According to common sense, the more sincere one is to the Catholic faith, the more obedient one should be.

But in reality, it's the opposite.

For example, France, known as the great filial son of Catholicism, was imprisoned in Avignon for seventy years. After a hundred years of civil war, a political and religious treaty was signed, stipulating that the French archbishop and bishops should be appointed by the king; during the period of the Sun King Louis XIV,

It also upholds the "Gaulism" that secular rulers have full power to handle secular affairs.

In Germany, known as the papal cow, after Henry IV suffered the humiliation of Canossa and returned to his country to stabilize order, he went to Rome to depose the pope.

Of course, the Catholic eldest son is more reserved. As early as the 15th century, the right to select and appoint senior Spanish clergy belonged to the king; church courts must accept the supervision of the king, and the church and priests must pay property taxes to the country; papal edicts must be issued before they are issued in Spain.

With the king's approval...

Of course, it is precisely because of this that these Catholic countries are keen on fighting religious wars.

Because the Catholic property is basically in their pocket, and the bishop is very obedient. If the Protestants want to rebel, the pope can't stand it, and they can't stand it. This is tantamount to poaching their flesh.

It was not until modern times, when politics and religion were separated, that the power to appoint and remove bishops returned to the hands of the Holy See.

Therefore, Zhu Yixi has no choice in front of him: be a filial son!

"Let Wei Kuangguo come to see me."

The emperor ordered casually.

Today, the missionaries in China are the Jesuits, Dominicans, and Franciscans!

Among them, the Jesuits adhered to Matteo Ricci's rules, called themselves Western Confucianism, and actively integrated into the Ming Dynasty. They often wore beards, kerchiefs, and robes, and were the same as Han Chinese except for their appearance.

Moreover, the Jesuits like to build hospitals, schools, hold official positions as princes, "divine ministers" (hearing confessors) and other activities!

For this reason, the Jesuits preached the most widely.

The general general designated the Ming Dynasty as a Jesuit province. The churches in Guangdong and Guangxi areas within the Ming Dynasty were still under the management of Macao; Beijing, Shandong, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan were assigned to the North China Diocese; Nanjing, Huguang, Sichuan, Zhejiang, and Fujian were assigned to the South China Diocese.

Today, the Jesuit President of the Ming Dynasty is Wei Kuangguo, the third president after Matteo Ricci and Tang Ruowang. He is responsible for managing the missionary work of the entire Daming Diocese.

Soon, Wei Kuangkuang, who served as the deputy supervisor in the Qintian Prison, came to him quickly. This was a unique position for missionaries, and there was almost no objection from the court.

"Your Majesty, Wei Kuangguo, has seen your Majesty——"

"Get up!"

His official robe is loose, his black gauze hat is straight, and his words are straight and round. From a distance, he doesn't look like a Westerner at all.

"How many Jesuits are there in Daming Diocese?"

The emperor whispered softly, and the clear voice was like pearls falling on a jade plate, extremely loud. In an instant, the entire palace suddenly became quiet, except for the sound of Wei Kuangguo's rapid breathing.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, there are more than a hundred priests and about 20,000 followers. Half of them are in Songjiang Prefecture and Suzhou Prefecture in Jiangsu Province, and the rest are in Beijing and Tianjin."

Wei Kuangguo did not dare to hide anything and recounted everything in detail.

He understood that even if he didn't say anything, within a few days, Jin Yiwei would investigate and find out everything.

Although he didn't understand what the emperor was thinking now, the priests now abided by the rules and it was impossible to violate them.

"Twenty thousand people, not bad."

The emperor murmured softly.

Twenty thousand people may sound like a small number, but in fact they are 20,000 middle-class and above male church members, which can be said to be very powerful!

After all, the Jesuits would love to take the high road.

In this case, building a few churches is just like playing.

"Are the bishops of each diocese personally appointed and dismissed by the Vatican?"

Hearing this, he was shocked all over and had to lower his head, secretly shouting, "Not good!"

But the emperor probably didn’t know much about the situation in Europe...

"Yes, the Jesuit bishops of the diocese are appointed and dismissed by the Holy See in Rome, including the presidents of Jesus and other clerical positions!"

"But, how did I hear that in France, England, and Spain, bishops in various places must be approved by their kings before they can hold office."

This statement makes it impossible to refute, because it is very easy to verify, and once you lie, the consequences are unpredictable.

Wei Kuangguo could only nod his head: "That's true, but there is a special reason..."

"The Daming Diocese is a special new diocese, so its leaders and subordinates are also appointed and dismissed by the Holy See, making it special——"

"The Ming Dynasty is no exception."

