The Last Church (Short Story)
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| Author | Graham McNeill[1] |
| Performer | Jonathan Keeble[1] |
| Publisher | Black Library[1] |
| Series | Horus Heresy Series[1] |
| Released | 2009 |
| Collected in | Tales of Heresy, Lupercal's War |
| Length | 1 hour 29 minutes[1] |
"The Last Church" is a short story by Graham McNeill in the Horus Heresy series. Set on Terra before the Great Crusade, it describes the fate of the last Christian church.
Cover description
Terra stands upon the brink of Unity. The armies of the self-proclaimed Emperor of Mankind have waged their bloody wars to bring the whole planet under his rule, crushing all traces of outlawed religion and worship from the face of this now secular utopia. But even the mighty Thunder Warriors cannot cow Uriah Olathaire, last priest of the Church of the Lightning Stone, as he goes about his empty, hollow rituals – and only one last and thoroughly unexpected visitor can bring any hope of a possible reconciliation.[1]
Synopsis
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The following paragraphs contain spoilers for: | The Last Church (Short Story) |
Terra, c. 730s.M30[n1]. Uriah Olathaire, priest of the Church of the Lightning Stone, prepares his midnight ceremony as he wonders how many of his congregation will attend, with the worldwide prohibition of religion and superstition. A stranger, introducing himself as Revelation, comes and strikes up a discussion on the nature of faith and belief, challenging Olathaire's faith and the existence of the divine.
The priest shows his guest the Lightning Stone the Church is named after, telling the story of how it came to be deemed holy. Revelation explains how the tale can be explained by natural phenomena, prompting Olathaire to entrench himself in his beliefs. He then relates how he was granted a vision of the divine as a young man: while serving in the insurrection of the Franc Havuleq D'agross, he was the sole survivor of the Battle of Gaduaré, in the aftermath of which he was found and healed by a figure bathed in light. This was a life-changing event for the then young man and, combined with the slaughter of his family by Scandian raiders, led him to devote his life to a message of peace and love.
Revelation offers examples of religiously motivated wars and massacres, ranging from the early centuries of M2[n2] to the exactions of Cardinal Tang. With neither Olathaire willing to relinquish the good he sees in religion, nor Revelation ready to grant it a hint of positive influence, the latter reveals himself to be the Emperor of Mankind. Stunned, the priest realizes the figure he thought divine decades ago was the new master of Terra, who leads the old man out of the church.
As the Astartes begin setting the building on fire, Olathaire's belief in his life choices is renewed and, with a warning that the Emperor's denial of religion will be the undoing of his Great Crusade, walks back into the inferno to die there.
Trivia
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- n1: During their conversation, "Revelation" says Cardinal Tang died "less than thirty years ago". As Tang was still active in 703.M30[2][3a] and the Unification Wars officially ended in 712.M30[3b], and he was killed shortly after his imprisonment[4], this would place the story somewhere between 730 and 741.M30.
- n2: Specifically, he refers to the warcry "Deus Vult", first recorded during the First Crusade of 1096-1099, and to the pronouncement attributed to Arnaud Amalric before the Massacre at Béziers in 1209: "Caedite eos. Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius" ("Kill them. For the Lord knows who are His").
Related articles
Sources
- 1: Black Library: The Last Church (archived 08 Jun. 2023, last accessed 03 Jul. 2024)
- 2: The Horus Heresy Book One - Betrayal, pg. 80
- 3: The Horus Heresy: Timeline of the 31st Millennium (archived 28 Jun. 2024, last accessed 03 Jul. 2024)
- 4: Mechanicum (Novel), 2.05
