Podcasts about holy sepulcher

Easter is a time when we find ourselves, much like the diverse crowd at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, waiting to peer into the empty tomb and discern its meaning for our lives. For some, Easter is the cornerstone of faith, while for others, it may seem like a relic of the past. Yet, the resurrection story is not a mere fairy tale; it is a narrative filled with real people, real emotions, and real encounters with the risen Christ.

Fr. Andy Thuringer takes us on a journey through Christian history and the archeological evidence that the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is truly the site of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus. He offers key facts and discoveries to support these claims. Whether you're a Christian, a religious history enthusiast, or someone questioning the historical accuracy of Jesus' life and death, this video provides compelling insights. Join us as we uncover the truth behind this sacred and iconic site.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Legal reporter Jeremy Sharon and archaeological and religions reporter Rossella Tercatin join host Jessica Steinberg for today's Daily Briefing. Following the cabinet decision to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, various opposition political parties and legal organizations filed petitions against the decision in Israel's High Court. Sharon discusses the government's response to the petitions and its stance that the court should not interfere in the decision to fire Bar. Sharon also reviews Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara's reaction to the government decision and her view that the firing will have implications for the functioning of law enforcement and the Shin Bet in the future. The Shin Bet is also conducting a covert probe into the possible infiltration of extreme-right elements into the Israel Police and Sharon discusses the existence of Kahanist elements in National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's party that led to the probe. Tercatin looks at a recent archaeological discovery that grapevines and olive trees may have once grown on the land under the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, with evidence being uncovered of agricultural tools, pottery, and new technologies that can research pollen remains and seeds that relate to the time of Jesus. She also discusses a poll of high school teens from religous Zionist high schools regarding sexual activity, leading to the researcher's determination that there's a need for more openly discussing sex with religious teens. Please see today's ongoing liveblog for more updates. For further reading: Government tells the High Court it can’t be forced to work with Shin Bet chief it doesn’t trust Report: Shin Bet covertly probed Kahanist infiltration into police under Ben Gvir Echoing Gospel account, traces of ancient garden found under Church of Holy Sepulchre Poll showing religious teens are sexually active sparks rethink of when to have the talk Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: Protestors march toward the Knesset on March 25, 2025, holding a banner that reads, 'Guarding democracy' (Credit Yair Palti/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This teaching is from Matthew 27:49-28:4 We pick up the story from last week on the evening of Passover.  Jesus is on the cross, it's three in the afternoon. Jesus cries out, “it is finished” and dies just as the sacrifice is being offered in the Temple. At that very moment the curtain in the Temple is torn from top to bottom. That curtain separated the Holy Place of the Sanctuary from the Holy of Holies in the rear of the Sanctuary. The curtain was a massive curtain approximately 60' by 30' and about 8 inches thick. Symbolically - this is a sign that everything has changed. The entry way to the Holy of Holies which had been only for a chief priest to enter once a year for atonement was now wide open - a physical representation that the way to the Heavenly Father is now opened for all.  No longer through multiple sacrifices, it is now through the blood of the Son of the Living God. That entry gives us direct access to the Father through the Son. There was darkness from 12-3pm and when Christ died, there was a massive earth quake and a Centurian exclaimed, “Surely, this was the Son of God!” Jesus' burial - Joseph of Arimathea went to Pilot to ask for Jesus' body and it was given to him.  God's command in Deuteronomy 21:22-23 says, “If someone guilty of a capital offense is put to death and their body is exposed on a pole, you must not leave the body hanging on the pole overnight. Be sure to bury it that same day, because anyone who is hung on a pole is under God's curse. You must not desecrate the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.”  The Jewish people followed this command from God and so Joseph of Arimathea took Jesus' body down from the cross at His death and didn't allow it to stay on the “pole.” Joseph wrapped the body in cloth and placed Jesus in the tomb that he had recently purchased for himself. Pastor shares archeological and historical evidence of the site of Jesus' burial site under the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. After Jesus is placed in the tomb the chief priests and pharisees - who do not normally agree with each other - went together to Pilate to remind him that Jesus had said, “After three days I will rise again.”  So Pilate tells them to secure the tomb so that Jesus' disciples could not come steal the body and claim Jesus had risen from the dead. The tomb was secured by sealing it with wax around the stone at the opening of the tomb and a guard was posted. We move into Matthew chapter 28 where we read the story of Jesus resurrection. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary go to the tomb early the next morning when again there is another violent earthquake at the time of Jesus' resurrection. An angel comes down from heaven, rolls the stone of the tomb away from the opening and sits on it, frightening the guard. All the plans of man to do away with Jesus have come to an end. And now God is intervening in a remarkable and powerful and awesome way. Join us next week for the rest of Jesus' amazing resurrection story that is also ours! Visit our website here https://www.awakeusnow.com Watch the video from our website https://www.awakeusnow.com/matthew-discipling Watch the video from Youtube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTaaqrC3dMOxHZDaamNk9DaM7h7LejJj7 Watch via our app. Text HELLO to 888-364-4483 to download our app. We invite you to join us for our Sunday service every Sunday at 9:30am CT (live or on demand) here: https://www.awakeusnow.com/sunday-service

