Holy Kingdom Of Zion
Ideology: Isolationist
Centralisation: High
Political Freedom: Moderate
Tech Expertise Priorities: Bio, Psych, Material, Energy, Computing
Claims: Jamaica (capital), Hispaniola, Cuba
Extra:
"And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof." -Revelation 5:5
The Holy Kingdom of Zion is a Rastafari theocracy, formed from the ashes of the old Carribean. The devestation of the Third World War turned the once idyllic tropical paradises into a battlefield. Metal behemoths bled oil into the ocean as the most sophisticated navies fought each other into pulp, and the verdant jungles were burnt to the ground, the people included. Who did the razing was irrelevant; the only thing that mattered was that Babylon's hedonistic tendencies finally collasped in on itself in an orgy of death and destruction.
In the ruins of the once proud islands came salvation. A lowly member of a Jamaican posse, or gang, survived the devastation. His birth name allegedly being Kirk Marson according to the best intel, he only answers to the moniker "Buffalo Soldier" after receiving a vision from Jah to lead His people back to Zion and to rule in His holy law. Since this covenant, Buffalo Soldier has worn a mask over his face at all times, a crude visage of an American Bison. The reason for this reinvention of his identity is a mystery to all but himself, but if the Marson lead is accurate, pre-Troubles records shows an outstanding warrant for "Kirk Marson" by Interpol for mutliple accounts of murder and drug smuggling in both Jamaica and the United States.
Buffalo Soldier's message, one of rejection of western decadence, capitalism, and an embracing of the African heritage of the vast black majority in Jamaica, made him a sort of messianic figure in the ruins of the Caribbean island. While other figures, warlords and the remnants of the old government promised survival, Soldier promised salvation. And the people flocked to him, creating a community of followers in the faith. Those who resisted were eventually crushed by his growing army, dubbed "Jah's Army" in reference to the name of God in the Rastafari tradition.
After the unification of Jamaica under Soldier's control, the Holy Kingdom of Zion was officially founded. Rastafari Christianity became the state religion and the sole legal faith; a cult of
personality venerating Haile Selassie (or Ras Tafari, as he is known by his followers) as Jesus's second coming (and thus, due to trinitarianism, Jah himself) became persuasive on the island. His portrait could be found in every home, on every street corner, and especially in every church. State schools officially teach that Selassie was divine and that ensured the salvation of every faithful Zionese boy and girl. Soldier does not claim divinity himself nor a member of the Solomonic dynasty, but is still persistent in the cult of personality as Jah's prophet.
Although Reparation, or the return of the faithful to Africa (especially Ethiopia herself) is a clear and important tenant of Rastafari, it is known that the Ras Tafari urged religious leaders to seek a policy of "Liberation before reparation". In that regards, the immediate goal of Zion was to bring its spiritual revolution to the neighboring islands of the Carribean. The first such island to reach its attention was Hispaniola, which also is mostly populated by black people. Missions were set up to teach scripture in the Rastafari tradition. Brutal warlords (and warlords that oppossed the arrival of the Zionese and their religion) were dispossed by Jah's Army, at this point becoming more like a professional army as Jamaica's industry started to recover. Soon enough, the whole island was liberated, and become part of the Kingdom.
At this point, language became an important issue. English (or more specifically, Jamaican Patois) was the
de facto official language, being the most spoken language on Jamaica. However, the acquisition of Hispaniola complicated things, as half the island spoke French, the other half spoke Spanish, and neither spoke English natively. However, rather than forcing English on Hispaniola, or creating a myraid set of bureaucratic issues by having to translate every edict into three languages, Soldier instead decreed that the church language of Amharic (in which Rastafari holds the first Bible was written in) would become Zion's sole official language. Even Soldier has shifted his appearances to use Amharic instead of his native English (even if international observers from Africa can tell he does not speak it natively, and with a huge accent). The fact the Zionese bureaucracy that has existed was already running fine in English, and that very few people actually spoke or even understand Amharic, has meant that Jamaican Patois still serves as a
de facto second official language.
Soon, Zion's attention would be pointed at the largest island in the Carribean, Cuba. Cuba represented a test of the faithful. As the largest island, it had the best reserve of resources that the Zionese desperately needed. However, while there is a strong afro-cuban tradition, the majority of Cubans were white or
Mestizo. While nothing in Rastafari scripture prevented non-black adherents, it would definitely seem odd as pan-Africanism and black nationalism are two of the most important tenants of the faith.
However, an in was found. Although the pre-war government has by long since dissapeared, the Castros were held in near-mythical regards by most of the surviving Cubans. And Fidel Castro, both through his speeches emphasizing a link between Cuban identity and Africa, and independence movements he helped support in interventions in Angola and other such countries, clearly were in line with the official state theology. Thusly, the "cult" behind Castro was co-opted by the Zionese, with Castro being considered a man in line with Jah, who created a revolution to liberate Cuba from Babylon. Emphasis was also placed that Hispanics were not "white devils", but fellow victims of Babylon. This change of rhetoric won the hearts and minds of Cuba, and any resistance to the Zionese expansion were swiftly crushed to the elation of the newly converted Cubans.
Now, the Kingdom of Zion looks eastward, not just to unite the rest of the Carribean islands into a single nation (the first time in history), but further eastwards, back to Africa. After all, if Liberation is completed, the only thing left is Reparation...
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