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For convenience, the names of countries such as Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom will denote the modern way of calling each country, not the way it was called at the time.
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Going back will be six months before the battle of Sekigahara took place.
In a beautiful garden inside the Palazzo Quirinale, a papal territory far from Japan (near the present Italian State), Pope Clemens VIII of Time looked sinister and spoke with one man, rinsing his coffee.
The man was the bearer of a healthy figure, and his appearance kneeling before the Pope was precisely that of a knight himself. But what is decidedly different from Western knights is their outfits. It only looks like a devout Christian per se, no matter where you look from, but its outfit is black monochrome, i.e. black. I could only imagine the imbalance between the attitude and the outfit adding an awesome flair that was hard to get close to the man.
The man's name is Claudio Aquaviva. He is the general director of the Jesuits, one of the monasteries of the Christian and Catholic Churches.
"Are Roma citizens still loud...?
and Clemens VIII opens its heavy mouth.
"Yes, unfortunately, the anger of those who still do not think well of the execution of Giordano Bruno with the daughter of the Chench family does not seem to subside"
And Aquaviva replied. The voice was low and weighty.
"Hmm... neither father-killing nor heresy is an act contrary to the Lord's teachings... will the Lord rejoice without punishing it... let it flow into temporal emotions and bend the Lord's teachings is a blasphemy to God and why not realize it..."
"Come on... I don't know"
Clemens VIII shifts his eyes from the black surface of the coffee to the black coat.
"It's Aquaviva. You don't have to say anything sweet to me. This coffee tastes great, even if it's bitter"
"I say, then, that the Pope's popularity in Rome is no longer on the ground, and his words will never reach the hearts of the citizens of Rome".
Clemens VIII gives a bitter face to Aquaviva's words as though he were slashed under one sword with a sharp blade. But those eyes carry the kind of light that was saved somewhere.
"If you're so clear, I can stay in the palace with my stomach set."
Around this time, in Western Europe, the rise of Protestants known as Protestants was remarkable, and it even developed into political and territorial issues.
The Catholic Church, centered on the Pope, was actively involved in politics, economics and the military, and was stretching its strength by ties to kings, nobles and merchants. But the Protestants based on evangelism outright denied the Catholic Church the right to hold in the name of restoring faith to its original form.
And at a time when there was a huge difference between the rich and the poor between the nobles and the civilians, Protestant ideas were easily accepted by the people, expanding their forces once and for all.
But as contradicts Martin Lutter's noble idea of religious reform at the outset, it will be skilfully used as a spark of political strife.
In other words, nobles and merchants, who did not take Western European rule as good, mainly the Hapsburg family at the time, used the name of the spread of Protestants to militarily invade the Catholic Church in an attempt to escape from the control of the Hapsburg family and the Catholic Church.
Every such event that symbolizes it was the Armada naval battle that destroyed an army called the Spanish Invincible Fleet by Elizabeth I of England, the Dutch War of Independence.
That is, both England and the Netherlands put up Protestant protection and free preaching to start a fierce war with Spain, which was oppressing it. Its original aim, however, was for England to take control of the sea and for the Netherlands to take back its sovereignty from Spain, so the implication there of the freedom of preaching of the pure Protestants would rather be sumptuous in history.
And even in France, in the name of Protestant protection, the establishment of an absolute kingdom by exiting from the control of the Catholic Church was progressing.
In the meantime, Clemens VIII was appointed Pope in 1592, arguably the head of the Christian Catholic Church.
With the great goal of restoring the Catholic Church, he took the seat of Pope with strong determination.
The first step there was to restore fame to the Catholic Church. For this reason, we chose the means of "flexicurity" rather than repression of Protestants.
That is, without imposing deference to the Catholic Church to kings and nobles, he decided to recognize freedom of faith, including the Protestants, and to appeal on it to the nobility of the teaching of the Catholic Church.
And in France, where civil unrest continued, it was not only against Henri IV, the King, who had been broken by the Catholic Church because of his tolerance for Protestants, that he could undo that bankruptcy and make a significant impact on the end of the Jugneau war, the long-running civil war in France, but also committed himself to reconciliation between France and Spain, which was a hostile relationship.