Explore the history of this most holy site in Christendom.Support the showwww.rockymountainmason.comwww.esotericmason.comSupport the show: https://patreon.com/rockymountainmason?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

Full Text of ReadingsFeast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Lectionary: 638The Saint of the day is Exaltation of the Holy CrossThe Story of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Early in the fourth century, Saint Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ's life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior's tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman. The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the fourth century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus' head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.” To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica's dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, 15 years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim. Reflection The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief. Countless generations of artists have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry. To the eyes of the first Christians, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with decaying corpses, as a threat to anyone who defied Rome's authority—including Christians who refused sacrifice to Roman gods. Although believers spoke of the cross as the instrument of salvation, it seldom appeared in Christian art unless disguised as an anchor or the Chi-Rho until after Constantine's edict of toleration. Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is the holiest site in Christendom. It is the historic site where Jesus was crucified, buried, and rose from the dead. But is it the real spot?  In this episode, Cole and Terry discuss the church's history, theories, and oddities and debate whether or not this is the real location of the empty tomb.  Resources: “Jesus' Tomb Opened in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher” - National Geographic “Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher” - Biblical Archaeology Review

He started into sports later in life, with basketball being his primary sport, including having attended a basketball training academy where he learned from NBA Skills Trainer Drew Hanlen.  He also worked out with former NBA player and three-time dunk champion Nate Robinson.  In addition, he played ball hockey, including winning four championships, and he competed in touch football leagues.  Over the last few years, he, "made the conscious decision to serve the church while incorporating lessons learned from sports to help my clients."  He is based in western Canada and is a state officer for the Knights of Columbus BC/Yukon State Council, and six months ago was invested as a Knight of the Holy Sepulcher in the Vancouver Lieutenancy.  On the professional side, he serves as a Catholic Life Coach for Freedom Coaching.  (LISTEN FOR THE POWERFUL TESTIMONY HE SHARES ABOUT HIS EYESIGHT AND A GOSPEL PASSAGE HE HEARD AT MASS!)

Hour 2 of The Drew Mariani Show on FRIDAY 5-3-24 Drew and Maggie pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy Drew revisits a conversation he had with Fr. Simon about the Eastern Orthodox church and their Paschal miracle of the Holy Fire at the church of the Holy Sepulcher 

Rome reflections: from catacombs to basilicas. United Nations and the Vatican agree on "the Infinite Dignity" of all human persons. Modernists want to bury the Catholic Church as Pharisees wanted to bury Christ. Trump blasts pro-life Arizona: can a Catholic vote for him? Israel vs Iran: setting stage for World War? Did St Gregory VII really say Muslims worship true God? Annual miracle at Holy Sepulcher? Glory of God vs conceit of man. Love for the truth is key to fidelity. This episode was recorded on 4/16/2024 Our Links: http://linkwcb.com/ Please consider making a monetary donation to What Catholics Believe. Father Jenkins remembers all of our benefactors in general during his daily Mass, and he also offers one Mass on the first Sunday of every month specially for all supporters of What Catholics Believe. May God bless you for your generosity! https://www.wcbohio.com/donate Subscribe to our other YouTube channels: @WCBHolyMassLivestream @WCBHighlights May God bless you all!

