History Main / FantasticCatholicism

* ''Literature/EmpireOfTheVampire'': The One Faith is mostly a one-to-one reskin of the Catholic Church cca. the 1400s, complete with [[{{God}} Almighty God]], the [[CrystalDragonJesus Redeemer]], [[SacredScripture The Testaments]], [[OurAngelsAreDifferent angels]], [[PatronSaint saints]], [[HighPriest High Pontifex]], [[NunsNRosaries nuns]], [[KnightTemplar crusaders]] and even the [[SecretPolice Inquisition]]. The few differences are mostly aesthetic - the Redeemer died on a wheel instead of a cross, which, along with the seven-pointed star, became the icon of the faith. The most prominent divergence is that the Emperor of the continent-spanning empire remains the nominal head of the Church, much more in lieu with Byzantine and Russian emperors and their Orthodox churches.

* Being a (surprisingly faithful) recreation of TheCountOfMonteCristo but RecycledInSpace, ''Anime/{{Gankutsuou}}'' has actually a pretty straightforward depiction of the Catholic church, with the Carnival before Lent being where Albert first met the Count. A pretty straightforward depiction... except for the part where the Catholics have colonized the moon and essentially established it as the new Rome.

* ''{{ComicBook/Hellblazer}}'': While the Catholic Church has a lot of relics and books on demons and exorcism, the actual thwarting of TheLegionsOfHell is usually up to Constantine (and if Creator/GarthEnnis is writing, more than a few TakeThats).

* The Entire Premise of ''ComicBook/WarriorNunAreala'' involves a division of the Catholic Church devoted to hunting down Supernatural Evil, with both Magic-using priests, badass Warrior Nuns, holy relics, super-technology and the resources of the global organization of the Church.

* ''Film/{{Constantine}}''. The title character is a Catholic demon-hunter who uses guns and magic to send demons back to hell in a world where {{God}} and the Devil are in a bet over who can influence mankind the most. Creator/RogerEbert on the movie:

* In Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/PrinceOfDarkness'', the Church kept [[{{Satan}} the Devil]] prisoner in the basement of an out-of-the-way church, alongside proof that Jesus was an alien, and that the Church was meant to be a militant society on guard in case [[{{Satan}} the Devil]] (also an alien) ever escaped his prison. Unfortunately, the Church became corrupt and started seeking power for its own sake.

Compare AnimeCatholicism, which is also Catholicism meets RuleOfCool but has {{Japanese media tropes}} mixed in. Unlike AnimeCatholicism, Fantastic Catholicism is usually more accurate, at least as far as religious beliefs are concerned if not elsewhere ([[UsefulNotes/JapaneseChristian unlike the Japanese]], most Western writers at the very least [[RaisedCatholic grew up immersed in a culture where Christianity was the dominant faith]], and many are themselves Catholics), and less exoticized, with the main characters often in their thirties and older with less emphasis on them being good-looking. Fantastic Catholicism may also be mixed with social commentary on the church, while AnimeCatholicism almost never is.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': While [[CrystalDragonJesus the actual religion is not necessarily Catholicism, most elements common to it and the style of buildings fit the bill]]. The priests are genetically enhanced {{Super Soldier}}s in PowerArmor, the Nuns also wear PowerArmor and mainly use [[KillItWithFire fire weapons]], and the interstellar Inquisition hunts demons, aliens, and heretics and dooms whole planets for the suspicion of heresy. The Imperium of Man are not called [[FanNickname Catholic Space Nazis]] for nothing.

* The Entire Premise of ''ComicBook/WarriorNunAreala'' involves a division of the Catholic Church devoted to hunting down Supernatural Evil, with both Magic-using priests, badass Warrior Nuns, holy relics, super-technology and the resources of the global organization of the Church.

