The Holy Church of Argonath (Est. 2009, 2021)

[JDC]

Father John E. Since gives Last Rites to the soul of James_Corleone after the investigation of his death by SAPD Captain Tom_Adams and Officer Rob_Williams. However, the Last Rites go wrong and James' spirit stays behind, turning the ritual into an Exorcism instead. Don't you just hate it when your neighbor turns into an angry soul-eating ghost?








Fathers John E. Since (JDC) and Jack Sayer (Gruia) give Last Rites to the soul of Edward_Collins after an investigation of his death by SAPD Deputy Chief =AV=Megamidget and company. No angry, soul-eating ghosts this time, fortunately.

[KenAdams]

From now on, I'll just leave you to those Demons. :/

[JDC]

Fathers John E. Since (JDC) and Jack Sayer (Gruia) give Last Rites to the soul of Niko_Delonte, whose corpse was found by the roadside. Along with a strange man dressed in black (Aky) who referred to himself as "The Collector", the three held a short funeral procession for Niko from Fort Carson to the graveyard in Las Brujas, the small, somewhat abandoned town to the north. There, they laid Niko to rest.






Shortly after the elevation of Father John E. Since to the Chair of Saint Elrond as Pope JDC, he was spotted performing a ...bizarre ritual using unidentified corpses assembled by The Collector (Aky). When asked, the Pope said something about the "freeing of souls", with the rest of his remarks not being recorded properly after the local news reporters were scared away. A local police officer who was informed about the event said "...you know what, imma just pretend I didn't hear that" before walking away while praying.

From now on, I'll just leave you to those Demons. :/

* JDC takes out a Holy Dildo and squirts white fluid at the demons

[JDC]

Celebrating the first few burials at the new Fort Carson Church! (Shoutout to mapper Tom_Adams for the beautiful new Church and Cemetery)

Father John E. Since (Pope JDC) comforts an FBI Agent (Wake_Callison) grieving for a fallen colleague.

* JDC presses F to pay respects to [WS]Jake_Hodge's corpse

A poor police officer (Philip_Byrne) was so stressed with the job, he decided to become a dead body.



Father John E. Since, being an elderly man, catches his breath after having to carry nearly a dozen corpses to the cemetery.



To cap off the celebrations, the locals set one of the corpses on fire, after which everyone collectively gives it a ...golden shower.

[JDC]

Father John E. Since (Pope JDC), assisted by Brother Michael Ricci (Seminarian Michael_AncelottiT), presides over the funeral service of SAPD Cadet Sierra_Maxwell.

Also attending the funeral service, held at Fort Carson Church, were FBI Command Advisor [WS]Mircea and citizens Aky, Alexander, Gustavo_Ancelotti, and Tom_Ancelotti.



The congregation was asked to say a few kind words. A man stepped forward, cleared his throat, and said "Ladies and gentlemen, a few kind words." He then sat down.



The short funeral procession takes place from the Fort Carson Church to the Cemetery beside it. At its head were the remains of Cadet Maxwell, carried Brother Michael. Following were His Holiness the Pope and the rest of the Congregation.



The Pope says a few prayers for the deceased's soul, while Brother Michael dug the burial pit. Everyone present gave their praises to our Lord and Creator: Hail Sauron!



After the burial ended, everyone posed for a picture in front of the Fort Carson Church. What's a burial without a happy photoshoot?

[JDC]

Father John E. Since (Pope JDC), after one particularly tiring day of doing pope things, ends up falling asleep in the graveyard and inadvertently attracting a crowd of spectators.




A demon attacks the Fort Carson Church! The Pope and Brother Michael (Michael_AncelottiT) come to the rescue, conducting an exorcism. The battle is long and hard; the demon even encases the Pope in stone at one point.

But the Church fights back; the Pope uses his holy dildo to squirt white fluid at the demon, assisted by Brother Michael chanting from the holy books. By the grace of our Lord Sauron, the day is saved, and the demon is bonked back to horny jail sent back to hell.

(Special thanks to mapper Tom_Adams for the objects)






Both before and after his elevation to the Chair of Saint Elrond, the Pope meets with various businessmen to discuss the economic and spiritual needs of the people of Fort Carson. After all, how can the people strive for spiritual salvation without meeting their material needs first?

(Screenshots courtesy of La Famiglia di Ancelotti)

[JDC]

POV: You are confessing your sins to His Holiness the Pope. Instead of starting with "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned", you instead blurt out "Sorry Daddy, I've been naughty."




Father John E. Since (Pope JDC), assisted by Brother Michael, presides over the funeral service of Daniel_Ancelotti.



Mourners Aky and Ted join in the simple burial ceremony for the remains of Daniel. The Pope says some prayers for Daniel's soul, while Brother Michael digs the burial hole.



Our Lord Sauron bestows blessings on the present congregation for treating the remains of the departed with respect: After Francisco_Ancelotti an unidentified businessman drops off another corpse at the cemetery, it is suddenly transfigured into a weed plant!

Everyone present gives praise immediately: "Hail Sauron!"




The Pope presses F to pay respects to the earthly remains of SAPD Officer Kostas_Evans.

