System: Goderich

During the Amaris Crisis, the Greenhaven Gestapo (mercenaries of the worst sort), decided to put the entire College of Cardinals on trial, in a cynical attempt to extort more riches from the Catholic Church. In desperation, the Vatican managed to broadcast a short message to the ranking church members throughout the Inner Sphere.

The message read that his Holy Father was setting aside the mantle of the Church for the duration of the emergency in an attempt to avoid further violence. He gave the cardinals in the capitals of the five member-states certain powers needed to carry on the workings of the Church until such time when he could resume his position.

Cardinal Kinsey de Medici of New Avalon never received key parts of the message because a burst of static briefly interrupted the transmission. In one of those fateful quirks of history, the Cardinal interpreted what he did understand as a command that he alone was to assume complete control over the Catholic Church. A pious but egocentric man, Cardinal Medici proclaimed himself Pope Thomas X on December 15 2772, after hearing the news that Pope Clemont and almost everyone else in the Vatican had been murdered by the Greenhaven Gestapo.

Five months after Terra was recovered in 2779, Cardinal Vladimir Kosiv of the People's Union of Kazkakh was elected Pope John Paul V. For the second time in history, there were two Catholic Churches, with two Popes competing for allegiance.

Though many efforts have been made to reconcile the rift, all have failed. On individual planets, the conflict between the two churches tended to be anything but a sane and civil debate. On many worlds, the Catholic community was split down the middle and the question was settled, more often then not, with blood. On worlds such as Goderich, clashes between the two factions grew so intense that the planetary government was forced to call upon the Davion military for help.

Today, an uneasy truce exists between the two churches. The Roman Catholic Church recognizes the New Avalon Catholic Church as a wayward flock, and every few years sends a cardinal to New Avalon to negotiate reconciliation. The NACC, on the other hand, sees the RCC as the lost and confused one. Its leaders occasionally send one of their cardinals to Terra in an attempt to win its rivals over to the NACC.

There are no functional factories located on this planet.