MOVEMENTS IN RELATION TO CHRISTIANITY
The account of the Crusades, which happened during the Middle Ages, is considered as a significant part of the history of Christianity and the church. It is regarded as the first great enterprise that shows “common zeal of the Christian nations of Europe.” At the same time, these religiously-driven military movements brought forth diverse social, economic, and political impacts upon the European region. History shows no similar record where so many men from different countries and social ranks were brought together having equal enthusiasm. Hundreds of thousands of lives were sacrificed during these campaigns. However, it is being contested as to whether these bloody military campaigns were meant for the cause of Christ or not. Many have different views on the real function and outcomes of the Crusades in the history of Christianity.
In the first place, these Crusades were driven by papal ambitions. Although they were distinct in nature, the means of extending the dominion of the Roman Catholic leadership is included. The goal of dealing with the infidels, who are the Muslims, and the establishment of a Latin power were included in the minds of everyone involved, looking forward to the union of the Eastern and Western regions. For the Roman Catholic pontiff, it will result in having a large undivided church under his rule. During that time, certain rivals are rising against the authority of the popes, and to engage powerful sovereigns in a crusade was an easy way for them to deal with these dangerous rivals. James Harpur explains it in this quotation:
It should also be stressed that crusades were not merely confined to combating Muslims. They were also launched at various times against: pagans heretics and political enemies of the pope in Italy. For what marked out a crusade was not so much the nature of the enemy but its endorsement by the pope and his granting of spiritual rewards in the form of indulgences as well as certain privileges, such as the protection of property.
Even today, the Roman Catholic Church plays significant part in society, particularly in the area of politics. Many even considered the Pope’s ‘voice’ as the interpretation of the messages of God or, in fact, the voice of God itself. Given the approval and ‘blessing’ of the Pope, the people enthusiastically engaged in the crusades. Such is one of the heresies of the Roman Catholic Church throughout history. Although matters in the future are not clearly determined, as in the case of the unexpected failures of the Crusades, people are driven by whatever command of the Pope. In fact, traditions constituted by the pontiff are accepted and held by many followers without sufficient investigation of their credibility and truthfulness. This will be discussed further in the succeeding paragraphs. Of course, it should not be supposed that such papal ambitions are the mere motivating factors through the Crusades. However, as Henry puts it, “it lies on the face of history that their zeal was sustained by the desire and the expectation of official [Roman Catholic supremacy] advantage.”
Another motivating factor for the Crusades has to do with military concerns. Mohammedanism became a threatening power in the entire Middle East. Accompanied with the hardy and sanguinary Turks, who are Muslim converts, the infidels grew in military power. Although Muslims can be peaceful, “the means of Muslim expansions was always the sword.” Many argue that Christians during the Crusades were just paranoids, who engaged in military conquests simply because of religious enthusiasm. However, Christians and other non-religious innocent people in some regions conquered by the infidels were victims of suffering and of unpleasant treatment. Following Mohammed’s death in 7th century, Muslims were successful in conquering some of the largest Christian areas in the world – which include Palestine, Syria, and Egypt. In the 11th century, Asia Minor (Modern Turkey), which was a Christian region during the time of the Apostle Paul, was conquered by the Turks. Being alarmed by the increasing power of the infidels, a word for aid was sent to the Christians nations in Western Europe. The emperor of Constantinople, which contains some properties of Christian antiquity, feared that they would be subject to the hands of the infidels. In this point of view, it can be regarded that the Crusades are just a series of military movement against a foreign rule. Like modern military campaigns, it was designed to restrain “the endemic warfare among the restless warrior class.” Its objective was simply to prevent the European nations from being conquered by a foreign kingdom. In fact, certain critics were also raised against the Crusaders – implying that the Crusades are bloody campaigns of conquering neighboring nations by the Christians. Like all warfare, the Crusades included mishaps, blunders, crimes, and inappropriate murders. During the First Crusade in 1095, a group of Crusaders under Count Emicho of Leiningen robbed and murdered the all the Jews they found in Rhine. Jonas describes it in this quotation:
On the journey toward Jerusalem, the Crusaders raped and pillaged throughout the countryside. Innocent villagers were killed for no reason as the bloodthirsty army [of Crusaders] pressed forward.
For this reason, the Crusades are viewed as not meant solely for the liberation of the Jews from the hands of the Muslims, but also for the fulfillment of warlike enthusiasm.
