Valduvian Reaction

Arvīds Kauss, the Archbishop of Matīspils, was the leading figure behind the Valduvian Rection.

The Valduvian Reaction, alternatively referred to as the Valduvian Correction, Valduvian Reformation, or Valduvian Schism, was a Sotirian religious and political movement in the Platavian Union and parts of the Rudolphine Confederation during the 16th century. Usually characterized as part of the broader Amendist Reaction, the movement saw the spread of Kausian theology throughout modern-day Valduvia and culminated in the ongoing break in communion between the Valduvian Apostolic Church and the Solarian Catholic Church. The movement's description as Amendist is controversial among scholars, and a sizable minority argue that the theological basis for the events in question is more closely related to Episemialist theology than that of other contemporary Amendist movements. For this reason, the Valduvian Reaction is sometimes considered to be a distinct event drawing inspiration from the zeal of Amendist reformers, rather than a constituent movement of the latter.

The Valduvian Reaction began in 1515 when Arvīds Kauss, the Archbishop of Matīspils, delivered his Letter of Grave Concern to Pope Caritas IX. In his letter, Kauss expressed consternation over the excommunication and killing of leading reformer Johanne Stearn that had occurred several months prior, and outlined several teachings and practices of the Catholic Church that Kauss argued were recent inventions inconsistent with historical Sotirianity. Kauss's points included critiques of papal supremacy, clerical celibacy, the distinction between mortal and venial sins, indulgences, the concept of purgatory, closed communion, Filioque, the relationship and relative authority of scripture and sacred tradition, and Catholicism's claim to be the one true church. Kauss gained a significant following among the Platavian clergy and was openly supported by King Matīss IX, who promoted the spread of Kausian theology in neighboring Burland with the aim of undermining Rudolphine authority in the region. The Solarian Catholic Church ultimately repudiated Kauss's views at the Council of X in 15XX, and Kauss and his followers were excommunicated. The prelates of the Burish churches subsequently established full communion with Matīspils in 15XX, leading to the formation of the Valduvian Apostolic Church and marking the end of the Reaction.

The effects of the Reaction were widespread, with religious, societal, and political ramifications that permanently shaped the course of Valduvian history and that of Euclea as a whole. The movement resulted in Kausianism, specifically in its institutionalized form under the Valduvian Apostolic Church, emerging as the dominant Sotirian tradition in the territories of modern-day Valduvia. Kausian concepts such as scriptura per traditionem and branch theory formed the basis for a new theological paradigm in Eastern Sotirianity, distinct from both Catholicism and most other strains of Amendism. The status of Kausian Sotirians in Burland was a significant cause of the Amendist Wars during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, with the Platavian Union intervening to protect the rights of Amendists in the Rudolphine Confederation. Platavia and the Burish states subsequently formed the Valduvian Confederation, the earliest predecessor of the modern Valduvian state, as a defensive bulwark against future aggression by the Rudolphines. The shared religious identity between Burlanders and ethnic Valduvians would later become central to the emergence of a Valduvian national identity in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Background

The region surrounding the Valduve River had occupied a unique position within Euclean Sotirianity since the Sotirianization of the Valduvian tribes during the 6th and 7th centuries AD. Although formally under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Solaria and thus ecclesiastically tied to Eastern Sotirianity, Sotirians in the region were heavily influenced by Western theology due to their geographic location at the western frontier of the Solarian Catholic Church. Leaders within the Valduvian church frequently sided with the western patriarchs in theological disputes, but still submitted to Solaria's ecclesiastical authority. Valduvia ultimately remained under the jurisdiction of the Papacy following the Lesser Schism of 1385, which led to a break in communion between the Solarian Catholic and the Episemialist churches. Nevertheless, the Valduvian church continued to preach many theological doctrines that set them at odds with Solaria, including the rejection of the Filioque, the distinction between mortal and venial sins, and the Eastern interpretation of purgatory. Most Valduvian dioceses also continued to practice clerical marriage, making them among the only episcopal sees in communion with Solaria to reject clerical celibacy. Liturgically, the Valduvian church eschewed the Solarian liturgical rites in favor of the Valduvian Rite, a unique ritual family using the Church Lielonian language.

The Iconoclast Wars of the 15th century further demonstrated the continued influence of Western Sotirianity on the Valduvian church. Inspired by their western counterparts, a group of Valduvian iconoclasts known as the Pelšites staged a short-lived revolt in 1411. The revolt succeeded in capturing the city of Dzērbene, where they ransacked and destroyed the Cathedral of St. Sīmanis. However, the Pelšites were ultimately crushed by the Kingdom of Platavia at the behest of the Papacy. Church historians often refer to the Pelšites as proto-Amendist, noting that the reformers of the 16th century made frequent references to the movement in their written works.

In order to prevent future division in the aftermath of the Pelšite Revolt, Pope Caritas VIII expanded the ecclesiastical province of the Archdiocese of Matīspils to include all of the territories west of the Valduve River and north of Gaullica. This measure effectively vested Matīspils with primacy over the entirety of the Valduvian church, where previously its authority was confined solely to Platavia. Although bringing the Valduvian bishops under a single prelate did succeed in fostering unity, it also consolidated significant power in the office of Archbishop. The new province was far larger and more populous than any other ecclesiastical province within the Catholic Church, making the Valduvian prelate one of the most powerful religious leaders in Eastern Euclea. Numerous sources from the late 15th and early 16th centuries refer to the Archbishop of Matīspils as the "Little Pope" or "Valduvian Pope", reflecting the unusually high degree of ecclesiastical authority conferred upon the office.

Events

Letter of Grave Concern

At the beginning of the Amendist Reaction, many Valduvian Sotirians saw their disputes with the Papacy as analogous to those of the Eastern reformers. Unlike in Estmere and the Rudolphine Confederation, the church leadership in the Valduvian states was largely sympathetic to the Amendist cause. The incumbent Archbishop of Matīspils, Arvīds Kauss, had been a significant proponent of reform in the Catholic Church for several years prior to the Reaction and made a number of supportive public statements regarding Amendist leader Johanne Stearn. However, Kauss also vocally disagreed with many of Stearn's theological positions and even published a rebuttal to several of his key arguments. Kauss took particular issue with Stearn's five solae, which he argued were oversimplifications of critical doctrine that ignored important nuances. Due to these theological differences, Matīspils did not formally support the Pilgrimage of Humility despite the direct involvement of numerous individual priests under its jurisdiction. Kauss nevertheless continued to speak favorably about the reformers themselves, and urged Pope Caritas IX to convoke an ecumenical council to deliberate on their concerns.