What is the truth about Pope Urban II and the Crusades?

[RayK83153]

I read a post on Facebook by someone bashing the Catholic Church supposedly quoting someone that said Pope Urban II ordered the first crusades promising “escape from purgatory” for dying for their church and ordering for the mass killing of Jews in the Holy Land. What is the truth about Pope Urban II?

 

[Augusta_Crowley]

The following links should help you better understand papal infallibility and how this applied to the Pope Urban, the Crusades and the Inquisition. If you have any further questions, please contact Catholic Answers directly.

Recommended Reading:

In what sense is the Pope Infallible?
The Inquisition
An Inquisition Primer by Robert P. Lockwood
Secrets of the Spanish Inquisition Revealed by Robert P. Lockwood
The Crusades/Inquisition from a pro-Catholic POV