Friends of the Rosary, In the Holy Land, Christians participated in a stunning procession from Bethphage to Jerusalem this Palm Sunday, Catholic News Agency reported. The route followed the same path that Jesus took when He entered Jerusalem and was acclaimed by the crowd holding palms and olive branches. About 3,000 faithful ascended the Mount of Olives, passed by Gethsemane, where Jesus experienced the most painful hours of his passion. Due to the ongoing war, there were fewer pilgrims than usual. Those present responded with closeness in prayer, praise to the Lord, and a message of joy — the joy of being Christians. “We have many problems, but we are truly happy that Jesus is our Lord. He is our joy and our strength,” said the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who led the procession. “Let us renew our commitment to follow Jesus and let us not be afraid! Jesus on the cross is the victory over the world, not the victory of arms, but that of love.” The procession was preceded by the solemn Palm Sunday liturgy at the Holy Sepulcher, presided over by Pizzaballa. The faithful waved palm branches and chanted “Hosanna,” circling the edicule of the Holy Sepulcher —the small shrine that houses the tomb of Jesus Christ—three times to symbolize the three days Jesus spent in the tomb.  Ave Maria!Jesus, I Trust In You! To Jesus through Mary!Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will! + Mikel Amigot | RosaryNetwork.com, New York • ⁠March 26, 2024, Today's Rosary on YouTube | Daily broadcast at 7:30 pm ET    

Guest 1:Rabbi Lawrence Hirsch has been serving the Messiah amongst Jewish people since 1990. Lawrence is one of the Co-Founders of Celebrate Messiah Australia and works as the Executive Director of Celebrate Messiah Australia. Lawrence is the messianic Rabbi of Beit HaMashiach Messianic Congregation in Melbourne and is also actively involved in mission work in Israel, Russia, New Zealand and South Africa.Guest 2:Jason Damouni is the Secretary and Director of Communication for Palestinian Christians in Australia. He resides in Perth, but was born in New York after his family came from the village of Al-Damoun, a small Christian village between Nazareth and Haifa. His grandfather was displaced from his village during the 1948 Nakba and was never able to return. Jason is a sub-deacon in his local Melkite Catholic Church in Perth and is a knight of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jesus of Nazareth is the most pivotal figure in world history and after his crucifixion he was buried for 3 days and rose from the dead. But where was he buried? Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli examine the various claims, look at the evidence, and identify the most likely place. The post The Tomb of Christ (Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Garden Tomb, Talpiot Tomb, Others) appeared first on StarQuest Media.

Jesus of Nazareth is most pivotal figure in world history and after his crucifixion he was buried for 3 days and rose from the dead. But where was he buried? Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli examine the various claims, look at the evidence, and identify the most likely place.

It's a Q&A episode as Dr Clark takes a call from Lyquan in Utah about prayer as a means of grace; he answers a text about what to do about a "ginormous stained glass Jesus;" he answers a text about so-called New Covenant Theology. He also answers emails about how to respond to Zane Hodges (and how the Synod of Dort helps us on this question), about the claims of the Eastern Orthodox churches about the alleged miracle of "holy light" in the church of the Holy Sepulcher, about how to preach law and gospel, whether we should regard the anointing with oil as a sacrament, and what we should think about alleged apparitions of the blessed virgin Mary. The opening audio features Shane Rosenthal and Sarabeth Kapustra from the Humble Skeptic podcast. This episode of the Heidelcast is sponsored by the Heidelberg Reformation Association. You love the Heidelcast and the Heidelblog. You share it with friends, with members of your church, and others but have you stopped to think what would happen it all disappeared? The truth is that we depend on your support. If you don't do not make the coffer clink, the HRA will simply sink. Won't you help us keep it going? The HRA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All the your gifts are tax deductible. Use the donate link on this page or mail a check to Heidelberg Reformation Association, 1637 E Valley Parkway #391, Escondido CA 92027. All the Episodes of the Heidelcast Resources On Romans Subscribe To the Heidelcast On Twitter @Heidelcast How To Support Heidelmedia: use the donate button below Subscribe in Apple Podcast Subscribe directly via RSS New Way To Call The Heidelphone: Voice Memo On Your Phone Text the Heidelcast any time at (760) 618–1563. The Heidelcast is available everywhere podcasts are found including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Call the Heidelphone anytime at (760) 618–1563. Leave a message or email us us a voice memo from your phone and we may use it in a future podcast. Record it and email it to Heidelcast at heidelcast dot net. If you benefit from the Heidelcast please leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts so that others can find it. Please do not forget to make the coffer clink (see the donate button below). SHOW NOTES Heidelblog Resources The HB Media Archive The Ecumenical Creeds The Reformed Confessions Heidelberg Catechism (1563) Recovering the Reformed Confession (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2008). What Must A Christian Believe? Why I Am A Christian Heidelblog Contributors Support Heidelmedia: use the donate button or send a check to: Heidelberg Reformation Association 1637 E. Valley Parkway #391 Escondido CA 92027 USA The HRA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