[KenAdams]

From now on, I'll just leave you to those Demons. :/

* JDC takes out a Holy Dildo and squirts white fluid at the demons

LMFAO Seems good enough.. 

* Michael  takes out a camera and snaps a photograph of the incident.

[JDC]

SAPD Ceremony and Post-Ceremony Protest
February 2, 2021 (Tuesday), 19:00 CET onwards

The screenshots below are divided into four parts. Each part has one screenshot visible; you can see more pics by expanding the Spoilers. Each pic is also resized to 700px wide, so you may also click on each pic to further expand them to full width.

Screenshots below by JDC and Sierra_Maxwell.


Part 1: The SAPD Ceremony

Civilians and members of the Church, accompanied by His Holiness Pope +JDC (Father John E. Since), attend the SAPD Awards Ceremony at the SWAT Headquarters in KACC Military Fuels, Las Venturas. SAPD Chief LukeN and Deputy Chief =AV=Megamidget lead the Ceremony, recognizing officers of the SAPD for their hard work with medals and promotions.



After the Ceremony ends, the civilians all rise to their feet and put their hands up, in the same manner one does when greeting another with "Hail Sauron." They begin protesting against police brutality, with chants of "End Police Abuse!" and "Hey hey, ho ho, APBs have got to go!". Tensions arise as the present SAPD / SWAT members and FBI Agent warn the protesters to leave.

Spoiler for Part 1 Screenshots:

Part 2: "Free John Wick!"

Protester John Wick ([DS]Jwick), who is seated in the row behind the rest of the protesters, is arrested by FBI Command Adviser [WS]Mircea and SAPD Officer Philip_Byrne. This interrupts the ongoing communication between the protesters and SAPD Public Affairs Spokesperson Margaret_Porowski, as protesters immediately surround John Wick and his arresting officers.

The crowd follows them, chanting "Free John Wick!", as he is escorted out of the building. A tense confrontation happens in the entrance area as the law enforcers attempt to separate the crowd from John Wick.

Spoiler for Part 2 Images:

Part 3: Standoff outside FBI HQ

Depite the law enforcers' attempts to spirit John Wick away from the crowd, they are followed to the FBI HQ at the other side of the city, in south-west Las Venturas. While the FBI interrogates John Wick inside, eventually charging him with possession of firearms, SAPD officers and SWAT operatives guard the gates and keep the protesters behind a barrier.

The angry crowd continues chanting "Free John Wick!", "John Wick did nothing wrong!", and "End Police Abuse!". The protest continues until the crowd scatters after Jwick's game crashes, ending his processing in FBI HQ.

Spoiler for Part 3 Images:

Part 4: The Arrest of Pope JDC

Following the events of the protest, Pope JDC is arrested at the Fort Carson Church by a team of SWAT operatives, charged with organizing a protest without a permit, and detained at the Fort Carson Sheriff's Department. The unrepentant pontiff waived his rights to an investigation, telling his arresting officers "I am only guilty of standing up for the freedoms of our fellow Children of Sauron." The Pope is currently serving jail time (60 seconds) as legal proceedings continue.

Spoiler for Part 4 Images:

Bonus: An edited recording of the night's events, made by Craig_Luciano:




A big thank you to everyone involved (protesters, SAPD, SWAT, FBI) in this wonderful peaceful protest RP! It was a lot of fun, and certainly a much more unique experience than it would have been if it were violent. Congratulations as well to all the SAPD officers recognized for their hard work. Let's keep working to make Argonath more fun!

[JDC]

Before the events of February 2, Pope +JDC (Father John E. Since) is tear-gassed by law enforcers after attempting to come to the defense of a woman who hastily buried a corpse in the graveyard of Fort Carson Church.






On February 7, Sunday, members of the Priesthood and Laity (Laypersons) of the Church attend the SAPD Press Conference on the recent protests, hosted by the SAPD's Public Affairs Division Head and Spokeperson, Lieutenant Margaret_Porowski. Both in terms of goofing around and raising serious issues, the event was a great success, with Margaret doing a great job and handling the tense questions well.

While these issues can simply be raised on the forum, it was much more fun to it through an RP approach as well, adding to the level of RP in-universe!

[JDC]

SERVIRE ET PRAESIDIO

of the Holy Father +JDC
on incidents of police brutality against civilians

1.) As the spiritual caretakers of the majority of citizens in the United States of Argonath, it is the pastoral duty of our Church to uphold the well-being of all Children of Sauron in this life and the next. While the law enforcer, the law-abider, and the law-breaker are all equally important in the eyes of our Lord and Creator, our duty of care becomes more important when looking after the weak, the poor, and the marginalized, who are unable to protect themselves.

2.) In recent times, we have seen a disturbing amount of incidents of police brutality suffered by civilians at the hands of law enforcement as a result of APBs. While initially intended as a measure for law enforcers to keep one another informed of threats to the safety of our citizens, APBs have, in practice, become de facto warrants which leave civilians no choice but to face arrest, death, or escaping from the law as fugitives. Several of the victims of these incidents, seeking spiritual and physical sanctuary with the Church, have complained about being pursued and prosecuted by law enforcers through APBs, in some instances only facing formal charges (/su) when the pursuing law enforcers are assured of their success in arrest or termination.

