J
Joe_Kelley
Guest
As Sam and Frodo near the end of their quest to destroy the ring of evil, in the Lord of the Rings, Sam realizes that this is a continuation of the ancient tales of valor which he has so loved. Cold, hungry, friendless and near the end of hope he comments that these tales are different when one is living in them.
In 610 Muhammad founded the religion of Islam. By 20 years later it had swept the Persian Empire and attacked Byzantium, the Eastern Roman Empire. It quickly overwhelmed all the ancient Christian areas of the Near East and North Africa and swept into Spain in the West. In 732 its sweep through the west was checked by Charles Martel at Tours, not far from Paris. He pushed it back to the Pyrenees. And 500 years of struggle expelled it from Spain. That struggle gives us the mighty tales of Roland and El Cid. The 11th century schism between east and west weakened Christendom and in 1453 Islam captured Constantinople, ending the Eastern Roman Empire. The Crusades, with their tales of chivalry and valor, were unsuccessful in regaining the Holy Lands, but relieved the pressure on Europe. In 1571 the Moslem fleets were blocked from the Mediterranean in the Battle of Lepanto. We celebrate this victory, attributed by Pope St Pius V to the power of all Christendom praying the rosary, in the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7 each year. In the 16th century the Reformation and the rise of nationalism weakened the unity of Christendom, but the Moslem advance in the east was checked at Vienna, Austria. They were pushed back as far as Belgrade in 1716, another victory attributed to the power of the rosary.
Today Europe, its fertility weakened by years of birth control and abortion, welcomes Moslem immigrant workers to maintain their social programs and pensions. The high fertility of the immigrants is accomplishing what years of battle did not, Europe is becoming Moslem. As the 70’s slogan advised - Make Love; not War.
In 610 Muhammad founded the religion of Islam. By 20 years later it had swept the Persian Empire and attacked Byzantium, the Eastern Roman Empire. It quickly overwhelmed all the ancient Christian areas of the Near East and North Africa and swept into Spain in the West. In 732 its sweep through the west was checked by Charles Martel at Tours, not far from Paris. He pushed it back to the Pyrenees. And 500 years of struggle expelled it from Spain. That struggle gives us the mighty tales of Roland and El Cid. The 11th century schism between east and west weakened Christendom and in 1453 Islam captured Constantinople, ending the Eastern Roman Empire. The Crusades, with their tales of chivalry and valor, were unsuccessful in regaining the Holy Lands, but relieved the pressure on Europe. In 1571 the Moslem fleets were blocked from the Mediterranean in the Battle of Lepanto. We celebrate this victory, attributed by Pope St Pius V to the power of all Christendom praying the rosary, in the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7 each year. In the 16th century the Reformation and the rise of nationalism weakened the unity of Christendom, but the Moslem advance in the east was checked at Vienna, Austria. They were pushed back as far as Belgrade in 1716, another victory attributed to the power of the rosary.
Today Europe, its fertility weakened by years of birth control and abortion, welcomes Moslem immigrant workers to maintain their social programs and pensions. The high fertility of the immigrants is accomplishing what years of battle did not, Europe is becoming Moslem. As the 70’s slogan advised - Make Love; not War.