The Heretics of St. Possenti

by Rolf Nelson

  “He said that as a practical matter, what we have is potential to do great works. So let it continue with his blessing. And HIS blessing. He sees open war upon the faithful in China and the ’Stans and sandboxes of the world, and it’s getting worse with the new nuke energy resources and fracking crushing the petro-states—he didn’t have to explain that one to us—and sees it getting hotter in the next decade.’’ Tony smiled his gap-toothed smile. “Three years ago I woke up half-frozen, and more than half-naked, under a car. No idea how I got there. Now I get a private audience with one of the most powerful men in the world. It’s a weird and wonderful world you showed me, Thomas Cranberry…. Not always pleasant, and rarely easy, but weird and wonderful.”

  Appendix A: There is no appendix A

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  Appendix B: The Story of St. Possenti

  In 1860, terror descended on the people of Isola, a town in central Italy, northeast of Rome. It came in the form of badly disciplined soldiers turned renegade. I am not certain if the soldiers were from the army of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the victorious general from the battle near Pesaro in that year, or the defeated Papal States army which lost that battle. I’ve seen different sources which conflict on this point. Garibaldi was just one of many generals involved in the numerous battles and wars of consolidation, independence, invasion, and honor being fought during the era in Europe and, more specifically, in and around Italy.

  The soldiers were looting and raping about the countryside. They were little more than brigands. A group of some twenty of these uniformed terrorists came to the town of Isola del Gran Sasso, where a Franciscan seminary had stood for centuries. Hearing the commotion, a young seminarian, Gabriel Possenti—previously an avid outdoorsman, sportsman, shooter, and hunter—asked his terrified rector for permission to see if he could go out to assist the townsfolk in some way. The rector agreed, or at least didn’t oppose the request, as he was busy locking up the silverware, both literally and metaphorically.

  When Gabriel, a young and slender man of 22 and dressed in his humble seminary cassock, arrived on the scene at the center of town, he was alone and unarmed. Some of the soldiers laughed at such an idea as being stopped by such an unimposing individual.

  One of the men he came upon was a sergeant about to rape a young lady. Much to the soldier’s surprise, Gabriel Possenti snatched the pistol from the sergeant’s belt. It was a .36 caliber cap and ball revolver, likely an 1851 Colt Navy or an Italian-made imitation. He pointed the revolver at the offending man and ordered him to cease and desist. Surprised at suddenly looking down the muzzle of his own weapon, the man did as ordered. However, the young man was surrounded and badly outnumbered, and that fact was noted by the nearby soldiers.

  About this time Gabriel saw a second nearby sergeant was about to have his way with a different unwilling lady—talk about insanely poor situational awareness. Gabriel grabbed the second sergeant’s revolver as well, wielding one in each hand. Hearing the commotion, more of the soldiers arrived on the scene. Sensing that the rough-looking soldier-cum-brigands had serious doubts about the frail-looking man in seminary clothing having the ability and fortitude to be effective with the pair of weapons, Gabriel snapped off a shot at a lizard that happened to be crossing the street between the men, shooting the reptile’s head clean off. Pointing the smoking muzzle of the revolver at the sergeant, he calmly said, “The next one goes through your heart. Now drop your weapons!”

  This demonstration of marksmanship and resolve convinced the sergeant, and the rest of the brigands, that the young man was both serious and capable. They did as he ordered. They released the women, dropped their weapons, put out the fires they’d started, and returned their loot, and then they were marched out of town, never to be seen again by those townsfolk.

  In the celebrations that followed he was quite a hero, and the townspeople proclaimed him the “savior of Isola” as they led him in a precession about the town.

  He died of tuberculosis only two years later, on February 27, 1862, at age 24.

  In 1896 Pope Leo XIII proposed cause for Gabriel Possenti to be canonized.

  He was beatified by Pope St. Pius X in 1908.

  After a delay caused by WW I, Pope Benedict XV proclaimed him a Saint in 1920.

  For more background, you might want to read Gun Saint by John Michael Snyder

  Appendix C: The Heliand Bible

  The Heliand is the oldest complete work of German literature. It was a segment of the Bible “translated” into Old Saxon in the 9th century in an attempt to help convert the pagans by giving them something in their native language they could relate to. It’s done in the style of an epic saga. Oy vey!

  While it appears to have been somewhat popular, to say the Heliand takes liberties with The Word given in the Bible is a dramatic understatement. It has “Christ the Chieftain” in the tribe. Peter is a mighty swordsman who is a berserker who fights bravely to defend his chief in the garden of Gethsemane. A relevant portion of it reads thus:

  The disciples of Christ

  Awakened after these words, and they beheld war-men coming,

  Climbing up the mountain with a great commotion,

  Wrathful weapon-bearers full many. Judas rightly did lead them,

  Man hate-filled of heart. After him the Jews did go marching, …

  Until they were come to the Christ Himself —

  The grim folk of the Jews, to where He stood with His followers,

  The Lord Most Glorious, biding his God-sent fate….

