Why is there so many outrageous exaggerated stories on R/S?

Question

Some anti religious person will cognate up a second hand story, and the response from atheist is overwhelming in his corner, repeating the same old ills of the church etc Conquistadors' Crusades. and so on.
It is man' not God that caused errors, just like Politicians,
Generals royalty dictators etc

Answer 1

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.


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.

Why are Catholics hated for defending Christendom? For the same reasons Christians of all kinds, Protestant or Catholic, are hated in our increasingly secularized world: "I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." (John 17:14) Christianity and its virtues have been under attack since the time of Christ, and even more so since the so-called "Enlightenment." After centuries of attacks on the Catholic Church in "Reformation" circles and the later, consequent rise of secular humanism, moral and cultural relativism, and Marxist political correctness, the Crusades came to be seen and taught as an example of "Western Imperialism" or "Colonialism." Because members of the Church were doing the fighting, Christianity itself (and Catholicism in particular) was slandered as a cause of war. Note how the same people who scream about the Crusades tend to be those who scream about "religion" in general as being at the root of wars, ignoring the fact that atheistic communism and pagan Nazism killed hundreds of millions in the 20th century alone.

All this understood, it must be said that the Popes' noble, reasonable purposes for the war, however, became entangled with the purposes of those with secular interests and more interested in dynastic feuds, economic concerns over Mediterranean trade, or destroying the Eastern Roman Empire. Many "bad guys" jumped onto the Crusade bandwagon and evil was done by some of the Crusaders: the sacking of Constantinople (including the destruction of churches) and the murder of Jews along Crusade routes most definitely took place and are deeply lamentable. There is no excuse for such behaviors except human evil, but this evil was not sanctioned in any way by the Church, in no way reflects on Church teachings or her purposes for the Crusades, and resulted in the excommunication of many Crusaders responsible.

Answer 2

now supposing, hypothetically, that your omniscient, omnipotent god is real. then surely if it knows the future then there is no such thing as free will because the future is already set. therefore, the participants in the divine plan are merely actors, the script was written by your god.it would be god who is both the instigator of good and evil. the fact that something cannot be both omniscient and omnipotent as they cancel each other out is also something that needs explaining. so, if your god does have the abilities you claim, it is indeed responsible for all the ills in the world.
now god, if it exists or not, is the motivating force for the actions of its followers. their actions are shaped and conditioned by what they believe to be the will of god. and even if those people are acting in their own self interest it is the church and the supposed will of god that enables those actions. accordingly the hypothetical god is responsible for the actions of the church, its hierarchy and the followers it sanctions, because the church is founded upon the supposed Revelations of that god. and any sensible god would be cognisant of the nature of humanity and thereby construct a set of revelations that would minimise the tendency for corruption. how can a god expect good behaviour from humanity when the means of delivering instruction and example is faulty.

Answer 3

Yes Denis we all see it lol - we're with you brother.

What comes to mind is John ch15: 18 - The words of Jesus "If the world hates you - keep in mind it hated me first" --- "If you belonged to the world it would love you as it's own - as it is you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world." --- "That is why the world hates you"

verse 25 "But this to fulfil what is written in their law - they hated me without reason."

Par for the course Denis - and the crusades are all some ppl know about - we have met with our God and Creator of the universe - this Awesome Father of everything speaks to us - we speak to Him - and some ppl haven't had this experience - but there's hope - God can soften the hardest heart.

You got it spot on - i've been thinking the same thing but wasn't able to form a question - so well done.....God bless and keep you bro..xx

Answer 4

some religions are fabricated out of finished textile. Worse, some religions surely do seem to domesticate opposed non secular effect. although, between the Jewish and Christian religions and the countless factions of Islam, there's an more advantageous or lesser volume of certainty in all of them, and that i attempt to correctly known and admire that. Buddhism has many superb concepts, too. The question is, which faith, if any, is regarded by utilising God as his own? do no longer take everyone's be conscious for it. locate out for your self. Ask him to steer you to the place you would be happiest.

Answer 5

I don't know about atheists but the liberals who do that? I think they learned well from thier crown prince of Da Nile..

"It depends on what the meaning of the words 'is' is." –Bill Clinton, during his 1998 grand jury testimony on the Monica Lewinsky affair

"It depends on how you define alone…" –Bill Clinton, in his grand jury testimony

"There were a lot of times when we were alone, but I never really thought we were." –Bill Clinton, in his grand jury testimony

"What's a man got to do to get in the top fifty?" –Bill Clinton, reacting to a survey of journalists that ranked the Monica Lewinsky scandal as the 53rd most significant story of the century
(Well, don't worry Bill, if you wife gets elected...you get another chance)

"When I was in England, I experimented with marijuana a time or two, and I didn't like it.
I didn't inhale and never tried it again." –Bill Clinton

Answer 6

DREAMDRESS 2,
the fact of the matter is, that we liberals have been cleaning up after 'YOUR ILK' for quite some time!
So leave the political statements for the political section!
And about the exaggerated stories? You just proved the point!

Answer 7

Religious people see truth as subordinate to their higher ideal of a belief in god- ie truth is useful only in that it serves that purpose. Rational thinkers examine the evidence dispassionately and are prepared to change their views in the light of this. Religions are hermetically sealed belief systems. they are not subject to the ordinary scrutiny of facts by observation, deduction and reason.
If this is a true representation of your intellectual capacity and rationality, I would sincerely hope for the future welfare and benefit of mankind that you desist from breeding and consider euthenasia as a viable option!

Answer 8

It is because of the many man-made doctrines of the church, I happen to question those doctrines using my bible as a base for the truth. there's over 3,000 different religions teaching all different things and we all can't be right, theres only but one god but seems to appear many different ways to salvation, maybe they see the same things as many in Christianity does.

Answer 9

And the same the other way round. You wouldn't believe some of the whoopers believers 'cognate'. Call that human's habit to exagerate to make one's point.

Answer 10

God has killed millions of people according to te bible. He wiped out the people in the holy lands so the jews could live there. He wied out cities. Created plagues. Flooded the world. He doesn't sound to friendly to mr.