Crusade against the Pope

Chapter 266 Baptized with the Holy Spirit and Fire! ( words updated today)
Time goes back to the moment when Saladin led his troops and arrived at the position.

It wasn't just Saladin who was staring at the Frankish position, George and Simon were also staring at Saladin's army.

George was the Field Marshal of the Kingdom of Jerusalem Army and nominally the supreme commander of the Kingdom of Jerusalem Army, but in fact the only troops he could mobilize were soldiers from Transjordan.

To be more specific, most of the time George was responsible for training new recruits, improving the structural system of various armed forces in Transjordan, and executing Garys's will.

This was the first time that he had commanded a battle of 2,000 men on his own. Apart from being excited, he was actually quite uneasy. He could only follow the advice given by Garys and try to do his best.

They dug trenches, set up barbed wire, backed themselves against the river, and chose a time period that was not suitable for large-scale military marches to prepare for this defensive battle.

Even so, he had to fight against six thousand people with only two thousand men, and was worried that he would be trapped in a long siege.

Winter in the Levant is the rainy season, not suitable for warfare.

This was not only true for Saladin's massive cavalry, but also for the defenders in the trenches.

Rainy season means waterlogging and winter means cold.

Being trapped for a long time actually meant that they were unable to defeat Saladin's troops, and their morale would collapse little by little due to the cold, hunger, waterlogging, etc.

Therefore, George hoped more than Saladin that the enemy would launch an attack so that the defensive positions he had set up could be put to use.

Simon, who was standing next to George, was relatively calm.

Of course, this is also because he is not the first person in charge of this battle.

"Be at ease, George. Think about the land you are standing on. You should be confident in this battle."

Hearing this, George couldn't hold back and punched Simon on the shoulder. What this guy said was as cold as ever.

The current situation of the cult is actually quite special.

According to the usual Christian naming method, the people of Garys should actually be called the Garys sect or the Garys sect.

This name will include all believers, priests, theological systems...referring to this religion in general.

The special thing about the Galician Church is that it does not have a church system equivalent to traditional Christianity, but instead has a religious order.

The traditional Christian church system is a religious institution with the clergy, that is, the bishop, as the core and priests as assistants.

But the Order is not like that. The Order's operating logic is essentially not much different from that of military orders such as the Knights Templar.

In other words, the Order is a monastic order of ascetic Paladins.

The clergy in traditional Christianity, apart from their pastoral duties, are not responsible for the operation of the Taiping Order, a religious institution, in the Gelistic sect.

There is no hierarchical relationship between superiors and subordinates. They are only responsible to local believers and form a sacred council to supervise and review the operation of the Palatine Order and, under certain circumstances, adjust the direction of the order.

In the absence of Gairis, and with the Holy Synod not yet complete, Simon is the leader of the Palatine Order, a Palatine institution, and the highest leader of the Gairis sect in Transjordan.

As the head of a religious organization, Simon naturally had to study hard. Even though he had no interest in the Bible at first, he can now memorize many passages.

Combining the ground under his feet, Simon felt that there was a passage of scripture that was particularly appropriate for the moment.

He left here, called the soldiers in the position to assemble, and said mass and preached to them.

This would be the last mass Mass before the war, and it was a must to boost morale.

Of course, this pre-war mass could not follow any overly formal rituals.

First there was a short opening prayer, after which the atmosphere was set and the faith of everyone present was aroused.

[Lovely God, source of justice...]

[…Lord, your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.]

In the name of Christ, Amen.

By the way, Simon recited aloud a passage from the third volume of the Gospel of Matthew.

There are a few sentences among them that Simon emphasized.

"Everyone, you know that there were already words written in the scriptures thousands of years ago, foreshadowing the coming of the Son of God and announcing the mission of our sect."

“Thus it is written in the Book: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand! Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight!’”

“Many of the Pharisees and Sadducees came to the land beneath your feet, to the river behind you, to be baptized.”

"And when John the Baptist saw them, he said unto them, O brood of vipers! who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"

"John the Baptist loudly rebuked those people, saying: Don't think that you can take refuge just because you have Abraham as your ancestor!"

“Because God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones!”

Shouting this, Simon pointed at the soldiers.

