How Did The Crusades Influence The Church

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THE CRUSADERS AND THE CHURCH The crusades represent a part of church history that many have attempted to forget and leave hidden within the history books. Some claim the crusades to be a courageous time for the Christian church as they attempted to trample out false doctrine and protect the Holy Land from the cult of Islam. Others will quickly identify the crusades as the darkest and most regretful period of time in the history of the church. Either way, there is much detail surrounding the history of the crusades and how they developed. It is not quite as easy as a black and white assumption because many of the men involved had mixed intentions and sentiments regarding what the crusades were actually about. The crusades were centered on the threat of Islamic expansion and had several factors that led up to their beginning. Islam was birthed through the alleged revelations and visions of Muhammad, Islam’s prophet who was born in 570 A.D. When Muhammad became twenty-five years of age, he went from keeping camels to taking charge of the affairs of business for a wealthy widow who happened to be fifteen years older than him. The widow liked him…show more content…
Luke 6:27-28 (NIV) states, “But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.” The Bible was taken out of context and used to expand power and influence for those usurping power over the body of Christ rather than the Crusades being honestly used to advance Christ’s kingdom. The scars caused by the majority of these Crusades are still bleeding today as the conflict between Islam and the rest of the world continues on when mission’s work is what was truly needed at a time the church chose to carry the
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