This increased the prestige of Clemens VIII's political arms and, at the same time, the Catholic Church's presence.
However, in terms of "appealing to the nobility of the teaching of the Catholic Church", it may be a reality to assume that it has failed. It is significant, as earlier, that he executed the daughter of the Chenchi family, who continued to be abused by her real father, on charges of "father-killing", and that he sentenced Giordano Bruno to a blazing sentence for his continued insistence on astronomical authority and a rugged theory of geography. However, he has executed dozens of other "heretics".
It was also all about complying with the characteristics that the Catholic Church should have, "in strict observance of the teachings of Christ", and restoring its fame, but it came out completely behind it.
And by this time there were frequent riots by Roman citizens with a strong rebellion against the Pope, who felt himself in danger, he began to cage in the palace and rarely went outside.
But he didn't give up the restoration of the Catholic Church, he already had his next hand.
Aquaviva, who had been busy as the head of the Jesuits, had asked Clemens VIII to talk to Clemens VIII about it.
"Your Holiness, I bid you one favor"
"What?
"Is it true that the other day, not only my Jesuits, but other congregations… Dominican congregations and others have also acknowledged missionary activity in the Far East?
"Seriously, is that any inconvenience?
"It's not funny to us."
"Right..."
Yes, the next hand that Clemens VIII struck at this time was the strengthening of the preaching of the Catholic Church to the whole world.
Initially, missionary activity in East Asia, including Japan, was only permitted to the Jesuits founded with the noble goal of regaining the authority of the Catholic Church and advancing its preaching throughout the world. However, Clemens VIII, who learned of the fact that the Franciscan missionary work, a congregation of the same Catholic Church, had begun in Japan, also recognized missionary work in East Asia for other congregations, such as the Dominican Church.
That context seems to be influenced by the decline of Portugal, a Jesuit supporter. Because by this time Portugal and Spain had the same king as king. It is about Felipe III.
Originally influenced by the Hapsburg family, it began where Felipe II, who was King of Spain, was also King of Portugal. At the time, however, Portugal and Spain were treated equally, and for this reason the Portuguese economy, which until now relied on the aid of the Italian millionaires, developed further at this time with the aid obtained from Spain. By the time of Felipe III, however, Portugal will be treated like a Spanish dependency, rapidly weakening its national power and influence.
It had to be said that the weakening of the economic base, Portugal, also had an impact on the Jesuit missionary activity.
Against this background, the Pope had no hesitation in using the preaching power of the Franciscan and Dominican congregations, of which Spain is the supporting mother.
Around this time, the expansion of that trade area and dominion by Protestants in central England and the Netherlands towards Asia is also a major factor in Clemens VIII's recognition of missionary activity in the Far East region to all congregations.
But it was important for the Jesuits to expose their lack of power, as well as to trigger a further decline in Portugal.
That is, preaching in the Far East by other congregations leads to giving Spain the opportunity to secure trade routes and colonial domination in the Far East. In a situation in which the Treaty of Tordechalis, which now provides for Portugal and Spain to divide and rule the world, has become the only one in form, the Jesuits thought that the entry of Spanish-based congregations could spook Portuguese rights.
Clemens VIII said, staring at Aquaviva in black.
"Let's just say I make things clear too.
How many years has it been since the Jesuits began preaching in Ming?
"I thought it would be about twenty years..."
Clemens VIII takes a sip of coffee and takes a breath and snaps with a faint voice.
"Twenty years and yet the preaching doesn't seem to be progressing?
"That's because emperor rule in Ming Nation and teaching on the ground are more rooted and stronger than we imagined"
"If so, is it no longer in the sole hands of the Jesuits?
"No, it's..."
Aquaviva's words clouded, which did not break his consistent and resolute attitude.
Clemens VIII loosens his mouth to the look of it.
"It's Aquaviva. I simply want to spread the Lord's teachings throughout the world and reach out to the lost.
Not that there was a Jesuit or a Franciscan meeting there.
