Streets of Hope

What's your take on the "Deus Vult" mess?

"An unfortunate misuse and corruption of a phrase that was already bogged down in the Crusades' morally indefensible roots.

God Wills It began as a rallying cry for the citizenry across Europe, in favor of Pope Clement's proposed Crusades. Popular theories also link it to the Templars and Roscrucians, while the Order of Saint George sometimes employed it to signify that certain orders had received Angelic approval on a demonstrable level. While the zealots sacked Jerusalem, for instance, my brethren of old claimed the will of God commanded that they create an underground railroad of sorts - a series of passageways and discreet mountainside trails to be used in leading as many Muslims as possible away to safety. These events led to the Order growing fairly syncretic in its approach, to the point where some of my brothers and sisters prefer to shout Ma sha' Allah or Allah Commands It.

To us, opening an assault or launching an operation with proclamations of God's will is a momentous event, no matter if my brothers-in-arms come from the Order's Christian, Muslim or Jewish contingents. In all of our operations, Celestial Intent has only been proven five times - which is no surprise, considering how Heaven prefers to remain away from mortal spheres of influence. Those five times have always furthered the pursuit of peace and tolerance. If one of my soldiers were to claim to be acting out of God's will while spreading hate, they would be disregarding all the palpable signs Heaven has sent us, regarding the Creator's intent, and would effectively be casting themselves out.

The modern use of the phrase as a vector for bigotry is one such affront. If we all could guard ourselves from it, we could simply follow His commands and turn the other cheek at every rebuke of our faith. Unfortunately, hatred oftentimes leads to bloodshed. In these instances, the Almighty demands that I shield those who cannot protect themselves.

That is the true will of God. No imageboard-based keyboard zealot could convince me otherwise."