Full Text of ReadingsFeast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Lectionary: 638The Saint of the day is Exaltation of the Holy CrossThe Story of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Early in the fourth century, Saint Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ's life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior's tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman. The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the fourth century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus' head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.” To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica's dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, 15 years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim. Reflection The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief. Countless generations of artists have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry. To the eyes of the first Christians, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with decaying corpses, as a threat to anyone who defied Rome's authority—including Christians who refused sacrifice to Roman gods. Although believers spoke of the cross as the instrument of salvation, it seldom appeared in Christian art unless disguised as an anchor or the Chi-Rho until after Constantine's edict of toleration. Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media

The Holy Land was the destination for many Muslim pilgrims during the late medieval and early modern period. In addition to worshipping on Jerusalem's Haram al-Sharif, Muslim pilgrims in the Holy Land also visited important Christian holy sites, such as the Mount of Olives, the Tomb of Mary, and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. With fada'il al-Quds (“Merits of Jerusalem”) pilgrimage texts serving as their guide, Muslims visited these places and joined Christian worshippers in contemplating the sacred. Fada'il al-Quds texts informed Muslim pilgrims of the blessings (fada'il) of Christian holy sites by citing Islamic traditions, such as Qur'anic verses, hadith literature, and Companions' sayings (athar), to sanctify each Christian site and to command Muslims to perform certain Islamic prayers there. While fada'il al-Quds texts extolled Christian holy sites, they simultaneously debated whether Muslims were permitted to enter churches in the Holy Land. Despite the debate on the legality of Muslim pilgrimage to churches and protestations against the practice by some conservative ‘ulama', the fada'il al-Quds corpus, along with travelogue literature, reveals that Muslims increasingly visited churches, shared sacred spaces, and even participated in Christian ceremonies into the Ottoman period. Fadi in this interview and his work provides a broad historical sketch of Islamic pilgrimage to Christian holy sites and demonstrates that Muslims in the Holy Land shared sacred spaces with Christians in Jerusalem for centuries before the onset of the modern era.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/jerusalemunplugged. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to my interview with Robert Siefker, an engineer and an expert on the Shroud of Turin; where we talk about Siefker's work with the Shroud of Turin and The Holy Fire. Siefker was brought up in California and attended UCLA on a Navy scholarship with a major in engineering. After his nearly five years of Naval service he worked in the software industry eventually serving as a VP for two software companies, the second being in Colorado. It was in Colorado that he became an associate of the Turin Shroud Center of Colorado (TSC), headed by Dr. John Jackson, who was the leader of the 1978 Shroud of Turin Research Project. Siefker was the co-author and editor of the TSC book on the Shroud entitled The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of the Observations , Data and Hypotheses. Most recently he has been involved in research on the so-called Miracle of the Holy Fire, a phenomena that occurs every year at the tomb of Christ in the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem on Orthodox Holy Saturday.For more information head over to https://guypowell.com/interview-guy-p....Subscribe to the channel to listen each week. New episodes are uploaded every Thursday-Friday.Want to learn more about author Guy R. Powell? Check out the socials below:Website: www.guypowell.comInstagram: @guy.r.powellFacebook: @AHistoryOfTheShroudOfTurinEmail List: https://guypowell.us6.list-manage.com...Connect today.

In this episode I share some of the Old Testament “types” or “prefigurations” related to the Holy Eucharist, like the Paschal Lamb, the Manna in the desert, and the Ark of the Covenant. We also look at the miracles of Cana and the Multiplication of the loaves, as well as the words of Christ with which He instituted the Most Blessed Sacrament during the Last Supper. - John Paul II's Apostolic Letter “Dominicae Cenae”: https://adoremus.org/2007/12/dominicae-cenae/ - More info on this can be found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church #1373-1390 - Biblical quotations: Genesis 28:10 (Jacob's Ladder); Exodus 12 (the Paschal Lamb); Exodus 16 (the Manna in the dessert); Exodus 37 (The ark of the Covenant); John 2:1 (Wedding at Cana); John 6 (multiplication of the bread); Jn 6:51 (The Promise to give His body to eat and blood to drink); 1 Corinthians 10:16-21 (St. Paul's teaching on the Eucharist). - Video with a general introduction to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWlSqh3YZ9Y - Fr. Patrick Wainwright is a priest of Miles Christi, a Catholic Religious Order. - Visit the Miles Christi Religious Order website: https://www.mileschristi.org - This Podcast's Website: https://www.forcollegecatholics.org - To learn about the Spiritual Exercises (silent weekend retreat) preached by the Priests of Miles Christi, visit: https://www.mileschristi.org/spiritual-exercises/ - Recorded at our Family Center in South Lyon, Michigan. - Planning, recording, editing and publishing by Fr. Patrick Wainwright, MC. - Gear: Shure MV7 USB dynamic microphone. - Intro music from pond5.com