"It is the same today. The Saracens, or Arabs, you are facing also respect Abraham as their ancestor and claim that they are descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's eldest son."

"Thinking that you can take refuge by paying lip service to God, and replacing a sincere heart with a mechanical and numb form, is a departure from God's will."

“And we are the descendants raised from the stones, following the [Saints] and [Prophets], walking in the way of the Lord!”

"I tell you, John the Baptist said at that time: The ax is already laid to the root of the trees. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who comes after me is more powerful than I am, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire!"

"His winnowing fan is in his hand, and he will purge his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

"Where is the Holy Spirit and the fire?"

As he spoke, Simon pointed to the artillery nearby amid enthusiastic cheers.

"The Holy Spirit and the fire are right there!"

Then, Simon led the fanatical soldiers to continue praying again and again, raising the morale of the soldiers to a climax.

"Lord, the man returned from death and received your will: using the knife as a pen and the bow as a line to reconstruct the earth!"

“Though the kings of the nations are high and mighty, they are but dust and dry grass, which will be blown away by the wind!”

"The new heaven and the new earth are just around the corner. The old authority will eventually fall. You have chosen us to take this unimagined path!"

“Opening roads in the wilderness and flowing rivers in the desert is the blessing you have bestowed upon us and the testimony of our sweat!”

"Walk with your heads held high! When the kings of the nations are swept away, we will be the new masters of the new heaven and new earth!"

“Amen!”

……

Like the Battle of Jacob's Crossing, the Battle of the Jordan also took place at a location with religious stories.

Jacob's Ferry established the name of Israel, and according to the Franks' research, the place where this battle broke out should be the place where Jesus was baptized.

It was here that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and reborn with water and the Holy Spirit.

[After all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in a bodily shape like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.”]

There, John the Baptist rejected the absolution of the corrupt Jewish upper class and announced to the world that if God wanted, He could find the descendants of Abraham from the stones. This coincided with what Gairis did.

And that sentence: The kingdom of heaven is at hand, you should repent! Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight!
It has even become a catchy slogan for the Transjordan soldiers.

Indeed, the kingdom of heaven is near, and every sinner should repent, step onto the right path, and level out all injustice and unfairness.

Such a firm belief calmed the soldiers down and made them feel involuntarily panic in the face of war.

Gaspard's team was an artillery squad, responsible for a 4-pound cannon.

This artillery piece had just been manufactured. In fact, before entering this position, although Gaspar's squad was an artillery squad, they actually did not have their own artillery and could only use public artillery on the training ground.

Productivity is what it is these days. Even in Transjordan, it is impossible to implement all the staffing requirements.

But Gaspar was not unfamiliar nor flustered when facing this new guy.

Instead, he led the soldiers in his squad in an orderly manner and first unpacked the gun box that was delivered together with the small cannon.

In the gun box, apart from the gun barrel, there is the [holy oil] to protect the weapon from rust, and the parchment with a wax seal and declarations and prayers written on it as the [Seal of Purity].

Before officially operating the cannon, Gaspar first took out the [Mark of Purity] and led everyone in prayer, asking the Holy Spirit to soothe this new little cannon.

The main content of the prayer comes from Psalm 9: [God is the protector of the righteous].

Then, the secondary prayers were artillery instructions from St. Stalin, such as: "Artillery must be used in a concentrated manner" and so on.

Then comes the operating specifications of the artillery, which clarify how to use this small cannon safely and more effectively to kill the enemy.

These contents should not only be read aloud, but also memorized to be suitable for practical application.

In addition, on the back of these [Marks of Purity], there are detailed records of the production date, sealing date, number of times used, charging limit, operating instructions, applicable shell types, etc. of this 4-pound cannon.

The artillerymen must be fully familiar with the operation of their weapons and use the power of the Holy Spirit to calm the artillery and prevent it from exploding.

According to the Order's opinion, each branch of the military should have its own [Mark of Purity], and each branch of the military should pray and recite it devoutly every day.

The artillery has its own operating rules, and the spearmen have their own queue commands...

And it is an effective and pious act that can be compared with the normal seven daily prayers.

It can be said that the soldiers of Transjordan proved two things with their actual actions.

1. They are the most devout believers of the Lord.

Second: The Lord does protect them because they use these prayers to strengthen themselves more effectively.

