During the Crusades, do you think the Bible passages ...?

Question

about "loving thy neighbor", prohibiting murder, etc. were routinely dismissed as "taken out of context"?

could it be simply that the real context of the supposedly immutable word of God is simply the current mores of the society it is read in?

Answer 1

You falsely presume that all war is morally wrong but this is not so, many wars have been fought to reclaim the spiritual rights of a nation or peoples and the crusades are one of these.
The Crusades were a series of defensive wars against Islamic aggression in the Middle Ages and attempts to recapture the Holy Land from Muslim conquerors in order to allow safe pilgrimage and to protect and maintain the Christian presence there. Jerusalem had been Christian for hundreds of years when Caliph Omar seized it, and following that victory, Muslims warred their way into Egypt, other parts of Africa, Spain, Sicily, and Greece, leaving Christians dead and churches in ruins. They stole lands in the area now known as Turkey, destroying Catholic communities founded by St. Paul himself. They siezed Constantinople -- the "second Rome" -- and threatened the Balkans. They warred their way as far north as Vienna, Austria and Tours, France.

Referring to a battle which took place in A.D. 1243, the Arabian manuscript entitled Essulouk li Mariset il Muluk ("The Road to Knowledge of the Return of Kings") had this to say:

When they [Muslims] had despoiled all the country near to Damascus, they advanced to Jerusalem, took it by storm, and put all the Christians to the sword. The women and girls, having suffered every insult from a brutal disorderly soldiery, were loaded with chains. They destroyed the church of the Holy Sepulchre; and when they found nothing among the living, to glut their rage, they opened the tombs of the Christians, took out the bodies, and burnt them.

Answer 2

The word of God causes transformation. If the truth comes into any situation and changes things, it takes a while for discernment to settle into an establishment. I would say that many met the real God though the bizarre circumstances, and repented. Regardless how man interpets truth, truth stands alone. Ask yourself what would have Jesus done? That is where the rubber meets the road. The crusades were like Hitler. They were motivated by someones own interpetation of truth. That is what all religion is by the way. God is not religion He is reality, or Truth. How can you Love somebody so much that you want to kill them?
Peace, Rev. M

Answer 3

Your understanding of the crusades is flawed.

First and foremost, the actions of the church were designed to counteract an invading force, and then to push that same invading force out of Jerusalem, an ally at the time.

Secondly, war is ugly. Whenever there is war, some people will invariably violate the basic rights of men. The guilt for such actions lies solely on those who commit those crimes, not the greater group from which they came.

So yes, those who commited atrocities dismised and ignored such bible passages. But it was far from "routine," and it was the exception rather than the rule.

And lets not forget that there were atrocities on both sides.

Answer 4

There is such a thing as a just war. The crusades was one of them.

The strict conditions for legitimate defense by military force require rigorous consideration. The gravity of such a decision makes it subject to rigorous conditions of moral legitimacy. At one and the same time:
- the damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of nations must be lasting, grave, and certain;

- all other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be impractical or ineffective;

- there must be serious prospects of success;

- the use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated. The power of modem means of destruction weighs very heavily in evaluating this condition.

These are the traditional elements enumerated in what is called the "just war" doctrine.

The evaluation of these conditions for moral legitimacy belongs to the prudential judgment of those who have responsibility for the common good.

For more information please go to this link and look for paragraph 2309 and following.
http://www.scborromeo.org/index2.htm

Answer 5

I think only a privileged few had access and the ability to read scripture at that time. Mostly what the people knew was what they were told.

We are very fortunate to live in a time when we can study as much as we desire.

Answer 6

Another problem with organised religion, another excuse to go to war for no good reason.

Free yourself and follow an individual more personnally meaningful spiritual path.

Answer 7

it seems that some people can justify almost anything and apply it to other people--what is most funny is that some actually believed they were doing gods will-----pretty sad isnt it---enjoy the day