Chapter 209 A Passover Offering
Time is really weird.
Sometimes it feels too long, and sometimes it feels too short.
It has been two years since that rainy night and that confrontation with the Bedouin.
In the past two years, Guerris has drawn a dotted line from the Red Sea to Cyprus in the Syrian-Palestinian region.
The farthest south is Montreal, and further north are Karak, Arnon, Tire, and Cyprus.
These strongholds are like sparks, spreading across the earth and lighting up the wilderness.
But these fires were not intended to simply reshape the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
That makes no sense, what Gareth wants is the "Kingdom of Heaven."
Looking back and looking at the tightly closed castle door, Garris knew that Raymond was unreliable: this man was greedy for life and fearful of death, he was overjoyed at success, and he forgot all about the benefits.
Of course, this is normal. This world itself is full of insects and flies.
Everyone is short-sighted, and what they can see is only an inch in front of them.
Because of this, people like the "Leper King" Saladin, Balian, and Amedeh are particularly special.
Walking on the hilly path in front of the castle, overlooking the distant city of Tripoli, and then looking at the endless sea.
Under the pale sunshine in May, Garris walked lightly, and he even sang softly.
"Behold, I will create a new heaven and a new earth, and the things of the past will no longer be remembered, and there will be no need to look back on the past."
"I will make a Jerusalem of joy, and her inhabitants will find joy in it."
"The whole world will rejoice in Jerusalem and rejoice in her people, and there will be no more weeping or wailing in them."
"There will be no more short-lived babies, no more old people with short-lived lives;"
"For whoever dies at a hundred years old is still considered a child, and any sinner who dies at a hundred years old is considered a curse."
"You will build your own houses and live in them, and no one else can occupy your homes;"
"You will plant vineyards and enjoy them, and no one will take away the fruits."
"Your days will be as long as trees, and the fruits of your own hands will be enjoyed forever."
"You will not work in vain, your produce will not be destroyed, and so will your descendants."
"Before you ask, the Lord has answered; when you speak rightly, the Lord will hear you."
"The wolves and the lambs will pasture together, the lions will feed on grass like calves, and dust will be food for serpents."
"On the Holy Mountain, there is no evil or harm."
The melodious melody, accompanied by the beat played by Garris, flows between the heaven and the earth.
This is such great joy that even the plants and trees respond to it.
Even the white horse stagnant in the air, blocking the sun, also looked at it sideways.
Dark clouds are beginning to gather, and the city of Tripoli still doesn’t know what is coming to it.
It was rain, it was blood, and it was a Passover gift.
……
Father Vincent of the Church of Botrun left Botrun in this cloudy season and was about to arrive in Tripoli.
He looked very bad because he was reprimanded by the bishop again and again because of the previous incident.
In the eyes of the bishop, he, a great priest, could not even deal with a doctor.
It would be a small thing to lose face to Vincent, but it would be a big thing to lose the face of the entire Botlen Church!
Now, where do they want to put the dignity of their church?
Even though Vincent defended himself by saying that he had handed the documents to Garris, the Garris did not attend the trial after all.
Afterwards, the church wanted to investigate the whereabouts of Garris, but was interfered by Lord Botlen Plivan, so that for a long time, they lost the whereabouts of Garris.
Only after the news came from Tripoli did the Botlen Church know where Gellis had gone.
Based on the request to make up for his mistakes, Vincent was sent to Tripoli this time as an envoy of the Bertram Church.
I hope he can state his interests to the Archbishop of Tripoli and deal with Gairis severely!
It is different from the church system in Cyprus, which has a clear superior-subordinate relationship.
The Catholic church structure certainly has a hierarchical aspect, but it is also quite flat.
The Archbishop of Tripoli, strictly speaking, is only the first bishop of the diocese (province) of Tripoli. He has supervisory authority over other bishops, but there is no absolute superior-subordinate relationship.
He also had his own church to answer for, namely the Church of Tripoli.
When Vincent came to the Tripoli church and reported to the archbishop.
After hearing this, Archbishop Olivier of Tripoli was silent for a long time.
The wind blew in through the crack in the door, passed through the hall, and shook the curtains on the wall.