Everything is well organized and everything goes according to plan.

This sense of security allowed Gaspar and his team to apply the results of their daily training almost perfectly on the battlefield.

The Mamluks marched with their heads held high, advancing fearlessly with neat steps and great momentum.

The soldiers at the front found a gap in the barbed wire, and the Mamluks rushed in. Just as they rushed into the position with cheers, a low explosion tore through the air.

The explosion of black gunpowder tore the silence apart, and a wave of air accompanied by countless pieces of iron raged through the crowd. Flesh and blood flew everywhere, and the aftermath of the explosion raised a field of yellow earth, obscuring the view. In this flying dust, blood was spilled all over the wasteland for the first time.

When the Mamluks arrived at the designated position, Gaspar, silently praying for the protection of St. Stalin, lit the fuse.

boom!
A dull explosion sounded from the muzzle of the gun and slammed into the crowd.

Wherever the iron ball went, there was blood and flesh, and the Mamluks screamed in agony.

All of this is the power brought by daily devout prayer and hard training...

……

Saladin withdrew his troops, but not all of them.

He built a large camp nearby, dug a number of defensive trenches in the manner of the Franks, and left behind about three thousand men.

Although he was certain that he could not capture the "fortress", he at least wanted to ensure that the enemy forces in Transjordan would not continue to advance and threaten Jerusalem.

If war is a game, then both parties involved in the game must at least have the hope of winning so that they will have the motivation to actively advance the game process.

Now, after Saladin suffered several losses in succession, the game was at a stalemate. He could not find a breakthrough point. If he went north, he would face Gairis, and if he went east, he would face the "fortress" where no one could be seen.

Of course this doesn't mean that Saladin felt he had no hope of winning, he just felt he needed to lick his wounds.

Starting from the battle with Barbarossa, he fought against the Christians three times in total, and lost all three times. Even though Saladin could withstand these consecutive failures, it also meant that the morale of his army was inevitably declining.

At least those nomadic light cavalry were completely unreliable. His elite Mamluk army also lost its fighting spirit after suffering such a great loss.

Saladin is no longer in a hurry to counterattack. He needs time to restore morale, reorganize his army, accumulate more strength, and find a more suitable opportunity to counterattack.

Saladin was not in a hurry, at least Jerusalem was still in his hands. Relying on the towering walls of Jerusalem and a large number of artillery, defending the city did not seem difficult, at least that was what Saladin thought.

……

Jerusalem is a holy city, but there is actually a reason why it is holy.

Initially, the Israelites conquered Salem and established Jerusalem.

Later in the Old Testament, God told the prophet Ezekiel that he would place Jerusalem "in the midst of the nations."

In other words, God indicated that Jerusalem is the central kingdom, the kingdom in the middle.

In the Middle Ages, people believed that this was not a metaphor.

The World Map kept in Hereford Castle in England is evidence of this view.

The map was drawn around 1300 AD. It depicts the holy city of Jerusalem as a fruit core. All human nations, whether Christian or pagan, were born and developed around Jerusalem, the center.

People not only believe that this is a geographical fact but also a truth of the world. People also believe that the land of Jerusalem is full of miracles.

This kind of cognition stems from the education we receive from childhood. All the stories in the Bible are recorded as happening on this land.

This land bears traces of the ancient emperors in the Old Testament, as well as the life of Jesus of Nazareth in the Bible.

Jesus, the Savior of the world, was born in Nazareth, baptized in the Jordan River, preached in the Levant, was betrayed and arrested by Judas in Gethsemane, died on Golgotha, and taught the world for weeks on the Mount of Olives overlooking the city of Jerusalem.

In this land, Jacob wrestled with God and was given the name Israel, Abraham built an altar and followed God's instructions, using Isaac as a sacrifice...

Countless stories and legends are passed down among tens of millions of people. No wonder they regard Jerusalem as the kingdom of heaven and the center of the world.

For devout believers, setting foot here is like walking into a myth.

And now, the appearance of Gellis seems to have once again painted a layer of mystery on this ancient and sacred land, shrouding it in a strange aura.

“Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, and you Israelites! I will help you, says the LORD, and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.”

Now, Gairis is standing on this land and is about to lead his troops south to retake large tracts of land in Palestine.

(End of this chapter)