  They surrounded Christ Savior. There stood the wise men

  Grieving greatly Christ’s goodly disciples,

  Before this most dreadful deed; and to their Dear Lord they did speak:

  “Were it now Thy will,” quoth they, “My Wielder, My Liege,

  That they shall slay us with the spear-point here,

  Shall wound us with weapons, then would naught be one whit as good,

  But that we might die here for our Dear Lord,

  Pale in expiring. Then plenteously wroth grew he,

  The swift swordsman, Simon Peter.

  It welled up with his heart, so that not a word could he speak,

  So sorrowed his soul, since they were about to enchain

  His Beloved Lord there. Bloated with anger, the bold-minded

  Thane strode ahead, stood before his Liege,

  Hard by his Lord; nor was his heart e’er in doubt,

  Fearful within his breast, but he drew his bill,

  The sword at his side, and with the strength of his arm

  He struck the first of the foe standing before him,

  So that Malchus was marked by the knife

  On his right side, slashed by the sword’s edge.

  His hearing had been hewn: sore was the hurt ‘round his head,

  So that sword-gory, cheek and ear in mortal wound

  Burst sunder, and blood did spring forth,

  Welling up from the wound. Then was the cheek indeed scarred

  Of the enemy’s leader. Those around stood away,

  Dreading the bite of the bill.

  —The Heliand, translated by Mariana Scott, 1966

  Well, you get the idea. Comparing any “modern” translation to it is a rather grave insult.

  Appendix D: Selected Biblical Quotes

  Biblical quotes used in this work, mostly taken from the Douay-Rheims Bible. Not exhaustive, and a few are implied but not used directly.

  Exodus 20:13

  You shall not murder

  Exodus 22:2

  If a thief be found breaking open a house or undermining it, and be wounded so as to die: he that slew him shall not be guilty of blood.

  Leviticus 24:16

  And he that blasphemeth the name of the Lord, dying let him die: all the multitude shall stone him, whether he be a native or a stranger. He that blasphemeth the name of the Lord, dying let him die. 17 He that striketh and killeth a man, dying let him die.

>   Numbers 35:16

  If any man strike with iron, and he die that was struck: he shall be guilty of murder, and he himself shall die.

  Deuteronomy 22:26

  The damsel shall suffer nothing, neither is she guilty of death: for as a robber riseth against his brother, and taketh away his life, so also did the damsel suffer:

  Judges 20:5

  And behold the men of that city in the night beset the house wherein I was, intending to kill me, and abused my wife with an incredible fury of lust, so that at last she died.

  20:25 The

  children of Benjamin sallied forth out of the gates of Gabaa: and meeting them made so great a slaughter of them, as to kill eighteen thousand men that drew the sword.

  1st Samuel 13:19

  Now there was no smith to be found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines had taken this precaution, lest the Hebrews should make them swords or spears.

  1 Samuel 25:32

  And David said to Abigail, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me: 33 and blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, that hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from avenging myself with mine own hand.

  Nehemiah 4:17

  Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens took their load with one hand doing the work and the other holding a weapon. 18 As for the builders, each wore his sword girded at his side as he built, while the trumpeter stood near me. … 21 So we carried on the work with half of them holding spears from dawn until the stars appeared. …. 23 So neither I, my brothers, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us removed our clothes, each took his weapon even to the water.

  Esther 8:11,

  12 By these letters the king permitted the Jews who were in every city to gather together and protect their lives—to destroy, kill, and annihilate all the forces of any people or province that would assault them, both little children and women, and to plunder their possessions…

  Esther 9:5

  So the Jews made a great slaughter of their enemies, and killed them, repaying according to what they had prepared to do to them:

  Job 24:14

  The murderer riseth at the very break of day, he killeth the needy, and the poor man: but in the night he will be as a thief.

  Psalm 18:34

  He teaches my hands to make war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze

  Psalm 37:32

  The wicked watcheth the just man, and seeketh to put him to death,

  Psalm 82:4

  Rescue the weak and needy; Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.

  Psalm 144:1

  Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight:

  Proverbs 24:11

  Deliver those who are drawn toward death, And hold back those stumbling to the slaughter.

  Ezekiel 33:6

  And if the watchman see the sword coming, and sound not the trumpet: and the people look not to themselves, and the sword come, and cut off a soul from among them: he indeed is taken away in his iniquity, but I will require his blood at the hand of the watchman.

  Matthew 5:5

  Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 6 Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill. 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God.

  Matthew 5:39

  But I say unto you, not to resist evil; but whoever shall strike thee on thy right cheek, turn to him also the other

  Matthew 5:44

  But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you:

  Matthew 26:52

  Then Jesus saith to him: Put up again thy sword into its place: for all that take the sword shall perish with the sword.

  Matthew 26:53

  Thinkest thou that I cannot ask my Father, and he will give me presently more than twelve legions of angels?

  Matthew 26:55

  In that same hour Jesus said to the multitudes: You are come out as it were to a robber with swords and clubs to apprehend me. I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you laid not hands on me.