The emperor said directly: "Go and tell Rome that since the Daming Diocese has been established, don't be greedy and control it remotely."

As he said that, the emperor showed a sneer: "I just don't want to, otherwise I can change the host of every temple and Taoist temple in the world."

What cannot be denied is that it was precisely because of Rome's direct manipulation of the Eastern dioceses that it directly ruined the Jesuits' hundreds of years of efforts.

Of course, because of this relationship, the interests of the missionaries naturally stood on the side of Macau and Rome, and they constantly lobbied the court to obtain benefits.

Historically, it is precisely because of this that Macao has been able to maintain its special interests for hundreds of years.

"Your Majesty, we don't dare to decide on such a big matter." Wei Kuangguo smiled bitterly.

"There are no two days in the sky, and there are no two masters in the country. Naturally, the Society of Jesus cannot be detached from outsiders. The church of the Ming Dynasty is naturally appointed and removed by me."

Zhu Yixi looked into his eyes calmly and said word by word: "If it is difficult for the Society of Jesus to choose, or if it is towards Rome, then there is no need for the church to exist, and there is no need for missionaries -"

With many thoughts on his mind, Wei Kuangguo slowly left.

There is a saying that religion has no national boundaries, but missionaries have national boundaries.

People naturally have opinions, and missionaries are no exception. Otherwise, how could the King of France have made seven consecutive popes all French.

Cultivating our own people and making the Society of Jesus enlightened is naturally an urgent matter that needs to be solved.

After a certain period of time, the Jesuits with Ming characteristics can even help overseas countries and contribute to the integration of Ming Dynasty.

Thinking about it like this, Zhu Yixi even felt a little excited!

At this time, at the port of Songjiang Prefecture, another foreign guest came.

Since the opening and closing of Songjiang Prefecture, a large number of visitors from foreign countries have arrived here, which has caused an extremely prosperous business.

This place is located in the core area of ​​​​Jiangnan, rich in silk, porcelain, etc., and the people are wealthy. It is a Jesuit archdiocese comparable to Gyeonggi.

Especially people of all races are a hot topic in the city.

Seeing such a bustling scene for the first time, Nan Huairen even felt like he couldn't breathe: there were too many people.

He arrived in Taiwan last year, and then studied for more than half a year. He was able to speak Chinese for the first time, so that he could come to the mainland and start his missionary work.

When he thought of this, he couldn't help but get excited.

At this time, a man came slowly and showed a hint of surprise: "Is it Father Nan Huairen?"

This is a pure Italian accent, which makes people feel very familiar.

Nan Huairen was overjoyed: "Yes, God bless!"

"I'm Xu You from the diocese, and I'm here to pick you up."

The carriage was prepared and a group of people quickly got on it.

Soon, we arrived at Sun's house.

An old woman went out to greet him personally.

This person is not a simple person. She is the daughter of Xu Guangqi. She has been familiar with Western learning since she was a child. She was also baptized early and became the pope.

It is precisely for this reason that Sunzhai is also an important venue for the activities held by the Society of Jesus in Songjiang Prefecture.

At this time, there were dozens of people gathered in Sun's house, all of them were wearing long robes and robes, they were extremely elegant, and they were dressed in embroidered clothes. Most of them came from wealthy families.

There were just a few Westerners in the crowd, but they didn't look out of place at all.

Without her, because everyone is dressed the same, unless you look closely, you can't tell at all.

"Father Nan——"

Everyone held the cross on their chests tightly and couldn't help but be surprised when they saw Nan Huairen coming from afar!

Seeing this group of people, Nan Huairen understood deeply that they were the foundation of the Society of Jesus, and that the Dominican missionary mission in the countryside was just a joke and had no relevance at all.

Because these people are full of wealth and nobility in their movements, even more aristocratic than nobles.

"Everyone, after the news from Beijing reached Taiwan, the bishops were also very anxious, but this matter needs to be decided by Rome."

Nan Huairen immediately comforted him: "Everything is business as usual now, don't panic."

Mrs. Sun came over quickly. She looked directly at Nan Huairen and said in a deep voice:

"I am so old that I have no regrets in my life. I am also very affectionate towards the church members, especially my father and Father Mar who have gone through many hardships to win such a situation."

"Now that the church is in danger, waiting so easily would be detrimental to the congregation."

"Yes!" Xu You, who was picking up people on the side, couldn't help but add at this time: "I heard that the emperor was furious and was so dissatisfied with the Jesuits that in recent days, many local gentry have withdrawn.

, the congregants did not come to participate in the activities, and the church was much deserted."

Nan Huairen was full of surprise.
To be continued...