* ''Film/Priest2011'' is an example of badass church priests. The church is pretty much the controlling government and the only people shown are the downtrodden, voluntary exiles, the priests, cops controlled by the church, and the controlling priests (magisters). (Also, the {{Manhwa}} it is based off of.) Where the New Testament never happened. Remarkably, this point could be made of most Orwellian depictions of the Church.
* ''Film/VanHelsing'': The title character works as an agent of the Vatican's Knights of the Holy Order (who are ''not'' all Catholic; there are also Muslim and Buddhist clerics shown in the Order's HQ) to hunt down monsters and other abominations. He might also be an AngelUnaware.

* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'':
** It depicts the Roman Catholic Church as including a secret society dedicated to fighting various supernatural nasties, as well three [[ThePaladin Knights of the Cross]] with [[CoolSword holy swords]] made using the nails from the Crucifixion and more or less confirmed to be {{Excalibur}}, [[Literature/TheSongOfRoland Durendal]], and the [[Myth/JapaneseMythology Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi]].
** The Knights of the Cross explicitly have ContrivedCoincidence working in their favor to ensure that they can show up where they're needed when they are needed. Harry's friend Michael Carpenter, a Catholic Knight of the Cross, is described as having power different from Harry's wizard magic, and has done things like holding back monsters and [[spoiler: releasing Harry from mind control]] with his faith. The Knights of the Cross are not necessarily part of the Catholic church. Michael is, but Shiro was a Baptist, and Sanya claims to be an atheist (though agnostic might be more accurate). The support structure we see for the Knights seems to be made entirely of Catholic priests.
** Also under Literature/TheDresdenFiles: Archangels make occasional in-person appearances.
* In Randall Garrett's ''Literature/LordDarcy'' series, set in a world where magic ''is'' the technology, the Roman Catholic Church not only oversees the ethics and orthodoxy of Sorcerers but counts sensitives and healers among its clergy. The Church licenses all magicians, and is in charge of any cases of BlackMagic. Most magical Healers are either priests or nuns. It's an AlternateHistory Verse where the Reformation never happened.
* The ''Literature/HyperionCantos'' by Creator/DanSimmons. In the first two books, the Catholic Church is widely seen as an eccentric, old-fashioned institution whose time has passed, and is only noted because Catholic priests play major roles. It's only in the second part of the quadrology that the Catholic Church becomes a [[ChurchMilitant star-spanning empire]] whose beliefs would be considered ''incredibly'' heretical by any modern standards.
* ''Literature/ACanticleForLeibowitz'': AfterTheEnd, the only remaining pillar of civilization is the Catholic Church, [[HistoryRepeats as it was]] after [[DarkAgeEurope the last apocalypse]].
* ''Literature/SandmanSlim'' by Rihcard Kadrey features prevalently a secret organization funded and run by the church, which has a crazy Angel at the head of it. They are in on TheMasquerade and fight demons and other people who piss them off.
* ''Literature/TheApocalypseDoor'' by James D. Macdonald: The protagonist is an agent for the Catholic Church's secret service, who are all ordained priests and sometimes fight actual demons. The novel also features a nun who is one of the Church's assassins. Both also feature in ''Literature/TheConfessionsOfPeterCrossman''.

* The ''Literature/HisDarkMaterials'' series never calls it "Catholic" (because the Reformation never happened), but the Church both rules the world and uses magic.
* Katherine Kurtz's ''Literature/{{Deryni}}'' novels. Despite lacking the Papacy, the Western Church is Catholic in liturgy, there's intrigue (sometimes against secular rulers), psionic magic users and fights against them, even powerful summoned beings called by the names of archangels (and most participants think they are in fact Raphael, Gabriel, Michael, and Uriel). They don't call their church Catholic, in part because the books are alternative histories set several centuries before Protestantism, and there is Eastern Orthodoxy (mostly in Torenth), Islam, and even Scandinavian paganism in a tiny minority. Most of the action is in the West. In the "Camber" trilogy, you'll find the Michaelines (Order of Saint Michael the Archangel), a fearsome combination of the Templars and the Jesuits, with many members who can use magic. Oh, and many active characters/protagonists are in their 30s and 40s.

