Islam was a violent expansionism religion from the get go. The Crusades were a logical step in a war of faiths, and they had great military successes. They were the main reason the Eastern Romans lasted as long as they did, or the Turks would have overwhelmed them. In fact, it is arguable that if it were not for the 4th crusade the Romans may have actually have been able to retake Anatolia and possiby all of Asia Minor and could have existed for much longer.
I would have to disagree with boldened area.
I’ll explain why, in just one word: Mongols. When they popped in from the far east in 1200’s, they showed no mercy to anyone. Turk, Arab, Persian, you name it. They even laid siege to the Byzentine Empire a few times. With the rate of how much they were conquering, if they had more people, we’d all be speaking Mongol right now, or had have been affected by them in some form or another.
Either way, I have been studying the Crusades for over 3 to 4ish years now, and it was the Crusades which made me realize many things. The Protestants would’ve rolled over and died in the face of Islam and the Atheists would’ve been too cowardly to have done anything about it.
I myself do not believe that any Pope, ANY Pope, has to apologize for the Crusades, AT ALL; excluding the Fourth Crusade, which I myself find hard to consider a Crusade. But, there are many elements around that, and how it was a failure in leadership of the Crusaders, the Pope himself, and how the Venetian Merchant Empires who ruled some areas of Italy manipulated the Crusaders into doing their bidding. If the Crusaders had just contacted the Pope and told them of the money-issues, perhaps something else could’ve been done, or perhaps the Pope would’ve foreseen such a thing and declared that those Crusaders were exempt from paying the Venetians for their “excess” in vessels, and had found other forms of paying them back.
Either way, I myself do not believe the Crusades was a wasted effort. I wonder what is more to people’s liking? That the Crusades never began at all? That efforts for “negotiations” should’ve taken place? Or is it fear of having to stand against an enemy whom basks in terror itself? These very same people, whom had set fire to the Holy Sepulcher in 18 October 1009 and destroyed many churches and confiscated many convents simply because they weren’t “Muslim” enough? That’s the problem with many people. They don’t want confrontation.
But confrontation is upon us, wether we want it or not. And we may have our own Crusades brought down on us in this modern age, of all ages for it happen!
Ladies and gentleman, people need to be aware, they need to know that the Crusades was not some venture of death, money or God-knows-what-else-they’ll-think-of. People were truly pious, back then people didn’t question that King David was real, they had no doubt that Jesus walked the earth. Life was short and people loved, I mean truly loved, God. What has the Protestant reformation done but weaken the Church? Is it that there are some people who truly believe that before the Protestants all went to hell? I say no. I refuse to believe that, because too many good people have paid the price with their lives. Too many martyrs had put their lives on the line, and too many nuns that were used for indecencies by these people, these muslims.
I myself would take up the cross and crusade. Yes. I’ll admit it. I would. As Saint Louis IX of France had done many years before. I know many think I’m nuts, I’m crazy or that there must be something wrong with me. But fact is that I am tired of seeing Christians being butchered, I am TIRED of sitting in my house reading and reading and reading over the news of how Muslims are rioting in Europe because one man or another had a difference of opinion. What kind of society is that? What happened to freedom? What happened to rights? What happened to love? Where is Jesus?
Now there are churches being burned and turned into Mosques because it “fits” the times.
People, we have to understand that we are about to experience a very similar experience to that of the Crusaders and that understanding the Crusaders is the first step to knowing why this is happening, why do we feel the way we feel and what can we do about it.
Alright, I digress, but this is something I just had to get off my chest. A man can only stay silent for so long before his tongue has to open and say, “NAY!”.
For people who refuse to understand the Crusades, I have three suggestions for them:
- Read about the Crusades and try and understand them with an open mind and with careful reading.
- See things, I mean truly see things, through the Crusader perspectives. Don’t just close yourselves to Protestant ludicrousy, nor Muslim., nor Atheist.
- If 1 nor 2 work, join the Army.
Another thing I myself want to add is the subject on the Knights Templar. I have read many books on them, from british writer, Helen Nicholson’s Knight Templar 1120-1312 to Steven Runciman’s The History of Crusades and The Crusades through Arab eyes by Amin Maalouf.
To be a Templar you had to have a love, I mean, a powerful love, for the church, for God, for Jesus, for the Holy Spirit, you had to put your life on the line for everything and everyone, to take the bullet noone else would take. To save that poor crippled child at the cost of your own, to safeguard the elderly, to be an angel to those who need you and a killer to God’s enemies. It’s none of that junk that’s surrounded the Templars these days.
The bottom line is: You had to be a hard-core Catholic to be a Templar.
-MontChevalier
