A Most Holy War

[Emp 209]

A Thesis

On crusade.

~

Allaesandro of Karovia,

Faithful Acolyte of the Church of the Canon

 

____________________________

 

“Takest hold of this blade, for it is a symbol of holiness,

and by it thou shalt cleanse man of sin.”

 

Owyn,

Scroll of Gospel

 

“And Justice treadeth the world upon a steed of soot,

and he is uncovered, and goeth forth to spill blood.”

 

Vision of Strife,

Scroll of Auspice

 

The holy conquest of Lesser Tarchary stirs the hearts of the faithful and has seen a holy kingdom prosper for its zealousness. But in the midst of triumph, we must resist the temptation to boast of our own merit and strengths, of our infallibility and of unerring discernment.We must put self-righteousness aside and study what, in addition to the Creator’s grace, has allowed us, in this instance, to succeed. In deconstructing our success, we may then establish normative structures for the declaration of holy wars in the future, that they might be so successful and pure in spirit. We must determine the purpose of holy war, defining it and setting apart from all other conflicts.

 

The Order of St Amyas might ostensibly suggest that holy war is a tool of evangelism. Let such notions be dispelled. To convert by the sword is savagery. Conversion under duress cannot be trusted. Forced conversion hinders the Faith, for it undermines a necessary conscientiousness in its Congregation, which must be of one mind. Let us not forget that, for all its dogmatic trappings, the Order is a secular one, not subject to or sponsored by the Church. Let us neither pretend that its wars are holy by virtue that they bring St Amyas’ name to battle. However, what we may establish is that in killing heathens, such God-fearers clear the realm of infidelity, that righteousness might send its roots out. What can we say of the Order? We can say ‘do not claim to convert, for ye are killers. Do not deny this for it is your service to Humanity’. It is surely not sin to strike down the infidel that disgraces their Creator, but neither is the mere act one of crusade. For, in the case of the Order in question, it is a short-sighted purpose, of immediacy, passion, and ignorance. Theirs is not a dogma inclined to contemplation of morality. But we shall not condemn them for this, for we may thank them for their Flamenist zeal - without which, the Church would not be provoked to review calls for crusade. To discern the needs and wants of his children, a father must first hear their voice.

If we establish that St Amyas’ is a secular order, involving itself in the lordly feuds (see: The Dukes’ War, which has propelled our own new king, long may he reign, to his position), what then, shall we say, constitutes a truly Holy Order? Let us cast the character of the Creator into the midst of turmoil - how is Faith manifest amidst suffering? Surely the holy man rescues the orphan, the widow, and the needy, clothing and feeding them, offering drink from his own goblet? This is pious, but yet foolish and myopic to think their rescue complete - is it not better to teach a man to fish than to bestow upon him a fish each day? The wise and pious man does not prolong others’ dependency on him - it is truly selfless to equip others to achieve glory. But even then, having nurtured and planted his sapling, the wise farmer does not leave it victim to the elements. The wise, pious, and selfless man protects, that his own children may one day take refuge beneath the branches of the mighty oak.

Let it be known, then, that a Holy Order:

> Provides,

> Prepares, and

> Protects.

 

Let us take this piety, wisdom, and selflessness, and from these comprehend crusade. Let us establish that crusade must exist in a realm divorced from secular political agenda, and thus agree that expansion of a lord’s realm shall not primarily drive crusade, for such risks a secular agenda, divorcing it from the Faith that is foundational. Let such then ensure piety in any war held to be holy. Let us also be wise, not pursuing wars that threaten overextension of Humanity’s resources, and consequently compromise of the realm’s stability. The expansionist war will always attract criticism, betraying an underlying agenda.

 

Is any war between Faithful and heathen a crusade? Does any confrontation deserve to provoke crusade? Let us refer to His Late Holiness Sixtus III, who stands in Church history as a truly righteous man of integrity and the courage to challenge and restrain a Flamenist movement thirsty for blood uncalled-for. Let his words be immortalised herein:

 

“A crusade is a most holy term. A sacred term, in fact, not to be used lightly. It is not a word to be used to describe a holy war, it is not a term to describe a fight between the Faithful and unfaithful, it is none of that. It is a term that is strictly used for the most important of causes, a term I would only care to use at the most dire of circumstances, a term that the Lord would most definitely expect to be used once in centuries. Otherwise, it would lose that sacredness, and our crusade's would be nothing more but skirmishes without the great approval of our Lord the Father.”

Pontifical Response to the Call for Crusade, 1515

 

What, then, constitutes crusade? Such a term is reserved for reclamation - a reconsecration of the lost and defiled. Crusade serves to admonish and repel the infidel that has invaded. In such statements, we may comprehend that crusade is not any war between Faithful and heathen - it is a defense, or reaction, and reaction demands grievance.