* In ''Literature/TheHeirsOfAlexandria'' HistoricalFantasy series, priests and nuns can be magicians, and the Church apparently includes some non-humans, with one Venetian church having a "water chapel" for undines. This is all [[TheMasquerade hidden from most ordinary folk]], though.
* Creator/SergeyLukyanenko:
** ''Literature/RoughDraft'' duology has a parallel world called Tverd ("firmament") where technology appears to be in MedievalStasis thanks to the efforts of the [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual functionals]] with the exception of [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke bio-engineering]]. The Church, based in Rome, of course, is in nominal control over all of the world. However, this control means it's more relaxed and allows minor religions and denominations to exist, knowing full well they'll never get many followers. Instead of Inquisitions, they prefer logical argument and theological discussions. The only thing they are very adamant about is "thou shalt never modify a human being". Since man was made in the image of God, using bio-engineering to modify His greatest creation would be a grave sin and is punishable by death. Modifying any other animal or plant is perfectly fine, though, as was established by Saint Charles Darwin. There is no Pope in this world with the Church controlled by the Council of Cardinals. Tverd is one of two known worlds to successfully resist the functionals.
** ''Literature/SeekersOfTheSky'' duology also has an alternate version of the Church and is described in great detail. Basically, Jesus was killed as a baby, so God chose a human child as His Messiah. The Redeemer used his ability to make anything disappear and reappear to ascend to the Roman throne. He then made himself disappear, as well as most of the iron in the world. Fast-forward to "modern" times. The world is in MedievalStasis thanks to the deficit of iron. The Roman Empire never fell but now controls most of Europe and parts of the Americas. The Church is powerful and split into two major denominations: the Chuch of the Redeemer and the Church of the Sister (one of the Redeemer's disciples, possibly Mary Magdalene). God's Stepson is the Pope {{Expy}} and controls both denominations. Since the Redeemer was not crucified but had himself tied to a pole, the pole is the symbol of the Church with pieces of it considered holy relics. Hell is seen as a frozen wasteland, and TheDevil doesn't exist (to say otherwise is heresy of the highest order). Thomas Aquinas is considered a heretic. Killing is not a violation of the "thou shalt not kill" commandment unless it's done 12 times (with a few exceptions) thanks to a literal interpretation of the Redeemer's words.

* Creator/JohnSteakley's ''Literature/{{Vampires}}'' has the presence of vampires, and Catholicism-based magic which hurts vampires. Being in or near a Catholic church hurts vampires and makes them hazy in the head; the Vatican has an even more pronounced effect. Priests have special vampire-ass-kicking power and mystical light tends to appear while they're doing their thing. Even regular characters can wield crosses, or halogen lights in the shape of crosses, or silver bullets that were part of a cross and then melted down, and get extra vampire-killing points from it.

* An background plot point in Netflix's ''Series/AlteredCarbon'' live-action adaptation (and the original book) is the Neo-Catholics, who believe that having their Cortical Stack "re-spun" (and thus be resurrected if killed) is a sin and affront to God (death should be final, followed by eternal judgment or reward of your soul) and thus refuse this kind of treatment and consider people who have used it to be TheSoulless (and understandably, with the ubiquitousness of BodySurf tech on the setting, people believe them to be crazy kooks). This plot point becomes increasingly important as the story goes on.

* In ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'', the Catholic Church's authority over medieval Europe is called The Dominion, and stifles the power of demons, faeries and Hermetic wizards. The devout have a chance of calling on a miracle as well.