Then Archbishop Olivier uttered a few words coldly: "He practices witchcraft"
"The knowledge about human internal organs has entered the category of taboo. How can he know it without the help of devils and witchcraft?"
"Disease is God's judgment. He is trying to overstep it. Even if he is saved temporarily, he will harm people invisible."
"Everyone knows that disease is the result of man's sins. Only pious prayer and atonement can appease God's wrath."
Listening to the cold wind spitting out from the gap between Archbishop Olivier's teeth, Vincent couldn't help but shudder.
There are differences between churches, and there are differences between bishops.
Compared to the Bertram Church, Archbishop Olivier had actually conducted a witch hunt. He truly believed that witchcraft existed in the world and that someone needed to take a heavy blow.
At the same time, Archbishop Olivier did have some information about Gehrys' activities in Tripoli.
For example, Geris once performed "miracles" among Orthodox Christians.
It can be said that this is no longer suspected of witchcraft, but a complete "wizard"!
"Contact Master Francois, we need their help."
"Now it is time to unsheath those swords of God and slay the enemies of the cross."
Vincent couldn't help but shuddered again after listening to Archbishop Olivier's words.
The Holy Land, Palestine, this land will always breed many fanatical people, and Master Francois is one of them.
He was the leader of the Tripoli branch of the Knights Templar, men who wore white cloaks with red crosses and roamed the Holy Land.
For these people, it is a good deed to kill the pagans who do not believe in Christ and the enemies of the Son of the Virgin Mary.
……
A huge conference table occupies the center of the hall, and more than ten high-backed wooden chairs are placed beside the conference table.
On a lower level, Gareth waited here for a long time.
Raymond did abandon his people, but at least he wrote a document and gave it to Gareth.
This document did not give Gehrys any explicit authorization, but merely expressed his attitude.
That is to say: Gallis is a doctor. If the smallpox plague spreads, you can refer to his opinions.
This paragraph is actually no different from nonsense.
But it at least gave Guerris a chance to summon Tripoli's leading figures.
As the mayor, tax collector, captain of the guard... and the leading figures from each community arrived one by one, only the representatives of the church were left in the council hall.
But at this moment, the door of the hall was suddenly pushed open, accompanied by the low sound of iron armor rubbing against each other.
Several Templar knights wearing red cross capes on a white background escorted Archbishop Olivier into the hall.
The bishop wears cassocks symbolizing clerical authority and has a stern face. He walked forward slowly, his sharp gaze directed at Garris, ignoring the gazes of other people in the council chamber.
After these people, many priests and sergeants carrying the insignia of the Knights Templar rushed into the venue.
The atmosphere in the conference hall became tense and chaotic. After Archbishop Olivier was sure that he had control of the venue, he walked up to the wooden platform as if there was no one else around.
There stood a chair decorated with intricate carvings.
"Garris, do you know that what you have done has been reported as witchcraft! Are you trying to control the bodies of believers through some unclean means?"
"Then, who allowed you to preach the scriptures to those who have gone astray? How dare you claim to them that you are the remnant body of the Lord, and that you came to this world to reiterate the scriptures that have been misinterpreted by the world?"< br>
“Know this: Keep this commandment undefiled and blameless until the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Archbishop Olivier's actions caused an uproar among others in the council, and they did not even care about the original purpose of the meeting.
In order to avoid panic, Guerris only produced some of Raymond's documents and did not disclose the possibility of smallpox.
After all, under the current circumstances, any rash actions of this group of people may contribute to the epidemic.
Waiting for Olivier's appearance, those who attended the meeting subconsciously felt that this meeting was actually the interrogation of Garris.
When Garris faced Olivier's questioning, he was a little stunned for a while.
"Indeed, the redemptive work of Christ, as a new and everlasting covenant, will never fade away."
"Indeed, it seems to you that there is no more new public revelation to look forward to."
"But even if the revelation is complete, how can you be sure that you can interpret it all?"
"By His gracious provision, we can all be saved."
The archbishop on the high platform looked at Gehrys, but he didn't do much. He gave Gehrys a chance to defend himself.
Garris in the audience continued to respond: "Now I want to tell you that everything I say and do is based on my understanding of Heavenly Father's creation."
"What I study is nothing more than the natural laws set by God when he created the world."
"These diseases do not originate from witchcraft, but are the result of natural epidemics..."
