"I've heard that when bishops preach, they say that God loves all people equally, that He doesn't distinguish between them — that He values whether a believer conforms to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures, not their identity. Whether they're mages or vampires, as long as they believe in God sincerely, believe from the depths of their hearts, and their conduct reflects that faith, then they are righteous and can be saved." Ignoring
Lucian hadn't drawn entirely on the "justification by faith" content from the Soul Library. The Church of Truth and the churches of Earth only shared certain superficial similarities — they were not the same religion. Moreover, the doctrine of justification by faith was built upon the premise of a savior's incarnation to redeem mankind, and the Church of Truth had no such miracle, no such savior. Blindly applying it would only give Richard something to laugh at.
So Lucian had expanded upon the concept of justification by faith, weaving it into more universal religious principles.
Upon hearing Lucian's question, Richard gradually suppressed his surprise. His initial suspicion was that this was either a devil's temptation or a mage's persuasion. A kindly smile spread across his face: "'So tell the honest man he has nothing to fear — he shall ascend to the Holy Dwelling. Tell the merciful man he has nothing to fear — he shall climb Heavenly Mountain. Tell the righteous man he has nothing to fear — he shall surely be blessed…'"
This was a passage from the Holy Scriptures. After reciting it, Richard continued: "If a mage or a vampire can believe in the Lord from the depths of their hearts, and their every action strictly conforms to their faith, then they are undoubtedly righteous and will be saved. There are many such examples among the Night Watch teams of the Church Tribunal. But what about other mages, dark creatures — which of their actions conforms to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures?"
"Bishop Richard, you're speaking of the ancient mages — cruel, mad, steeped in blood. They were indeed unrighteous and beyond salvation. But modern mages? Most of them obey the kingdom's laws, live without excess or indulgence, and aspire to beautiful things. Which part of that fails to conform to the Holy Scriptures?" Lucian smiled.
Richard understood that the young man across from him wasn't referring to battle mages with blood on their hands, but to Archanists devoted to their experiments. Even when they took on tasks, those tasks typically involved hunting devils, demons, and dark creatures, gathering resources, or exploring dangerous regions. So rather than seizing on any loopholes in that line of argument, Richard replied earnestly: "Every day they commit acts of blasphemy against the Lord, and in their dealings with the faithful, they are full of lies."
"Acts of blasphemy? You mean researching the mysteries of the world?" Lucian pointed at the sky. "Does the Holy Scriptures contain any passage that forbids exploring the world? Did God ever warn mankind against approaching His domain?"
Richard thought carefully and realized with some discomfort that the Holy Scriptures actually contained no such content. There were only the Lord's rebukes and warnings against false believers, those who interfered with faith, the evil, and the blood-soaked — but nothing specific stating that exploring the world would offend God's majesty.
Lucian had served as a disciple of the God El for a time and had read through
Therefore, the Holy Scriptures only explicitly opposed evil experiments on the human body, holding that mankind should not trespass into the forbidden territories of life. Many Archanists, after all, had no expertise in necromancy at all.
After a few minutes of silence, Richard said: "'Keep your distance from Me, do not face Me directly'… this clearly means that mortals must not approach the domain of the gods."
Lucian had underestimated the clergy's interpretive skill. They could extract entirely different meanings from a single sentence at will, and for a moment he wasn't sure how to steer the conversation toward his intended direction.
Fortunately, the weathered elder continued on his own: "Moreover, the Doctrine explicitly stipulates that no mortal shall presume to step into the gods' forbidden domain."
"The Doctrine? That wasn't spoken by God — it was compiled and constantly revised by successive Popes and certain members of the clergy. Does it really carry that kind of authority?" Lucian felt slightly more at ease upon hearing this. This was the conversational path he'd been aiming for all along.
Richard furrowed his brow: "The Pope is the Lord's sole appointed representative on earth. His words carry the authority of the Lord."
"The Northern Church doesn't see it that way." Lucian invoked the Northern Church's doctrine, silently thanking the Great Schism of the Church of Truth and its internal factions for providing him with ammunition. Without them, he — an amateur at best — would be courting death trying to debate theology with a genuine scholar like Richard. Besides, Lucian's real intention wasn't to debate doctrine but to "help" Richard untangle his own thinking. This was, after all, psychological guidance from the school of illusions.
The Northern Church's counterarguments had been a focal point of the Southern Church's research for centuries, and Richard naturally responded with citation after citation, delivering a sweeping rebuttal that made Lucian's head throb. He waited patiently for "that sentence" to appear.
"…All the flock must pass through the Church's baptism and rituals, through the shepherd's guidance, counsel, and aid, to receive salvation. And the head of the shepherds is My will…" Richard recited the passage establishing the Pope's authority with practiced ease.
Lucian's eyes lit up, and he immediately interrupted: "So we cannot be justified by faith? No matter how devout our belief, no matter how closely our actions conform to the Holy Scriptures, we must still pass through the Church, through the clergy, through the Pope in order to be saved?"
This was a question Richard had wrestled with internally for years, and having it laid so nakedly bare, he didn't know how to answer.
"God loves all people, but loves the shepherds more? God loves all people, yet won't communicate directly with each person's heart? When one prays — at home, in a cathedral — is the divine majesty sensed any different? Must one receive Divine Arts only through the clergy's guidance?" Lucian seized the moment, unleashing a barrage of questions.
Richard wanted to rebut, but then he recalled that many gifted priests and bishops had received Divine Arts entirely by accident — while praying with their parents as children, while reading the Holy Scriptures — without ever passing through a monastery or receiving any clergy's guidance.