* The Church of Abel in ''TabletopGame/{{Anima Beyond Fantasy}}'', even if its central figure is a CrystalDragonJesus, has many elements of both real Catholicism and fantastic one as described in this trope, such as organization, dogma (parts of it at least), prosecution of the supernatural, use of (sanctioned by it) magic -considered a gift of God-, and being the most powerful (visible) organization of the game's setting. It has, too, some AnimeCatholicism mixed in as well as of [[spoiler: the Old Testament version of christianism.]]
* ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'': The Catholic Church is still the largest Christian denomination in the Sixth World, but was forced to change in light of the Awakening. The Church was at first hostile towards magic and metahumanity, but with the landmark Papal encyclical ''Imago Dei'' has officially changed its stance and accepted that metahumans do have souls. The church now classifies magic like any other weapon or tool: it is how it is used that makes magic good or evil. The Order of St. Silvester is a new monastic order founded specifically to promote the beneficial use of magic, investigate magical phenomena, and raise awareness about magic to parts of the Church that still view it with suspicion. [[spoiler:The Order is also a front for the New Knights Templar, and Sylvestrine monks supply the Templars with magical support.]]
** Catholicism has been entirely outlawed and forced underground in Aztlan (post-Awakening Central America), and is persecuted in the elf-controlled state of Tir na nÓg (post-Awakening Ireland). Furthermore, the French and German branches of the Church, along with other more conservative dioceses around the world, went into schism with the Church in protest of ''Imago Dei'' and its acceptance of metahumans and magic. In light of its more embattled position, the Church has created new [[ChurchMilitant militant orders]] to defend its faith and its faithful, most notably The New Knights Templar and the New Jesuits.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Darklands}}'', you can invoke saints for specific buffs and magical effects.
* In ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'' video games, the church ("Templars") have a serious organization out to control the world and keep the big secret about the {{Precursors}} from entering common knowledge. They use a technology called the animus to extract information about religiously important object (which are lost etch, perhaps), and hunt and kill anyone in their way.
** The Borgias were members of this group, and a Borgia Pope tried to mind-control the citizens of Rome with a magical artifact. The Assassins told him to have a date with gravity.
* In ''VideoGame/AfterTheEndAPostApocalypticAmerica'', Catholicism has experienced a massive surge in the American West, complete with a new Papacy in St. Louis and the revival of the Crusades. There's also two offshoots that refuse to acknowledge his authority as the "true" Pope: the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ursulines Ursulines]] of Quebec, who have their own [[GenderFlip all-female]] clerical hierarchy, and a Mexican splinter religion that evolved from devotions to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_Heart Sacred Heart]] and the veneration of saints.

* In the AlternateHistory story ''Literature/MaleRising'', the Catholic Church, under the rule of a militantly anti-modernist Pope, revives the Papal Legion in order to support the Catholic powers of France and Austria-Hungary during this world's [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI Great War]] in the 1890s. Despite the reactionary intent of the new Papal Legion, however, it soon becomes a hotbed of populism, bringing together men from all over the world under a single Catholic banner; when they return home, they take all manner of radical ideas with them.

** The Swiss Guard spent the time in Rome....using a [[{{BFG}} howitzer]] dubbed '[[ICallItVera The Monster]]'.

* The Catholic Church is also one of the few Christian faiths that still trains exorcists, so movies such as ''Film/TheExorcist'' are rather TruthInTelevision. In the rare cases that a priest from another faith tradition believes that someone is under DemonicPossession (not unknown, but ''vanishingly'' rare - and a subject of controversy as to whether it's real at all - in RealLife), they'll ask the nearest Catholic priest for help. That priest, however, will refer the person to the local Bishop or Archbishop, who then will demand a battery of physical and psychological tests to exclude any illness that would produce similar effects to a possession. It is only after that, having exhausted any possible temporal causes, that the person will be allowed to see one of the Church's trained exorcists.