Happy feast of St. Vincent de Paul! On today's show, Matt Swaim and Anna Mitchell discuss why he serves as a model of charity for all Christians. Guests include Fr. Boniface Hicks with more thoughts on personal prayer, Steve Ray on the difference between the Holy Sepulcher and the Garden Tomb in the Holy Land, and Daniel Strudwick, co-author of a new book of stories from theologians who became Catholic. Plus news, weather, sports and a whole lot more…

September 26: Saints Cosmas and Damian, Martyrsc. Late third–early fourth centuryOptional Memorial; Liturgical Color: RedPatron Saints of doctors, barbers, and pharmacistsHoly twins are honored for their healing, their poverty, and their deathsThe ancient walls of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem enclose the sacred ground where the life of Jesus Christ culminated in His death, burial, and resurrection. Both the modest hill of Calvary and the rock-cut tomb in which His corpse was laid are found under the roof of this venerable church. Calvary and the tomb have long been protected from relic hunters by slabs of marble and stone cladding that conceal the rough, first-century substrata resting just below. There is a custom, still common today, of allowing the faithful to sleep overnight inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. From the time the heavy wooden doors close at dusk until they creek open again at sunrise, the pilgrim must remain in the church. This pious custom of resting and watching in the dark, all night long, near a holy site in order to soak up its latent power is called “incubation.” The custom originated in an ancient church in Constantinople housing the remains of today's saints, Cosmas and Damian, where the faithful incubated themselves in the hope of a miraculous cure.Similar to Saint George, legends about Saints Cosmas and Damian far outrun any verifiable historical details about their lives. The devotion to today's saints across epochs and cultures is as broad as an ocean but as shallow as a lake. Upon a slender bed of long-lost documents rests the narrative that Cosmas and Damian were twins and natives of Saudi Arabia who studied medicine in Syria. They became known as the “moneyless ones” for not accepting payment for their healing services. They were likely martyred north of Antioch in the early fourth century. The earliest historical anchor planting these holy brothers in the ground of history dates to around 400 A.D., when a pagan visitor recorded a visit to a shrine dedicated to Cosmas and Damian in Asia Minor. In the fifth century, a church was built to their memory in Constantinople and, in the sixth century, a pagan temple in the Roman Forum was rededicated as a Basilica in their honor. The bright apse mosaic of Rome's Basilica of Saints Cosmas and Damian still shines and shows Saints Peter and Paul presenting the twins to the glorified Christ.Most of the wealth of miracles that have long been attributed to Saints Cosmas and Damian involve healing, in keeping with their medical profession. The fame of these miracles, together with their martyrdom, was so widespread in the early Church that they joined that elite class of martyrs, saints, virgins, and popes whose names were inserted into the Roman Canon, or Eucharistic Prayer I, where they are still read at Mass today. Their names also ring out in ancient litanies still sung at solemn Masses. Yet close familiarity with their names may dull our curiosity about their gory end.No details have been preserved, but it can be supposed that Cosmas and Damian died like so many other martyrs: by crucifixion, beheading, or drowning at sea; by the goring of beasts, or by their flesh being burned off in a roar of flames. The chilling sentence of death read by a Roman official sent a cold shiver up the spine. It was irrevocable. The martyr's fate was often to be publicly shamed, tortured, and physically destroyed in a brutal fashion in keeping with a brutal world. No miracle saved Cosmas and Damian from their violent end. As physicians, they knew well the frailty of the human body. They understood their own bodies to be cracked vessels flooded temporarily with the Holy Spirit of God. And when the time came for that earthen vessel to return to the clay from whence it came, they bravely gave up what was never theirs. They offered a witness so shocking that it was seared into the memories of those who saw it, a witness so other-worldly that a few emulated it, and untold masses of others honored it through prayer and devotion, as we still do today.Saints Cosmas and Damian, through your heroic witness of martyrdom, we ask your intercession to embolden the weak, to strengthen the hesitant, to give words to the meek, and to unleash the hidden power of the Gospel in all those who could do more.