Instead, I think that because of this chaotic world, each congregation should work hand in hand to proceed with preaching, how about "
"It is… you are the best"
"Besides... we have also received reports that your lords who carry out missionary work in the Far East, the Jesuits, are committing acts contrary to the Pope's teaching..."
Aquaviva bit her lips at the words of Clemens VIII.
And without waiting for his words, Clemens VIII continued.
"Is that why slaves from Mingguo and Japan haven't arrived in Lisbon lately?
"But..."
"Excellent excuse. How many followers of the Catholic Church do you think will be saved with the wealth gained from quality slavery?
Only pagans recognize slavery. Don't you think mercy for the unconvertible is tolerance for paganism?
That's such a sweet idea, so isn't preaching in Mingguo going on?
Shame on you that preaching has not progressed at all, not just in Mingguo, but even in Japan, which is a small country.
The Lord will be grieving too. "
And Clemens VIII looked up to heaven, and cut the cross.
"Sorry… sorry…"
and Aquaviva bowing her head to squeeze it out.
But Clemens VIII continued his pursuit.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the report that the Jesuits forbade Portuguese merchants from working with slaves from Japan and Ming came from the same Jesuit Spaniards.
Even satisfactory missionary activity seems suspicious, as its footprints do not align "
"The problem with missionary activities..."
"No, I'm not going to say that.
And he... you called him Cruz.
from that cruz received such a writ "
Aquaviva stared at Clemens VIII, who cut the words there.
And Clemens VIII, with his eyes and voice without color, read out the script.
"Japan has a king dying and its power is diminishing. If Spain attacks in with its invincible fleet, it will be easy to defeat. Japanese domination and preaching are absolutely necessary for the foothold of preaching to Mingguo.
Forgive me for sending this letter directly to the Pope at last.
With that great heart of mercy, please work on Felipe III, King of Spain, to forgive the invasion of Japan and its domination by the Kingdom of Spain "
In fact, by this time, we know that the Jesuits were not a single rock. It was that the Spanish Jesuits were at odds with the Portuguese Jesuits, which could be called home.
Aquaviva, by virtue of its high power of control, had succeeded in suppressing the Spanish-Jesuits, while the letters addressed to the Pope by Cruz were, above all, a testament to their inability to control even their movements in the Far East.
And around this time, for Spain and Portugal, "preaching" and "domination" had exactly the same meaning at this time. So much so that the Pope and the kingdom of the Iberian peninsula had a strong connection. That is, both the mind and the land rule over the people together was the way they spread their control. Let us say that Spain, in that sense, faithfully complied with its connection with the Pope.
"Don't worry. I will not work on Felipe III from Me according to this scripture.
Because I don't want to tolerate the futility of contention. "
"Thank you…"
It was Aquaviva with a reassuring look somewhere, but Clemens VIII said to give him a nail like that.
"But... I am short tempered, which the LORD will know again and again...
You know what that means?
Cold stuff runs on Aquaviva's back. That is undoubtedly the battle brought about by the faces of those who sent dozens of people to the execution bench during their tenure.
"Yes."
And it was full of short answers.
"Anyway, tell the priests and patrols of the Far East to focus on preaching.
And he said to them, "I don't think there's much time left for the Jesuits..."
"Yes, sir."
And, Aquaviva bows her head.
And the leftover Clemens VIII makes coffee. It should be noted that coffee was passed from Muslim dominated Turkey to Europe around this time, and Clemens VIII liked it well.
"If this coffee was brought to you by pagans, let's just let the coffee be baptized as well.
And if you let the Catholic Church be respectful, the origin of the coffee will be the Catholic Church…
Do not show mercy to those who disobey. Don't be merciful.
All origins and the thought of the Lord seem to be based on my Catholic Church.
That's the pride of the Catholic Church. "
Aquaviva left the scene with a fortitude and perseverance, without saying anything about the words.
He walked out of the palace for a while
"The Pope... that's not 'proud'. It's called pride."
And he turned his grim eyes to the palace.
The day after this...
He had already become a man on board.
Its destination is East India...
It was the moment when the man who holds the key to the destiny of Akashi All Deng and Toyotomi Hideyoshi went out to sea...