* In ''VideoGame/AfterTheEndACrusaderKingsIIMod'', Catholicism has experienced a massive surge in the American West, complete with a new Papacy in St. Louis and the revival of the Crusades. There's also two offshoots that refuse to acknowledge his authority as the "true" Pope: the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ursulines Ursulines]] of Quebec, who have their own [[GenderFlip all-female]] clerical hierarchy, and a Mexican splinter religion that evolved from devotions to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_Heart Sacred Heart]] and the veneration of saints.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': The priests are genetically enhanced {{Super Soldier}}s in PowerArmor, the Nuns also wear PowerArmor and mainly use [[KillItWithFire fire weapons]], and the interstellar Inquisition hunts demons, aliens, and heretics and dooms whole planets for the suspicion of heresy. While the actual religion is not necessarily Catholicism, most elements common to it and the style of buildings fit the bill. The Imperium of Man are not called [[FanNickname Catholic Space Nazis]] for nothing.

-> Often the Church will fight and destroy all manner of unholy creatures (or creatures they have deemed as such), either overtly, or covertly in a MildlyMilitary sub-organization of the church. Demons, Vampires, Werewolves and ravenous spirits seem to be the most popular villains, but when the Church is fighting Fey creatures, witches and other things that are nice or cute, then it's usually a sign they are being portrayed as {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s or KnightTemplar types. See: ChurchMilitant.

->Usually existing hand in hand with the above element, if the church isn't actually hunting down magic users, (or sometimes even if they are), there will be magicians and the like in the church, often backed by the awesome power of God. Sometimes [[ReligionIsMagic the Magic is Religious]], other times The Church just seems to have come off a recruiting drive, focused on populating the church with super-powered wizards and witches.

->Far from just praying and allowing circumstances and the Holy Spirit to guide them in determining God's will, this Church needs to do nothing so roundabout. Angels, Saints, even Jesus himself may routinely materialize before clergy or certain people, and try to guide them on the right path or act as mentors or {{Guardian Angel}}s. God probably won't show up, but the Big Man will definitely be mentioned by beings who know him personally and act as his messengers.

->The Church has a lot of gun-toting, sword-swinging, kung fu fighting Badasses. Maybe they are part of that magic fighting organization mentioned earlier, but if not then they may be out to punish sinners, fight for the glory of the church and otherwise protect people, or get rid of heretics. These badasses usually work as lone warriors or small groups, and may be part of a higher order or sub-organization in the church, which may be either overt or covert. ChurchMilitant is when the Church has an actual formal ''army'' at its disposal.

->The church actually rules the world as TheEmpire, or has otherwise become a super-power on level with other countries, and may even have taken over a large area of land for themselves and have a cool new name with the word 'Holy' in it somewhere. If there is a King, or President, he will be a figure head, the Pope is the real guy in power. When this happens there's a pretty good chance of TheChurch being [[CorruptChurch corrupt bad guys]], but that doesn't make them any less cool.

->For some reason, the church always has the best toys. Presumably they have a lab somewhere filled with guys in white labcoats [[note]]In actual fact, the Church ''does'' have labs- and an entire science division-, one of which is in the Vatican, though no more or less advanced than the average lab anywhere else in the world.[[/note]] chugging out holy-hand grenades, with all that money they seem to have from tithes. Either way, the Church is invariably better armed, financed and geared-up than any other organization out there. This may also result in the church venturing out [[RecycledINSPACE into space]]. All those aliens to evangelize, you know?

Compare AnimeCatholicism, which is also Catholicism meets RuleOfCool but has {{Japanese media tropes}} mixed in. Unlike AnimeCatholicism, Fantastic Catholicism is usually more accurate... at least as far as religious beliefs are concerned if not elsewhere, the main characters are often in their thirties and older and there isn't a particular amount of emphasis on good looking characters. Fantastic Catholicism may also be mixed with social commentary on the church while AnimeCatholicism almost never is.

** The sequel ''6666'' takes place in TheFuture (obviously), pitting demons allied with space Nazis against the massive space armada of... the Catholic Church, whose ships look like whitewashed 40K designs.

