Can you name any wars that were actually fought for religion?

Question

My theory is that most wars are really about power, either monetary, political, or territorial. Religion is then used to dupe the masses into fighting for a cause that they would otherwise not go for.

If you look into the Crusades this is definately the case. What about others?

I guess I need to be clearer.
I acknowledge that the fighters were fighting for religion, but if you look at the first Crusades the church was lied to by people who were trying to gain power.

I say that the decision makers, the leaders, have never been influenced by religion into going to war. I believe that religion is only added as a secondary reasoning to get the masses to go for it--much like slavery during the American Civil War. In a convoluted way it can be seen as a cause, but it wasnt an actual issue in the war until they needed support.

Answer 1

Maybe it depends on your definition of war, but what about the Irish fight for decades between the protestants and the catholics? There were also the French wars of religion from about 1562-1598 between the Huguenots and the Catholics.

Answer 2

Religion may not be the only cause of certain wars, but it's definitely one of the main causes. You can be sure that both the Christians and the Muslims who fought in the Crusades thought that they were on the side of God. And sure, the Crusades were about the conquest of land, but they were waged by the Christians who were trying to regain the Holy Land from the Infidel.

Answer 3

That can also be looked at all wars are fought because of relgion. Because the power, and everything else is tied up in the ruling religion of the area. So its all tied together, what really is dumb is most religions worship the same God , just called many different names and the church needs to be brought back together, because the only God I know is all Love.

Answer 4

Probably the largest and longest war fought over religion was that of the Christians against the heathen red Indian. From the Puritans at Plymouth Rock, to the last Apache and Comanche wars with the US Calvary, the demonized Indian was systemically exterminated from the United States. This genocide stemmed directly from the pulpits of the white Anglo-Saxon protestants that colonized America.

Indians were depicted as godless heathens; spawn of the devil; or even the devil himself. Pastors shrilly cried for their removal and/or death every Sunday. They instilled fear into their congregations, saying, "the red heathen will come into your house at night and murder you in your bed - and do worse to your wife and children!"

Of course, once the Indian had been killed or removed from the desired land by direction of the religious, the parishioners then packed-up and moved to said land. After 100-150 years of this, Indian fighting and Indian killing became institutions; people didn't need to follow the rule of the pulpit, they followed the rule of government and called it "Manifest Destiny." (Gag...)

At first, missionaries were interested in converting American Indians to Christianity and so exert control over them through their ministeries. However, American Indians did not like the idea of giving up their freedom, especailly their spiritual freedom, so converts declined. As they did so, the military stepped in and forced the issue.

This is American history that is not taught in public school. Americans are in denial about the American halocaust. A halocaust that started in 1492; a halocaust that cost an estimated 100 million Indian lives, a halocaust that gave the idea to Adolph Hitler to start his own halocaust.

Answer 5

Try French Wars of Religion in the 17th century

Answer 6

I agree with you, and have voiced a similar opinion to your own on many occasions here.

Some folk in the religion section have been blaming atheism for wars lately! I can scarcely believe it... Religion was going out of fashion in the 20th century so some scumbags invented fascism and communism to get the people worked up.

Answer 7

I don't think there has ever been a war just for religion . The warriors may have been told it was for the glory of God but it was about power all the same.