Religion (Dutch Superpower)

Religion is one of the most important factors in the way in which people and states act in the Dutch Superpower TL, this page outlines the different religions and the way in which they influence the world.

Catholic
The Roman Catholic Church once the largest congregation in the world split disastrously in the 1940's when the then Dictator of Spain Fransisco Franco had bishops working under him who published a new doctrine of individual faith that urged that the Church needed no one messenger to represent it and that its primary duty was to the individual rather than to Rome, As a result the Catholic Church was split into those who believed in the doctrine of individual communion with god and those who believed that Rome. was the seat of all holy power.

Papal Catholicism
Papal Catholicism continued as mainstream Roman Catholicism after Franco and Spain's split with the Church. Instead of trying to spread the good word as Francoist bishops did the papacy became obsessed with retaining what support it had and ensuring that it maintained an important role in Italian politics. In 1990 however the Italian Queen Maria I had enough of Papal interference and overthrew the Pope and installed herself in his Place, ending any facade of loyalty to Rome by the other Papal Catholic states.

Latin Catholicism
Latin Catholicism is made up of those Catholics still loyal to the deposed pope from 1990, Pope John Paul who was evacuated from Rome by Brasilian and Mexican troops in 1991. John Paul now resides in Rio where a new St Peters has been constructed. Latin catholicsm maintains the idea of devotion to the pope as leader of the church but has incoperated many francoist ideas including a devotion to helping the poor. When he finally passed away in 2003 a previously little known Jesuit Bishop became pope as Francis I and has further focused the Church on economic issues.

Italian Catholicism
Italian Catholicism is the last claimant to the Throne of St Peter and the only one that can trace its line back to the foundation of the Church. Little has changed in Italian Papal Doctrine aside from a new focus on Italian nationalism and the idea of returning to the middle-east which has surely nothing to do with Pope Maria's desire for ever expanding papal rule.

Bavarian Catholicism
Bavarian catholicism is the newest of the fragments of the old Roman Catholic church but also the only one with the backing of the College of Cardinals. It split from the Latin church in 1995 when the Bavarian Bishop Joseph Ratzinger published a piece harshly criticizing John Paul for being to liberal, Surprisingly the majority of the College of Cardinals agreed with him and elected him as Pope Benedict with his seat in Munich.

Individual Catholicism
In the beginning there was only Individual Catholicism and Roman Catholicism and despite the massive splits in Roman Catholicism since the divide Individual Catholicism would have remained united were it not for political maneuvering that artificially split the church.

Anglican Catholicism
Anglican Catholics believe in the Francoist teaching that the poor are the most important but substitutes its focus on devotion to God through the state by teaching that only by deep individual communion can one become close to god. Furthermore they believe that the Eucharist needs no leader and that anywhere two Christians eat break and drink wine that they are remembering Jesus.