Imperial Diet VI

[TinCow]

The unification of Byzantium and the Reich is now the "true word of Christ," is it? Bah, don't make me laugh. This religious unification is nothing more than a political deal between the Kaiser and his Most Purple Counterpart. The Pope supports it because the Kaiser told him to support it. That is what happens when the Church is nothing more than a puppet of the Reich. The Pope would have proclaimed that his own uncle was a donkey if Siegfried had so ordered it. As a result, there is nothing 'divine' about this 'unification' with the Byzantines.

This in turn means that Alexander Luther and his followers cannot be heretics simply for expressing their displeasure with such a political move. They are not contesting the word of God, they are contesting the word of the Kaiser, his pet Pope, and that Purple Ponce in the East. Furthermore, the Pope is most certainly not infallible. There is no Catholic doctrine that says such and therefore it is entirely appropriate to rebuke the Pope when he is himself acting against the will of God. We have seen this ourselves in Kaiser Heinrich's just war against Pope Gregory. Clearly God sided with the Reich in that matter, even though the Pope publicly declared Heinrich to be excommunicated.

While I personally do not agree with much of what Luther is preaching, it is most certainly not heresy and I see no problems with his statements as long as order is maintained. I will not permit any Lutheran within Bavaria to be persecuted by Duke Hans, the Kaiser, the Pope, or any other man. If a Lutheran commits a crime or incites others to do so within Bavarian territory, then Bavarian men will deal with him appropriately. Any non-Bavarian who commits such an act within any Bavarian province will soon find the full force of all Bavarian armies against him.

And before any of you use my statements here to accuse me of sabotaging the relationship with Byzantium, let me remind you that I am a firm supporter of the alliance with Byzantium. Indeed, at this very moment a Bavarian army stands at the gates of Thessalonica, which it will assault and take at the cost of many Bavarian lives, so that province can then be given to the Eastern Emperor. It is entirely within my power to recall that army, should I wish to do so, but I do not wish to do so. Such an action will aid our allies and that I will support. It is the unification that I oppose, not the Byzantines themselves, no matter how ridiculous their clothing may be.