After roughly determining the goal, Guo Kang's first consideration was also the problem of pulling people.

He hopes to do a test in Dadu, but even so, he needs external support.

There is generally nothing wrong with the church. His Holiness has always supported him in his attempt, and Father Ross has been very enthusiastic. After Guo Kang said that he would personally lead the team to inspect the situation, Father Andrei was a little hesitant, but Father Mikhail was very supportive.

The old man had a great reputation among the monks, and he quickly persuaded the others. In the face of Guo Kang's thanks, Father Mikhail directly said that he had taken a fancy to his ability.

"The work of the church is more than prayer and meditation." He told Guo Kang: "You can't do everything well only in the church office. I think this is what all the brothers of the monks agree with, and the Patriarch agrees with it. ”

"I'm just an ordinary practitioner, and I'm fortunate enough to be elected by everyone to lead them in prayer. But how to run the church and make it better is not what I am good at. ”

"However, I can still help people who have strengths in this area. Like this one, it can help you learn more about the situation of grassroots churches and accumulate experience for future work. ”

"This time, I mainly want to catch a model and punish a few criminals, and it is estimated that I will not accumulate much experience in running a church, but it is indispensable to use swords." Guo Kang said.

"That's not a bad thing." Mikhail shook his head: "During this time, I have met quite a few people. Those who live in the slums know the local situation and can provide many clues. With their help, it's a lot easier. ”

Moreover, in order for the church to be more appealing and to maintain its fairness and justice, punishment was inherently necessary. If you want me to say, the church is still too loose and disorderly. I hope you will continue to improve it in the future. ”

"Loose? I think it's okay. Guo Kang thought for a while and said.

"It's okay here, but it certainly can't stop there." "I also know that the ideal situation is not easy to achieve, and in practice both the Orthodox and Catholic churches allow the existence of some 'local lord' churches. ”

"But now, especially in the Rus' region, there are still several churches working in silos. Theoretically, there is nothing wrong with it, but if it continues like this for a long time, it will inevitably lead to confusion in people's hearts, and it will also be very unfavorable when facing heretics and infidels. ”

"When I was younger, I traveled to the south and was surprised to find that the Orthodox monks in the region preferred to join the Golden Horde, who believed in the Celestial Sect, rather than accept the administration of the Church. Because the church was unwilling to accept their reform ideas, and persecuted them with the help of the princes, the Golden Horde was more tolerant, so they had to change places to take refuge. ”

"The reason why these problems within the church have not been solved is because of the lack of a healthy organization. That's why the clergy exclude each other all day long, blaming each other for trivial things. In fact, many things could have been avoided through authoritative mediation and fair rulings, but now in this fragmented situation, what was originally a small thing can ferment into a big thing. ”

"So I think even the current church should continue to improve. The churches throughout Rus' should be further integrated and integrated with the Church of Rome to establish a truly universal Orthodox Church. He encouraged Guo Kang: "I hope that Brother Konstantin must do his best to shoulder this sacred responsibility!" ”

"Ah...... I think this possibility is still far away for the time being. Guo Kang hesitated and said euphemistically: "Now only in Rome, there are many monks with different opinions. ”

"It's not that different opinions and groups aren't allowed, but that all people should stick to the bottom line and work for the glory of the Father and all that is good in the world under a common faith and a common goal." Father Mikhail sighed and said:

"I've seen too many unnecessary disasters in my life, but I can't do anything by myself. Therefore, I can only use penance to soothe the sorrow in my heart, and ask myself to experience the same hardships, so as not to forget that there is so much suffering in the world. ”

"I have been praying that Heavenly Father will have mercy on us poor sinners, forgive us for our sins, and give us a better future. Therefore, in the past few decades, I have been trying to find out what mistakes we have made that have not brought a good result to the penance of the monks of the past. And only now, after comparing so many examples, did I have some idea. ”

"Andrei is still young and doesn't know how rare this kind of opportunity is. But don't worry, as long as we can help, we will do our best. He said: "We hope that the efforts of the church will eventually bring a good result." ”

"I don't have that either." Guo Kang didn't think about it so much: "I can give you a suggestion to inspire others to come up with better ideas, and I'm satisfied." And this kind of thing is far more than just one person can do, and there will definitely be more capable people in the future to really complete this work. Let's do some research and lay a foundation for everyone, and it's a success. ”

Father Mikhail listened, did not agree, but did not refute either, just thought about it and finally nodded.

Guo Kang thought about it for a while, and suddenly became a little curious, so he asked, "If in the future, there really is a capable person who can help you realize your wishes, then should you thank this person, or should you thank the Heavenly Father who guided all this?" ”

"Huh?" Father Mikhail doesn't seem to have thought about it.

He thought for a moment and said, "I think the two are the same. ”

"Why?" Guo Kang asked.

If Heavenly Father has mercy on us and allows Him to carry out righteous deeds, then He has carried Heavenly Father's mission. Those who carry the Father's mission receive the favor of the Holy Spirit. Accomplishing the action that Heavenly Father expects will make God happy. In this way, of course, such a person becomes a substitute for the Father. If the merit is great enough, then this help alone is enough to be equated with a saint. Mikhail analyzed it seriously:

Therefore, we should treat such generous and great people as we would saints. In the same way, even if the help is ordinary, the recipient should give thanks to the minister as a righteous person chosen by Heavenly Father. This is both a thank you to Him and to our Heavenly Father, who rules the world. The two are supposed to be one and the same. ”

"And what if it's a heathen?" Guo Kang continued to ask.

"It depends on whether the believer believes that there is only one God in the world." Father Mikhail thought for a moment and said, "If he believes that there is only one true God in the world, then even those who believe in pagan religions are chosen by the Father to do righteous deeds—because the Father is the ultimate good, and there is no other source of great good in the world that can guide mortals to do good." ”

Therefore, believers in the faith should also be grateful to this heathen, for it is a tribute to the goodness of the Father. As for other differences of faith and hostility, they should be viewed differently, otherwise the requirements of honoring the Father will not be met. ”

Guo Kang thought about it and nodded.

(End of chapter)