This crusading enthusiasm is another compelling factor of the Crusades. It was “sustained by the prevalent love of romantic adventure and warlike exploits.” The period during the Crusades was considered as Europe’s period of youth, where men and women had their reasons driven by fantasies. Constrained by various fantasies, many people from diverse classes hastened towards an operation filled with strange adventures. This was witnessed when undisciplined and ungoverned troops under Walter the Penniless, Peter the Hermit, and the German priest named Gottschalk went ahead of their military leaders, who had just accomplished their military preparations, during the First Crusade. For the knights, their proficiency in weapons was considered as a highly-honorable profession. Driven by the code of chivalry, these men thought of the challenging military exploits as their means for public honor.
Another motivating factor for those who got involved in the Crusades is the rewards promised to them. As aforementioned, the influential Roman Catholic pontiff desires to put an end to his rivals through the crusades. During those times, the power of the popes already increased. They “called the Crusades into being, appointed the leaders and promised spiritual favors to those who volunteered.” Moreover, the people believed that those who sacrificed their lives for such cause will become recipients of both spiritual and earthly treasures. For them, the spiritual benefits include the satisfaction and fulfillment from the conquest, and the forgiveness or acquittal of their sins. On the one hand, earthly rewards include the booties from the conquest, freedom from debts, exclusion from taxes, and the fame and political power. Considering this, some of the Crusaders could have engaged in the conquest merely for the sake of personal gain.
However, despite the aforementioned secular motivations behind the Crusades, the campaign was also meant for spiritual purposes. First, the Europeans believed that involvement in the crusades would mean forgiveness of their transgressions. Throughout the period between 1198 and 1229, the Christian Europeans were filled with the conviction that the Christian lands of Syria and Palestine, which were taken by the Muslims, were of utmost importance to Christianity and that such loss was a sure sign of God’s displeasure upon the Christian society. In fact, Hovhannes Kozern, a man known to have wisdom and the stature of an Old Testament prophet, warned the people of sad conditions ahead of them revealed through a vision. He warned that Christians will be turning away from the church, blaspheming God, and neglecting their prayers; that public rulers will become unfaithful to their God-given responsibilities; and that serious family conflicts will arise. According to him, these events – including the rise of the infidels – will be caused by Satan himself. Being accompanied by Satan, “a cursed people – the Turks – would burn the lands, kill their families, level their cities, and desecrate their churches.” Thus, the Crusaders regarded that the sacrificial effort to reclaim the Christian lands, specifically Jerusalem, from the “cursed people” is a holy calling and that it would let them gain the favor of God once more. Second, the Crusades were meant for extending love towards their spiritual brothers and sisters who were suffering in the hands of the infidels. Crusading, then, was also viewed as an act of love of one’s neighbor. As Pope Innocent II wrote during the Fourth Crusade, the Crusaders “carry out in deeds the words of the Gospel, ‘Greater love than this hath no man that he lay down his life for his friends.’” Third, the Crusades were also driven by their love for pilgrimage. Since the time of Constantine, Jerusalem and other holy places of Palestine became an attraction for Christian pilgrims. Devout Christians increasingly pursued religious journeys to the places where Jesus lived, died, and buried. The church taught that remedies for sins can be gained through acts of penance. To make it more spiritual, people performed it in the places where the Savior himself suffered. Thus, the conquest for reclaiming and protecting the holy places manifested sincere devotion to God.
Considering these things, it can be said that the Crusades brought minimal effects on Christianity. For instance, the Crusaders’ purpose was not able to preach Jesus Christ to the Jews who do not believe in the Christ at all. Also, the Crusades somehow brought disgrace to the church, since the popes was wrong in their statement of God’s blessing on the conquest. In relation to that, some of the heresies of the Roman Catholic Church were also revealed. Certainly, that became a foundation for the Protestant Reformation that occurred few centuries after, which resulted in the correct proclamation of the truths about God and Christianity to the public. Nevertheless, despite the failures, the crusades brought significant union between the Christian nations in Europe, and an increased sense of piety due to their love for the holy places.
Bibliography
Harpur, James. The Crusades: The Two Hundred Years War: The Clash between the Cross and the Crescent in the Middle East 1096-1291. New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group, 2008.
Jolly, Karen Louise. Tradition & Diversity: Christianity in a World Context to 1500. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1997.
Jonas, W. Glenn. Christianity: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Guide for Students. Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2010.
MacEvitt, Christopher. The Crusades and the Christian World of the East: Rough Tolerance. Philadelphia, PA: Pennsylvania University Press, 2009.
Madden, Thomas. “The Real History of the Crusades.” Christianity Today. May 6, 2005. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/mayweb-only/52.0.html.
Peters, Edward. Christian Society and the Crusades, 1198-1229. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1971.
Rooney, Rachel and Andrew Miller. “The Crusades: Motivations, Administration, and Cultural Influence.” Newberry Library. May 28, 2013. http://dcc.newberry.org/collections/the- crusades-motivations-administration-and-cultural-influence.
Sheldon, Henry. History of the Christian Church. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1988.
