Chapter 4511 Chapter 4513 [Big Change]
It is worth mentioning that among the many priests of the Goddess Church selected by Xiang Nan, there was actually Lord Beckett, a former high-level executive of the East India Company.
It turns out that things haven't been going well for him since he was expelled from the company.
He was required to be responsible for the company's losses, so all his accumulated property was confiscated by the company, which was equivalent to being kicked out and left destitute. Therefore, he had a difficult life in those years.
Once people are in trouble, it is easy to believe something, so he became a believer in the Goddess Church. After he joined the church, he became very dedicated in preaching.
Not only is he eloquent and eloquent, but the key is that he is smart and knows how to adapt to changes, so he quickly became a small boss.
The reason why Xiang Nan chose him to be responsible for the development of the entire diocese was because of his potential.
In good conscience, he and Beckett had no personal conflicts. The reason why they had disputes was because each of them had his own master.
He even quite admires Beckett's abilities. Beckett was able to rise from a low-level employee to the top of the East India Company, and even almost wiped out pirate groups around the world. This ability is truly incredible.
Therefore, since Beckett is now on the same side as him, Xiang Nan naturally does not hesitate to promote him and use his talents to serve himself.
After being promoted to the head of the parish, Beckett suddenly found the direction of his efforts. He could not return to the East India Company, but it would not be bad if he could become the leader of the Goddess Church.
Therefore, he worked harder to preach and focused on striving for performance so that he could become the leader of the Goddess Church in the future.
…
After being rectified by Xiang Nan, the Goddess Church soon changed greatly.
First, the piety of faith has been greatly improved. Because in other sects, it is impossible to tell whether believers are pious or not. Some believers pretend to be very pious on the surface, eat fasting, chant Buddha's name, and have kind eyebrows. In fact, behind the scenes, they are male thieves and female prostitutes, committing all kinds of evil.
For example, many temples in ancient times were owned by local wealthy people. They not only annexed land, but also engaged in loan business, and they also had no scruples about eating, drinking, and having fun.
Therefore, many people accuse these monks of referring to the Buddha for food and clothing. However, they are a bunch of fake monks and have seriously damaged the atmosphere of Buddhism.
But if the believers of the goddess are not pious, they will really tell. Not only will their faces be engraved with words, but they will also suffer from diseases.
Either a fever, a headache, an unbearable itching all over the body, or numbness in the limbs. In severe cases, half of one's life may even be lost.
Precisely because they were punished like this, those people repented to God one after another, prayed for God’s forgiveness, and never dared not disbelieve in God in the future. When other people saw their miserable situation, they naturally took warning. As a result, the piety of believers in the Goddess Church has been greatly improved.
Second, the number of believers has also greatly increased. Because the priests selected by Xiang Nan personally were all eloquent people, under their governance, the missionary efforts of each parish were strengthened.
Moreover, Xiang Nan also declared in the "Blessing Scripture" that all believers are obliged to preach. Preaching will help believers accumulate merit. After death, it will be easier for believers to enter the Kingdom of God and enjoy eternal bliss without suffering the pain of fire.
Otherwise, they will go to Hades first, where they will suffer various punishments based on their sins during their lifetime, which is unspeakable misery. In this way, those believers will naturally be more motivated to preach.
For example, they often give away rice, flour, oil, medicine, and clothes. In addition, the church will also set up a Fuyouyuan to help the helpless and homeless congregants. If a poor member dies and has no money or land to bury him, the church will help with the burial. These welfare measures also attract many believers.
After all, human nature is to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Some people do the business of beheading, but no one does the business of losing money. If there are benefits, people will be more willing to follow. Talking about dedication without talking about benefits can only fool you for a while at best.
And Xiang Nanduo only had money, giving away rice, flour, oil, medicine, and clothes, and he could handle it.
What's more, once a church is organized, it actually doesn't require him to pay any money. Most of the time, believers donate money to God in order to pray for God's blessing.
Therefore, the Goddess Church is not short of money, so naturally it can afford it.
Among these benefits, the most attractive one is that the Goddess Church regularly distributes "sacred water".
These sacred waters are the holy waters that Xiang Nan soaked in the Holy Grail. They have certain analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects and are very effective in treating many common diseases. For example, colds, headaches, toothaches, pneumonia, tracheitis, etc.
In the eighteenth century, medical technology everywhere was quite backward, causing people all over the world to suffer from diseases.
For example, in the Caribbean, the average life expectancy is only ten years, and more than 30% of people who come to the New World from Europe will die in one year.
Britain set up its first colonial settlement in North America, Jamestown. Soon after the colony was established, half of the people died due to heat and fatigue. In 1609, due to large-scale famine, the number of more than 500 colonists dropped sharply to 60.
Even the princes and princesses of the Qing Dynasty who were served by imperial doctors had a premature death rate of over 50%. Just a cold can kill someone.
The divine water can treat typhoid colds, headaches, brain fever, back pain, diarrhea and other illnesses. It can be called a miracle medicine. This alone is enough to attract believers.
…
In addition to tormenting the Goddess Church, Xiang Nan also gave Keli Buso suggestions to set up checkpoints in his own kingdom to enhance the ritual sense of believers.
For example, a life-and-death barrier is set up at the entrance to the Kingdom of God. Once you enter the life-and-death barrier, you will never be resurrected. After passing the life-and-death barrier, you will reach the Styx, and there is a mirror of good and evil beside the Styx.
Good people board the ship of hope, evil people board the ship of despair, and those who have both good and evil board the ship of sighs. After crossing the River Styx, the good people directly enter the kingdom of God. The evil ones go directly to Hades and suffer endless pain.
After those who have done both good and evil sincerely repent, they can enter the Kingdom of God after passing through the fire of purification.
"Does it need to be so troublesome?" Cory Buso felt troublesome after hearing this.
"It has to be like this." Xiang Nan said, "This is a complete show."
The sense of ritual is indispensable to religion. Each religion has its own unique rituals, such as Taoism's Luotian Dajiao, Buddhism's Uncensored Assembly, Christian worship, Hindu pilgrimage...
Even secret gang organizations such as Hongmen and Qinggang have their own initiation ceremonies, which are mysterious and mysterious.
The reason for this is that the sense of ritual can strengthen the believers' sense of belonging and honor, create a mentality of fear and worship, and give rise to a "sense of holiness".
Like people celebrating birthdays. In fact, there is nothing special about my birthday, it is just an ordinary day. But eating birthday cake, having a birthday party, and accepting blessings from family and friends make this day very meaningful.