We shall, then, continue to look to High Pontiff Sixtus III for practical criteria in calling crusade, as interpreted from his response to a thesis on the matter...

• Grievance; threat.
  • “And at this time... our Faith, our Holy Church, the Lord's flock and all who encompass it, are not threatened. We thrive against all others in the Lord's realm. We remain strong, we remain tall, and our churches and chapels remain untouched and unharmed by the hands of evil. Our kingdom remains strong and without falter, and most of all, our Faith remains true. We are without besiege.”
  • “A lost relic or two are by all-means a good thing to fight for, because our Church cherishes those objects, but where are your lost relics now? Where is the destruction of the Lord's property? Where is the desecration of shrines, murder of priests, rape of the Faithful? It is nowhere to be found.”
• Clear goal; foreseeable impact upon the Church.
  • “The crusade, while perhaps causing quite a bit of fervor for the short time it was issued, truly had no lasting impact upon our Church.”
• Not for the sake of expansion - ‘evangelical’ or otherwise.
  • “Conversion by sword is perhaps an idea created by the Saint Lucien and his brethren in the Order of the White Rose. This idea has not aided in the growth of the Faith, it has only halted it - it has absolutely confined the faith to that of Men, not to Elf or otherwise. I have since stopped such a practice, and I shall stop such a practice until my last breath.”
  • “This crusade would mean a siege upon the Ogres, not the defense against one. It is foolish to think otherwise. This is war-mongering, this is hawkish, and I shan't have it.”
• High Pontiff’s support
  • “The message of God has been delivered, and it was delivered in denial of your crusade.”

I have left these statements free of elaboration that they might speak for themselves, conveying, in their own context, explanation of would-be crusades. I shall leave it to you, brothers and sisters, to hold our most recent crusade to these criteria, explaining our success, and ensuring continued triumph should we hold fast in faithfulness. I shall leave these criteria below, that any would-be crusade might be held to them.

• GRIEVANCE / DIRE THREAT
• CLEAR, FORESEEABLE GOAL
• DEVOID OF EXPANSIONIST / POLITICAL AGENDA
• HIGH PONTIFF’S SUPPORT

BY THE CREATOR’S GRACE:

Written by Acolyte Allaesandro of Karovia, and
Published in Felsen, 3rd of the Deep Cold, 1523.

Edited September 9, 2015 by l'Empereur

[WuHanXianShi14 0]

"Not all valah are inherently volatile as I once believed."

Artimec stated, standing before a group of wood elven followers under the shade of the sacred fae tree. Statues of Cerridwen and Cernunnos stood left and right respectively, towering over their acolytes.

"It seems they have a few intelligent minds in a sea of childish pandering...much like our own race. And they do not have the millenia to grow wise that we do, what is our excuse?"

With that stern statement, he turned about and kneeling between the statues and in front of the tree, urging those behind him to better crops and fairer hunting to aenguls that many would undoubtably call heathenous.

[Space 2335]

"Not all valah are inherently volatile as I once believed."

Artimec stated, standing before a group of wood elven followers under the shade of the sacred fae tree. Statues of Cerridwen and Cernunnos stood left and right respectively, towering over their acolytes.

"It seems they have a few intelligent minds in a sea of childish pandering...much like our own race. And they do not have the millenia to grow wise that we do, what is our excuse?"

With that stern statement, he turned about and kneeling between the statues and in front of the tree, urging those behind him to better crops and fairer hunting to aenguls that many would undoubtably call heathenous.

Aeran shakes his head, talking to himself probably. "There are very few intelligent minds in this race, but I fear you believe you are on a different side than you actually are."

[Your Favorite Impure 736]

"Not all valah are inherently volatile as I once believed."

Artimec stated, standing before a group of wood elven followers under the shade of the sacred fae tree. Statues of Cerridwen and Cernunnos stood left and right respectively, towering over their acolytes.

"It seems they have a few intelligent minds in a sea of childish pandering...much like our own race. And they do not have the millenia to grow wise that we do, what is our excuse?"

With that stern statement, he turned about and kneeling between the statues and in front of the tree, urging those behind him to better crops and fairer hunting to aenguls that many would undoubtably call heathenous.

Aenor nods in response to Artimec's statement, agreeing wholeheartedly "Due to the fact that many of our kind lack common sense, and they cower and complain at any perceived instance when their, in my opinion, overbearing individuality is threatened. They lack a sense of nationalism and pander from one nation or city to the next, whichever suits their whims and desires at the time."

[Cracker 4570]

"This Acolyte's outdone himself yet again. Mayhaps the Creator has blessed us with another Jude or Reader. We'll find out soon enough; write to him at once to ferry forth to Luciensport." Leon would command.

Edited September 11, 2015 by Cracker

[Daisy 9735]

Moved to The Great Library. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.

 

If you feel this is a mistake, please contact myself or any FM and we'll restore it.