3.) Members of the Church engaged in a peaceful protest against police brutality last Tuesday, February 2, after the first SAPD Award Ceremony of the year 2021. Protester John Wick ([DS]Jwick) was arrested on charges of weapon possession despite remaining peaceful, while Pope +JDC was arrested on charges of organizing a protest without a permit. After waiving his rights to an investigation, the Holy Father was released from prison several days later, following negotiations between legal representatives of the Church and the Government.

4.) Five days later, on February 7, Members of the Church (led by Pope +JDC and Father Gruia_Collin) attended a Press Conference convened by the SAPD's Spokesperson and Public Affairs Division Head, Lieutenant Margaret_Porowski. The attendees present criticized the law enforcement's use of APBs resulting in the excess use of lethal and nonlethal force. While we commend the statements of Lt. Porowski that the duties of law enforcement should also protect citizens' civil liberties, we also hope that other law enforcers share that commitment in the practice of their duties.

5.) As the spiritual leader of the Church and also for and in behalf of the citizens protesting for their civil liberties, Pope +JDC voices the following four demands for the law enforcement authorities of the United States of Argonath and the State of San Andreas:

First, that law enforcers, in carrying out their duties of protecting the peace, do not unjustly trample on the rights and civil liberties of our citizens by disregarding the constitutional right to remain innocent until proven guilty;

Second, that law enforcers cease the use of APBs to pursue and prosecute citizens without formal charges (/su) or a proper warrant from a Court or other Constitutionally-assigned high authority. Such practices a.) violate the civil liberties of Argonath citizens by removing the target's freedom to live in safety and by allowing punishment without formal charges (/su), and b.) violate the separation between the police power of law enforcement agencies and the judicial authority of the Courts, as even rank-and-file law enforcers, by using the APB as a de facto warrant, can usurp the authority of the Court to charge citizens outside of active crime incidents and formal investigations;

Third, that a full and immediate suspension be enforced on all use of the APB in its current form, to remain in effect until the "new system" of APBs is rolled out by the San Andreas Police Department (SAPD) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI);

Fourth, that law enforcers who choose to disregard the civil liberties of the innocent by violating the above, be brought to justice.

It is our prayer that our law enforcement authorities grant these demands, so as to protect the rights and freedoms of our fellow Children of Sauron, to address the root causes of the recent civil unrest, and to restore the trust of our citizens in the law enforcers whose duty it is to serve and protect them.

With the blessings of Sauron,

+JDC p.p.
Pope of the Holy Church of Argonath

From the Cathedral of Saint Elrond, San Fierro, on Sunday, 7th February, in the year of our Lord 2021, the first of our pontificate.

[JDC]

In behalf of the Holy Church of Argonath and its Priesthood, we congratulate Chief Justice Stiven Gvardia on his appointment as the new Supreme Judge of the San Andreas Court of the United States of Argonath.

As the Church upholds the spiritual and moral welfare of all Children of Sauron, so does the Court uphold our legal and civil welfare. We stand ready to offer moral and other kinds of support, when and if needed, as the Court rebuilds itself to deal with the legal challenges of our time.

With the blessings of Sauron,

+JDC p.p.
Pope of the Holy Church of Argonath

[JDC]

Pope JDC (Father John E. Since) heads into the disputed territory of Flint County to hold a burial for four souls who were slain in a skirmish between the law enforcers of the United States of Argonath and insurgents of the Flint Liberation Army.

For in the eyes of our Lord and Creator Sauron, those who enforce the law, those who follow the law, and those who rebel against the law are all equally important and worthy of His light.

Some screenshots by Aky. Screenshots may be further expanded to full size by clicking on them.







(More screenshots in the spoiler below)

Spoiler for Additional Screenshots:

In the aftermath of the armed conflict, the Pope accompanies an unidentified FLA soldier in retrieving the corpses of the deceased.



Later in Angel Pine Church, preparations are made for a short Holy Mass for the eternal rest of the four souls of 3 Argonath law enforcers and 1 FLA soldier.



The four corpses are lain to rest in the graveyard of the Church, while the Pope recites prayers of Last Rites.



The unidentified FLA soldier takes his place beside the corpse of his slain comrade, a few moments of silence passing between the two brothers-in-arms - one in this life, and one in the next.











Goodbyes are said as the Pope and the FLA soldier part ways, with the Pope returning to San Fierro to minister to the faithful across the entire State of San Andreas.



The corpse of the fallen FLA soldier (=AV=Stalker) is marked with a green flag, the banner of the Flint Liberation Army.

[Lonewolf]

that burial made me drop a few tears

[KenAdams]

Pope JDC (Father John E. Since) heads into the disputed territory of Flint County to hold a burial for four souls who were slain in a skirmish between the law enforcers of the United States of Argonath and insurgents of the Flint Liberation Army.

For in the eyes of our Lord and Creator Sauron, those who enforce the law, those who follow the law, and those who rebel against the law are all equally important and worthy of His light.

I hope that a Peaceful solution comes to this.. Very sad Indeed..