  Mark 3:25

  And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

  Mark 3:27

  No man can enter into the house of a strong man and rob him of his goods, unless he first bind the strong man, and then shall he plunder his house.

  Mark 14:38

  Watch ye, and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

  Mark 14:48

  And Jesus answering, said to them: Are you come out as to a robber, with swords and staves to apprehend me?

  Luke 22:36

  But they said: Nothing. Then said he unto them: But now he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise a scrip; and he that hath not, let him sell his coat, and buy a sword.

  Luke 22:38

  But they said: Lord, behold here are two swords. And he said to them, It is enough.

  Luke 22:40

  And when he was come to the place, he said to them: Pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

  Luke 22:49

  And they that were about him, seeing what would follow, said to him: Lord, shall we strike with the sword? 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear. 51 But Jesus answering, said: Suffer ye thus far. And when he had touched his ear, he healed him. 52 And Jesus said to the chief priests, and magistrates of the temple, and the ancients, that were come unto him: Are ye come out, as it were against a thief, with swords and clubs?

  John 18:8

  Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he. If therefore you seek me, let these go their way.

  Romans 12:19

  Revenge not yourselves, my dearly beloved; but give place unto wrath, for it is written: Revenge is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord.

  Science Fiction

  Awake in the Night Land by John C. Wright

  City Beyond Time: Tales of the Fall of Metachronopolis by John C. Wright

  Somewhither: A Tale of the Unwithering Realm by John C. Wright

  The Corroding Empire 1: Corrosion by Johan Kalsi

  Back From the Dead by Rolf Nelson

  Hyperspace Demons by Jonathan Moeller

  Mutiny in Space by Rod Walker

  Alien Game by Rod Walker

  Young Man's War by Rod Walker

  QUANTUM MORTIS A Man Disrupted by Steve Rzasa and Vox Day

  QUANTUM MORTIS Gravity Kills by Steve Rzasa and Vox Day

  QUANTUM MORTIS A Mind Programmed by Jeff Sutton, Jean Sutton, and Vox Day

  Victoria: A Novel of Fourth Generation War by Thomas Hobbes

  Fantasy

  One Bright Star to Guide Them by John C. Wright

  The Book of Feasts & Seasons by John C. Wright

  Iron Chamber of Memory by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 1: Swan Knight's Son by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 2: Feast of the Elfs by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 3: Swan Knight's Sword by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 4: Daughter of Danger by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 5: City of Corpses by John C. Wright

  Moth & Cobweb 6: Tithe to Tartarus by John C. Wright

  Arts of Dark and Light 0: Summa Elvetica: A Casuistry of the Elvish Controversy by Vox Day

  Arts of Dark and Light 1: A Throne of Bones by Vox Day

  Arts of Dark and Light 2: A Sea of Skulls by Vox Day

  A Magic Broken by Vox Day

  The Wardog's Coin by Vox Day

  The Last Witchking by Vox Day

  The Altar of Hate by Vox Day

  The War in Heaven by Vox Day

  The World in Shadow by Vox Day

  The Wrath of Angels by Vox Day

  Military Science Fiction

  There W
ill Be War Vol. I ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. II ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. III ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. IV ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. V ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. VI ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. IX ed. Jerry Pournelle

  There Will Be War Vol. X ed. Jerry Pournelle

  Plague Wars 0: The Eden Plague by David VanDyke

  Plague Wars 1: Reaper's Run by David VanDyke

  Plague Wars 2: Skull's Shadows by David VanDyke

  Galactic Liberation 1: Starship Liberator by David VanDyke and B.V. Larson

  Galactic Liberation 2: Battleship Indomitable by David VanDyke and B.V. Larson

  Riding the Red Horse Vol. 1 ed. Tom Kratman and Vox Day

  Fiction

  An Equation of Almost Infinite Complexity by J. Mulrooney

  Hitler in Hell by Martin van Creveld

  Loki's Child by Fenris Wulf

  The Ames Archives 1: Brings the Lightning by Peter Grant

  The Ames Archives 2: Rocky Mountain Retribution by Peter Grant

  The Missionaries by Owen Stanley

  The Promethean by Owen Stanley

  The Heretics of St. Possenti by Rolf Nelson

  Non-Fiction

  4th Generation Warfare Handbook by William S. Lind and LtCol Gregory A. Thiele, USMC

  A History of Strategy: From Sun Tzu to William S. Lind by Martin van Creveld

  Equality: The Impossible Quest by Martin van Creveld

  Clio & Me: An Intellectual Autobiography by Martin van Creveld

  Four Generations of Modern War by William S. Lind

  On War: The Collected Columns of William S. Lind 2003-2009 by William S. Lind

  MAGA Mindset: Making YOU and America Great Again by Mike Cernovich

  The Nine Laws by Ivan Throne

  Appendix N: A Literary History of Dungeons & Dragons by Jeffro Johnson

  Transhuman and Subhuman: Essays on Science Fiction and Awful Truth by John C. Wright