Applejack wiped the sweat off her brow. She was finished with her farm chores for today and it was time to get ready to go to Bible study again. She walked inside the barn and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off her head.
"Where do ya think yer goin'?" A voice asked her.
"Huh?" Applejack turned around to see Granny Smith looking rather angry at her. "Oh, Hi, Granny! I was just gettin' ready to go see my friend, Twilight!"
"I don't think that's goin' to happen," Granny Smith said.
"Uh, why is that exactly?" Applejack asked.
"Cause ya told me that these new friends ya made all love Jesus and were good ponies."
"Uh, they are," Applejack said as she took off her hat and scratched her head in confusion.
"Nonsense!" Granny Smith shouted. "I read that Twilight is a no good, rotten Protestant that has been gatherin' up a lot of attention in Ponyville! She is the cursed anathema and I'm not allowin' one of my Apple kin to fall victim into heresy! I figured ya were a good Catlick and that you'd find good friends who followed the one and only true church. Not a bunch of terrible Protestants that hold some of the worst interpretations of the truth."
Applejack smiled one great big awkward smile. She could feel the sweat running down the side of her head, but for once, she was not sweating from working, but from how nutty this new conflict was turning out to be. "Hey, Granny, remember the time when I didn't exactly have a very good heart towards certain other ponies and ya'll helped me see through my flaws and encouraged me to change my hateful heart?"
"Yes," Granny replied.
"Well, why can't ya do the same with my friends? I thought we were called to love one another."
"Not when it comes to an Apple family member! I will not tolerate any kind of heresy or false church. I think it's best that ya find some new friends! There's plenty of good young mares and stallions that would make way better friends for ya than Twilight and her little heretical group of followers. When was the last time ya followed any of our traditions in the church?"
Applejack drew her hoof across the dirt nervously. "It's been a while, I guess."
"All Protestants go to Hell, Applejack, unless they are so ignorant and mislead that God, in His grace, can forgive them after a good whippin' and burnin' in Purgatory to remove the wicked stains on their souls. To reject Catlick teachings is to be the anathema and choose Hell. I refuse to allow ya to do that."
"Golly. Talk about free will," Applejack said. She saw the look on Granny's face and realized that now was not a good time to joke around.
"Applejack, there are well over thirty thousand, if not more than one hundred thousand different Protestant sects in this world. We Catlicks are not impressed by their constant splittin' and bickerin'. If they get any more reformed, the next thing ya know there will be gay marriage and screwin' in the streets!"
"Granny, let me ask ya somethin'. How do ya feel about Atheists, Jews or Muslims?"
"It's not my business or concern about what they believe or practice and ya already know that Christianity is the completion of Judaism. The only thing I have against Muslims is when their invasion brought about the Crusades in order to take back the land that was once ours. It's a shame how sloppily things got carried out since the Crusaders had to loot for survival, but the Crusades were an attempt to defeat Muslim imperialism. Without it, Western civilization might have been completely over run by the forces of Islam and that would have been a horrible thing for this world. We Christians were forced to fight and defend ourselves from foreign conquest."
"So let me get this straight. Ya don't hate Muslims. Ya don't hate Atheists, but ya hate different denominations of Christianity.
"That's correct."
"But why!?" Applejack asked.
"Because Protestants are a disgrace to the original holy church and how dare they reject what has been practiced fer thousands of years, not to mention that they also took some scissors and cut out a few books in our Bible. Atheists or Muslims do their own thing and Protestants twist our religion. They don't even give dulia to the saints or hyperdulia to Mary!"
"But I like the church that I attend with my gal pals. They don't seem like drones going through the motions to me and my friend Pinkie Pie gets so excited when we sing praises that she bounces up and down the aisle singin' along with everypony. They also play all kinds of music too. Sometimes even Bluegrass."
"An act like that would get her flank tossed out of our church if your friend were to ever do somethin' like that. That's called distractin' others from worship and I'm sure I also don't need to lecture ya on the importance of Gregorian chants and how this so called modern church worship music is nonsense. I bet ya have crazies who think they are speakin' in tongues and I wouldn't be surprised if none of ya'll wore proper attire like how everypony else does at Mass."