* ''Film/{{Priest 2011}}'' is an example of badass church priests. The church is pretty much the controlling government and the only people shown are the downtrodden, voluntary exiles, the priests, cops controlled by the church and the controlling priests (magisters). (Also, the {{Manhwa}} it is based off of). Where the New Testament never happened. Remarkably, this point could be made of most Orwellian depictions of the Church.

* ''Film/{{Constantine}}''. The title character is a Catholic demon-hunter who uses guns and magic to send demons back to hell in a world where {{God}} and the Devil are in a bet over who can influence mankind the most. Roger Ebert on the movie:
-->'''Roger Ebert:''' Why do movies about {{Satan}} always have Catholics? You never see Methodists or Episcopalians putting down demons.

-->'''Roger Ebert:''' When it comes to fighting vampires and performing exorcisms, the Roman Catholic Church has the heavy artillery. Your other religions are good for everyday theological tasks, like steering their members into heaven, but when the undead lunge up out of their graves, you want a priest on the case. As a product of Catholic schools, I take a certain pride in this pre-eminence.

** The Knights of the Cross explicitly have ContrivedCoincidence working in their favor to ensure that they can show up where they're needed when they are needed; Harry's friend Michael Carpenter, a Catholic Knight of the Cross, is described as having power different from Harry's wizard magic, and has done things like holding back monsters and [[spoiler: releasing Harry from mind control]] with his faith. The Knights of the Cross are not necessarily part of the Catholic church. Michael is, but Shiro was a Baptist, and Sanya claims to be an atheist (though agnostic might be more accurate). The support structure we see for the Knights seems to be made entirely of Catholic priests.

* The ''Literature/HyperionCantos'' by Dan Simmons. In the first two books, the Catholic Church is widely seen as an eccentric, old-fashioned institution whose time has passed, and is only noted because Catholic priests play major roles. It's only in the second part of the quadrology that the Catholic Church becomes a [[ChurchMilitant star-spanning empire]] whose beliefs would be considered ''incredibly'' heretical by any modern standards.
* ''Literature/ACanticleForLeibowitz'': AfterTheEnd, the only remaining pillar of civilization is the Catholic Church.

* Katherine Kurtz's ''Literature/{{Deryni}}'' novels. Despite lacking the Papacy, the Western Church is Catholic in liturgy, there's intrigue (sometimes against secular rulers), psionic magic users and fights against them, even powerful summoned beings called by the names of archangels (and most participants think they are in fact Raphael, Gabriel, Michael and Uriel). They don't call their church Catholic, in part because the books are alternative histories set several centuries before Protestantism, and there is Eastern Orthodoxy (mostly in Torenth), Islam, and even Scandinavian paganism in a tiny minority. Most of the action is in the West. In the "Camber" trilogy, you'll find the Michaelines (Order of Saint Michael the Archangel), a fearsome combination of the Templars and the Jesuits, with many members who can use magic. Oh, and many active characters/protagonists are in their 30s and 40s.

* Creator/SergeyLukyanenko

* The book ''Literature/{{Vampires}}'' by Creator/JohnSteakley, has the presence of vampires, and Catholicism-based magic which hurts vampires. Being in or near a Catholic church hurts vampires and makes them hazy in the head; the Vatican has an even more pronounced effect. Priests have special vampire-ass-kicking power and mystical light tends to appear while they're doing their thing. Even regular characters can wield crosses, or halogen lights in the shape of crosses, or silver bullets that were part of a cross and then melted down, and get extra vampire-killing points from it.

* In the ''Literature/TakeshiKovacs'' novels the Roman Catholic Church has officially disavowed the setting's otherwise ubiquitous BrainUploading, as such Catholics who are murdered can't be made to testify and criminals who are sentenced to [[CryoPrison "storage"]] are never brought back out. Which leads organized crime to use Catholics as {{Disposable Sex Worker}}s.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'': The priests are genetically enhanced {{Super Soldier}}s in PowerArmor, the Nuns also wear PowerArmor and mainly use [[KillItWithFire fire weapons]] and the interstellar Inquisition hunts demons, aliens and heretics and dooms whole planets for the suspicision of heresy. While the actual religion is not neccessarily Catholicism, most elements common to it and the style of buildings fit the bill.
** They're not called [[FanNickname Catholic Space Nazis]] for nothing.

