Quote:
Originally Posted by Legbreaker
I wonder how active the church would be in the years after 2000? Would the "inquistion", or whatever it's named, recommence rooting out heretics, etc?
Would the church build up military forces to assist?
Perhaps another round of the Crusades would be in order?
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I haven't finished on it but here are my ideas behind the Papal state. The Pope is either in Rome (if the city was not destroyed) or in Avignon (if you chose to blow up the holy Catholic city).
Assuming he is in Rome.
The Pope exert full control over the Lazio and may be Sardinia. he is backed by a professional Papal army which is fairly powerful by Twilight's standards. may be equal to a couple Brigades of light infantry, a horse cavalry guard, the Swiss body guard and, a small light armored element.
After the nukes start to fall, the original Papal State has been joined by Malta (now under the authority of the hospitalers Grand Master). With the Papal state, they have built a small but efficient navy composed of small ships: may be a corvette, several patrol craft, PBR and armed sailing ship. Not strong because of its ship that navy is powerful because it is very well disciplined and its sailors are dedicated to their task (after all the fight for the sake of God). Probably backed by France, they are engaged in a constant fight to end piracy coming from Northern Africa.
Outside the Lazio, the Catholic influence is only strong over the Iberian peninsula and with no doubt over Ireland. Nevertheless, the Archbishop of Spain is fully in charge and tensions exist with the bishop of Rome (the Pope).
In France, the catholic church is welcome as long as it doesn't contest state authority. France has established a kind of Laîc Inquisition of its own and you better not challange it weither you are the Pope or not. From what I heard on the news this morning we might be in the process of creating the roots of it (attention I was not paying attention and my interpretation might be entirely wrrong). Basically what I understood is that sects (the current fashionable word for faith) cannot by disbanded anymore if they are found guilty of con/bribery... However, sects might still be disbanded on the base of their belief which is forbidden by the French constitution (interesting debate in france for the near future
).
The Catholic Church remains also influencial over Latin America at least in word. Nevertheless, the priest in Latin America are only safe as long as they don't challenge too much the drug cartels and the gangs (I wouldn't be surprised to have priests there engaged in drug production and some kind of slavery).
In the western world, the Catholic Church takes the form of what you find in the original game about Krakow. Priest influence is exherted only at the very local level and often in weird ways. If there is no priest, there is no Church.
In any organized country the Catholic Church remained what it was before the war, it still refers to Rome but direct contact might be rare. It is equally possible that the local bishop turned the church into a church of its own. The Twilight War is a perfect ground for heretics.
In the rest of the world (Africa, Asia, Middle-East...), Priest can be there but they are engaged in some kind of crusade with all the risks implied and all the possible perversion. A remote island in the Pacific can be ruled by a bloody priest advocating that Christ blood should be taken from where it comes: Manflesh (possibilities are endless).
One last point about the Catholic Church organization. The new Pope has appointed new Bishop when it was needed and when one can be identify (at the end of the adventures in Poland, the priest holding the Black Madona could well have become the new Bishop of Poland). Nevertheless, this authority is only nominal and the rest will depend on the local situation. The post-war Bishops are no more than boosted priest until they can carve their own are of influence. You might also have several self-appointed Bishops (or appointed by local strongmen) but these will always have one goal : get Papal approval. Until they do they are heretics.
Here are the ideas. They are open to debate but they are taken from the regular Catholic dogmata. The Catholic Church has followed its dogmata for now nearly 2000 years and a few nukes won't change this path. However, I don't think that the new Pope, given world situation, could be able to call for holy council (that could modify these dogmata).