Garris was about to say something more, but the archbishop on the stage just said a word coldly, interrupting his subsequent words.
"Heresy." Garris's words had already touched Archbishop Olivier's nerves. This gray-haired old man had flames in his eyes.
For him, and indeed for the Church, one of their thoughts was that disease was God's punishment for mankind.
In addition to the interpretation of punishment, the church also viewed illness as God's test of the human soul. The endurance, faith and prayer of an individual or a society in the face of illness are considered to be ways of testing the piety of believers.
Through this test, people can obtain the purification and sublimation of their souls and get closer to God.
One thing to say is that doctors in this era do not show any superiority.
In other words, the possibility of a person's physical recovery simply relying on faith, prayer, repentance and atonement is not significantly lower than the result of Dr. Frank's treatment.
In this case, if you rely on prayer to hold on, you might be able to suffer less.
But this situation does not apply to Gareth. When he came to this world, all he had to do was break the superstitions and break those rules.
"Who are you? How dare you try to interpret God's will?"
"Bible exegesis is the responsibility of the church, how can you covet it?"
Listening to Archbishop Olivier's words, Garris glanced at the other people in the council.
Now, the situation in the hall is no longer in his favor.
Everyone was talking, and gossip about themselves was passed from mouth to mouth.
In the eyes of these Frank nobles, he seemed to have truly become a wizard. As a result, this place was no longer suitable for him to continue communicating with Archbishop Olivier.
After all, I am just an outsider, and these guys actually look down on doctors.
If they didn't have Raymond's documents, they wouldn't even come over to take a look at him.
"You asked me who I am, right?"
"I want to tell you..."
While speaking, Garris walked towards the highest throne in the council chamber, and several Templar knights blocked his way.
These people drew their swords and set up a boundary.
"I tell you, I am a child of the Lord, the Holy One of Jerusalem, one who will turn away sickness, suffering, sin, and poverty."
Garris was almost approaching Archbishop Olivier, but he still did not stop and continued to move forward.
When the heavily armed Templar saw this, he slashed at Garris with his sword without saying a word.
He will not hesitate in the face of the enemies of Christ!
Just when everyone thought that Garris was going to be killed on the spot.
Time slowed down, and the originally powerful and heavy sword was extremely slow in Garris's eyes.
Garris stretched out his left hand, and the tiger's mouth locked tightly on the sword.
The hustle and bustle in the venue froze in this moment. Everyone was speechless. They didn't quite understand what was happening.
They just saw that in the flash of lightning, there was nothing wrong with the person who was supposed to be bleeding on the spot.
The Templar knight wielding the sword seemed to have exerted all his strength, but he could not make his sword advance any further.
The Templar knight on the right was shocked when he saw this, but he didn't care too much and quickly drew his sword to strike.
Likewise, Garris caught the sword with his right hand.
“I have said that everything I say and do comes from my understanding of Heavenly Father’s creation.”
"The vastness of this world cannot be understood by mortals like us."
"Everyone has a part in the banquet established by the Lord. Diseases can be cured, plagues can be contained, famines can be eliminated, and wars, even wars, will one day usher in long-lasting peace"
Garris exerted force on both sides, making the two Templars stagger, then released his hands, and continued to slowly walk up the high platform step by step.
The scene just now obviously frightened Archbishop Olivier, but the old man still pretended to be calm.
"False!"
"This is the will of God! If God wants to bring disaster, we mortals can't stop it. Garris, your proposal is just a resistance to God's will, trying to escape God's punishment for sinners! If God sends a plague, this is what the world is doing Well deserved punishment!”
Archbishop Olivier, say this.
Garris couldn't help but applaud a few times. After all, Archbishop Olivier really followed his words.
He turned around and took another look at the indifferent faces in the room, realizing that he was a heretic in the eyes of these people.
Under the watchful eyes of bishops and knights, the doubts in the council gradually overcame rational thinking, and Garris felt isolated and helpless.
"I hope you can still think so in a month's time."
After saying that, Garris turned and left. There was no need to discuss scriptures anymore for such a rigid existence.
Even if he shows any miracles again, it will only deepen the stereotypes of those around him.
Continue to confirm your identity as a practitioner of "witchcraft".