* ''TabletopGame/ShadowRun'': The Catholic Church is still the largest Christian denomination in the Sixth World, but was forced to change in light of the Awakening. The Church was at first hostile towards magic and metahumanity, but with the landmark Papal encyclical ''Imago Dei'' has officially changed its stance and accepted that metahumans do have souls. The church now classifies magic like any other weapon or tool: it is how it is used that makes magic good or evil. The Order of St. Silvester is a new monastic order founded specifically to promote the beneficial use of magic, investigate magical phenomena, and raise awareness about magic to parts of the Church that still view it with suspicion. [[spoiler:The Order is also a front for the New Knights Templar, and Sylvestrine monks supply the Templars with magical support.]]

* In ''VideoGame/AfterTheEndACrusaderKingsIIMod'', Catholicism has experienced a massive surge in the American West, complete with a new Papacy in St. Louis and the revival of the Crusades. There's also two offshoots that refuse to acknowledge his authority as the "true" Pope: The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ursulines Ursulines]] of Quebec, who have their own [[GenderFlip all-female]] clerical hierarchy, and a Mexican splinter religion that evolved from devotions to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacred_Heart Sacred Heart]] and the veneration of saints.

* In ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'' video games, the church ("Templars") have a serious organization out to control the world and keep the big secret about ThePrecursors from entering common knowledge. They use a technology called the animus to extract information about religiously important object (which are lost etch, perhaps), and hunt and kill anyone in their way.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* An background plot point in Netflix's ''Series/AlteredCarbon'' live-action adaptation (and the original book) is the Neo-Catholics, who believe that having their Cortical Stack "re-spun" (and thus be resurrected if killed) is a sin and affront to God (FinalDeath should be just that, followed by eternal judgment or reward of your soul) and thus refuse this kind of treatment and consider people who have used it to be TheSoulless (and understandably, with the ubiquitousness of BodySurf tech on the setting, people believe them to be crazy kooks). This plot point becomes increasingly important as the story goes on.

** The Knights of the Cross explicitly have ContrivedCoincidence working in their favor to ensure that they can show up where they're needed when they are needed; Harry's friend Michael Carpenter, a Catholic Knight of the Cross, is described as having power different from Harry's wizard magic, and has done things like holding back monsters and [[spoiler: releasing Harry from mind control]] with his faith. The Knights of the Cross are notnecessarily part of the Catholic church. Michael is, but Shiro was a Baptist, and Sanya claims to be an atheist (though agnostic might be more accurate). The support structure we see for the Knights seems to be made entirely of Catholic priests.

** In theory the Holy Roman Emperor was also supposed to be a Catholic superpower, at its greatest extent covering a significant portion of Europe. However, it was never particularly Holy or Roman, was more a collection of minor bickering states than an actual empire, and the Pope had no more direct power over it than any other Catholic country at the time.

* In the ''Roleplay/GlobalGuardiansPBEMUniverse'', the Order of Malta (a RealLife paramilitary order controlled by the Church) has been retasked into a Church-run team of superheroes who protect Vatican City (and by extension, Rome), and especially oppose any supernatural enemies of the Church, such as demons, vampires, and evil sorcerers.

* The ''Literature/HyperionCantos'' by Dan Simmons has become a minor believe system in the first two books, only noted because Catholic priests play major roles. It's only in the second part of the quadrology that the Catholic Church becomes a [[ChurchMilitant star-spanning empire]] whose beliefs would be considered ''incredibly'' heretical by any modern standards.

* The ''Literature/HyperionCantos'' by Dan Simmons has similar traits.