice, does she truly care about the natural order of things and repentance, or is she doing all of these things out of self-interest?