This is the result of inadequate preaching and a weak mass base.
Nowadays, there is still an opportunity missing, that is, the Overlord is not ready enough when he takes the bow.
If you rely directly on force to forcibly surrender these people.
In fact, it cannot directly take over the order of the entire city of Tripoli.
At that time, if too many people are killed or too few are killed, the city of Tripoli will fall into a leaderless, ragtag, chaotic and carnival situation.
This actually goes against his plan to organize manpower for epidemic prevention.
Human society is really delicate. Just a small change can destroy countless families.
He now needs to go back and prepare manpower for the next plan.
After all these efforts, he once again confirmed that these people were insects.
When he was about to walk out of the parliament hall completely, Garris stopped, turned his head and spoke to everyone in the parliament hall:
"I organized this meeting. I am here to warn you to prepare for the closure of the city as soon as possible."
"The knights of the apocalypse have arrived, and the evil omen of smallpox is about to envelope this city. If preventive measures are not taken, how many of you will not survive today next year?"
Garris left the scene without looking back.
Everyone in the council hall was in an uproar. Only then did they realize that the convener of this meeting was not the church, but the envoy of Raymond, Count of Tripoli.
The purpose of this meeting was then to inform these dignitaries in the city about the smallpox epidemic.
Archbishop Olivier, who was sitting on the throne, was a little confused.
It seems, maybe, that there is really a plague coming?
And it’s still smallpox...
The contagiousness of smallpox is very high, and its mortality rate is equally terrible, usually estimated to be between 20% and 50%.
It can be said that if all these people in the conference hall were infected with smallpox, perhaps only half of them would still be alive by this time next year.
The shadow of death has come, and the messengers are drawing lots to determine who will die and who will live.
The dignitaries turned their attention to Archbishop Olivier on the throne, showing him expectant eyes, eager for this archbishop to show them the way to salvation.
But what can he do?
All Archbishop Olivier could rely on was the holy water he consecrated, his own prayers and the holy relics in the church.
……
Transjordan's county system is being promoted outwards with Tire as the center.
There are still many differences between the Kingdom of Jerusalem and traditional Western European feudal kingdoms, due to the terrifying average life expectancy of the nobles in the Holy Land region and the ridiculously high probability of extermination.
There is no need for the King of Jerusalem to take the initiative to reduce the vassal status. Most of the entrusted fiefdoms can often eliminate their lords' families within two or three generations.
Then because there was no heir and no one to inherit, those lands automatically returned to the king's hands.
After a long period of time, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the territory directly under the royal family, could even cover one-third to one-half of the country's area.
Quite a few noble vassals actually did not directly receive large areas of land, but only enjoyed one or several manors as their own fiefs.
And this kind of small aristocratic fief, the control over the manor on its own land is actually quite limited. There is no long-term rule, and there is no support for the lord from the people.
As a result, the degree of centralization of the Kingdom of Jerusalem is actually not low.
The territory surrounding the city of Tire is the territory directly under the royal family of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
After gaining the support of Sibylla, Isabella carried out drastic reforms.
Taking advantage of the current stage where the kingdom is broken and the aristocracy is surprisingly weak, we will not destroy or establish.
First, the King's Landing Parliament was established at the central level, which was divided into upper and lower chambers. This parliament had a considerable part of the functions of the original aristocratic parliament.
It is the highest legislative body of the kingdom, responsible for taxation and military service, and has the power to advise on the kingdom's politics.
The original Tire territory was converted into Tyre County, and the remaining Beirut territory in the north was also converted into Beirut County.
These two counties are divided into constituencies, and the number of members is determined based on their population. Currently, on average, every two to three thousand people can get one seat.
The birth method of members, or the election process, is another wrangling process.
For the aristocratic group, most of them are naturally opposed to widespread elections for the House of Commons.
As for the wealthy businessmen, due to the current decline in the power of the aristocratic class, they have also begun to have ambitions and try to interfere in the political situation of the kingdom.
Isabella's House of Commons just met their needs.
But even wealthy businessmen also have doubts about the election of members.
Because Isabella's initial idea was that the right to vote would not be limited to Catholics, but would also spread to Orthodox Christians and Muslim groups.
However, this proliferation is not without restraint.
(End of chapter)