AHC: Catholic Russia

Under what circumstances, with a POD from 456 onwards, could Russia become a Roman Catholic country? PODs later are better.
 
As for any political-religious change in what is covered IOTL by Russia (that is a creation or rather the encounter of East Slavs and Christianity), you'll need a really weaker if not unexistant ERE.

Constantinople as an economic, political and religious center was simply too big to not being a pole of attraction.

The problem with weakening ERE and Constantinople hard enough to prevent it being a political-religious model, is that it would risk as well to radically butterfly the definition of Catholic and Orthodox at the point of it not defining Latin and Greek Christianities.
 
the issue is that Othodoxy is much more interesting for the Rus' Princes to push than Catholism would be for a number of reasons

1. Catholism was in periods ruled from Rome quite heavy-handed, and in turn by those controling Rome.

2. Othodoxy was more willing to accept extended 'selfrule' if not fully autonomous churches than Catholism were

3. Othodoxy was strong at their primary trading partners.

4. Rome was so far away that they (Rus' Princes) couldn't be beaten into submission by (mainly Frankish) missionaries and/or religiously inspired armies, hence not having to pay lip service to keep them off their turf
 
What if Kaloman of Halich Volynia who was a Catholic Hungarian prince manages to subdue the other Rus Principalities and convert the Rus populace?
 
Let's say, as suggested above, Hungarian missionary efforts are more effective with the Cumans and perhaps a few Rus princes. That provides a focus around which to organize princes in opposition to missionaries from the ERE or Kiev in general.

Even better is if in addition to that pressure, Rome recognizes that it won't easily overcome the desire for religious autonomy in the Rus, especially given the distance. So it compromises, offering existing Orthodox Russians the option of being some version of "Eastern Rite" Catholics with a somewhat independent organization. Over time, Popes will try to assert their authority over the church there, but that's not very different from the struggles with the HRE and over issues like lay investiture.
 
Almost happened. Simply have the Uniate movement work or have one of the early Riurkids convert to Catholcism. A likely POD would be if Poland or Lithuania don't convert to Catholocism for whatever reason and remain pagan.
 
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