"Now wait just a darn moment!" Applejack said. "Ain't no pony has ever started speakin' in tongues and not once has anypony complained about Pinkie Pie's antics. I know myself that she can be very distractin' and out of control, but I truly believe that God keeps her craziness toned down while in worship because while she is very outgoing and energetic in worship with her bounciness and dancin', she has never done anythin' that would cause trouble during church service. Ponies love when she comes and does her lil' happy dance bouncin' thing and she kind of amplifies the whole worship experience in her own unique way without botherin' others. She's actually kind of adorable when she really gets into the whole experience and ponies come as they are; there is no dress code. My friend, Rarity, has a predilection when it comes to wearin' these fancy, elegant dresses and what not, but nopony is gonna be looked down upon just because they may not have the same style or appear different. That's just silly, Granny. There ain't nothin' wrong with a lil' diversity and uniqueness in the church, even if they might be rockin' mohawks. If there's one thing Twilight taught me, it's to never judge a book by its cover, if ya know what I mean."
"I'm still convinced that the church ya have been attendin' is nothin' but a temporary feel good pick me up that only preaches partial truth and ya need to give yer hyperdulia to Mary, Applejack," Granny said firmly.
Applejack was getting desperate at this moment. "Well, why don't ya come talk to Twi. She's a super nice mare and I'm sure she can explain to ya why she doesn't give dulia to the saints or hyperdulia to Mary and why our Bible has a few less books than yers."
"I don't need her opinion because I already know the truth. Applejack, my dear, I know yer smart enough to know that those foolish fillies are no good for ya. I don't want ya to go to straight to Hell nor spend any time in Purgatory. Come back to Mass. Come back and confess yer sins to the Alter Christus. Make yer decision now. Choose the real church or choose Hell."
Applejack's nervousness was now starting to turn into anger. "If followin' Jesus isn't good enough fer ya, then I choose Hell! My friendship with Twi and the rest of my gal pals are priceless. They love Jesus just as much as any other Catlick in our family. I think we're called to love them just as much, even if they might be different in their worship or doctrine. This whole situation kind of reminds me of the Bible verse Twilight was tellin' me about. Jesus came not to bring peace, but a sword. It all makes sense to me now and I feel like yer demands don't have anythin' to do with bringin' me closer to Jesus, but rather fer fightin' to get me back to yer traditions!"
"Fine," Granny Smith said as she put her hoof up in frustration. "If ya want to be corrupt then that's yer business. However, I will not allow ya to corrupt Apple Bloom, Big Mac, or any other Apple family member with yer new satanic influence. You are never allowed on this farm again until ya come back to the real church and repent of yer sins!"
"But...." Applejack said.
"Good bye!" Granny Smith stormed out of the barn leaving Applejack in total shock.
"Where am I goin' to go now?" Applejack asked out loud. Applejack did the one and most important thing that she could. She got down low and prayed. It wasn't her top priority to find a new place to live, but the very first thing she prayed for was that Granny Smith would learn that Twilight wasn't a bad pony and that perhaps God could soften up Granny's heart. Applejack said her prayer and left the barn. She wanted to say goodbye to sweet little Apple Bloom and her older brother, Big Mac, but she knew Granny wouldn't let her in the house. For Applejack had become the cursed anathema in her eyes. Applejack figured she should go see her wisest friend right now, Twilight Sparkle.
Back inside the house, Granny Smith explained to Big Macintosh what had happened.
"She's what!?" Big Macintosh asked out loud.
"Gone," Granny Smith replied. "And she' ain't comin' back until she's clean again."
Puffs of air came out of Big Macintosh's nostrils. "Ya'll realize what a foolish thing ya done? Ain't no pony works harder than A.J. and I most certainly can't keep up with the farm chores all by myself!"
"Apple Bloom will take her place," Granny Smith said.
"WHAT!? She's still just a filly. Ya can't expect her to do what Applejack does! That's nuts!"
"Sacrifices must be made somewhere. I ain't gonna let Applejack corrupt myself, you, or our innocent little Apple Bloom. This discussion is over!"
Big Macintosh grumbled words of disapproval and headed outside. He was considering leaving the farm, finding Applejack and seeking new work to do.
Upstairs, Apple Bloom was eavesdropping on the heated argument. She was silently crying, not because she had no strength to do what Applejack does on the farm, but because she already missed her big sister, who was even more like a mother to her. The Apple family had hit a few bumps in the road when it came to family drama, but this was a whole new level never experienced before. Without Applejack, the farm and family would suffer greatly and Granny Smith knew this, yet her heart was hardened by her discovery about Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Granny would be praying for Applejack's friends, not that they'd join her system of beliefs, but that they would suffer God's wrath.