Full Text of ReadingsFeast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Lectionary: 638All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Exaltation of the Holy Crossof the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Early in the fourth century, Saint Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ's life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior's tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman. The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the fourth century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus' head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.” To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica's dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, 15 years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim. Reflection The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief. Countless generations of artists have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry. To the eyes of the first Christians, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with decaying corpses, as a threat to anyone who defied Rome's authority—including Christians who refused sacrifice to Roman gods. Although believers spoke of the cross as the instrument of salvation, it seldom appeared in Christian art unless disguised as an anchor or the Chi-Rho until after Constantine's edict of toleration. Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media

Visitors to Israel wanting to see the crucifixion site of Jesus are usually directed to Church of the Holy Sepulcher. But some, including Bob, suggest a different site! Click on your podcasting platform below to subscribe to The Bob Siegel Show:   Apple  |  Google  | Spotify |  TuneIn  | Blubrry | Deezer | Android  | RSS Feed  Subscribe by email and get Bob's show […]

Visitors to Israel wanting to see the crucifixion site of Jesus are usually directed to Church of the Holy Sepulcher. But some, including Bob, suggest a different site! Click on your podcasting platform below to subscribe to The Bob Siegel Show:   Apple  |  Google  | Spotify |  TuneIn  | Blubrry | Deezer | Android  | RSS Feed  Subscribe by email and get Bob's show […]

What do we know about Jesus and the story of Jesus from outside the Bible? Much more than you might think! Archaeologist Dr. Titus Kennedy joins Frank to reveal the Top 20 discoveries about Jesus from outside the Bible. Here they are: The place and nature of his birth. The murderous nature of Herod. The synagogue where Jesus taught in his adopted hometown—Capernaum. Peter's house in Capernaum. The pool of Bethesda. The pool of Siloam. The nature of the town of Bethany where Jesus raised Lazarus—Leper colony, “the place of Lazarus”, tomb that matches John 11:38. The temple place of the trumpeting. The Caiaphas ossuary (also the Miriam Ossuary—granddaughter of Caiaphus) The James ossuary. The gates of Hell. The miracles of Jesus—he's admitted as a miracle worker even by non-Christian sources. The fearful nature of Pilate—Why was Pilate afraid of upsetting the Jews? Archaeological evidence of Pilate includes coins, a ring, an inscription, and ancient writers). The nature and place of burial and resurrection: Tomb of the Shroud (nature of the burial), Church of the Holy Sepulcher, place of the burial and resurrection Nazareth inscription. Crucifixion—archaeology, writings (Acts of Pilate). Christ the magician cup. The murderous nature of Herod Agrippa I. The early spread of Christianity and the belief in the Resurrection. The graffiti found in Rome. Due to time constraints, we only were able to discuss the first 15 of these. But Frank and Titus kept recording! To see the remaining five, join our new CrossExamined Community which is a private online forum where believers can interact with us and one another without the fear of being canceled. After the program will be posted there. To learn much more, get Dr. Kennedy's excellent new book, Excavating the Evidence for Jesus: The Archaeology and History of Christ and the Gospels. If you would like to submit a question to be answered on the show, please email your question to Hello@Crossexamined.org. Subscribe on Apple Podcast: http://bit.ly/CrossExamined_Podcast Rate and review! Thanks!!! Subscribe on Google Play: https://cutt.ly/0E2eua9 Subscribe on Spotify: http://bit.ly/CrossExaminedOfficial_Podcast Subscribe on Stitcher: http://bit.ly/CE_Podcast_Stitcher  

The hosts continue sharing the joy of Paschaltide by talking about services and food, including the tradition of blessing and sharing Paschal baskets. Fr. Harry talks more about how the practice of his parish follows syncs with the ancient one at the Holy Sepulcher. Enjoy the show!

The hosts continue sharing the joy of Paschaltide by talking about services and food, including the tradition of blessing and sharing Paschal baskets. Fr. Harry talks more about how the practice of his parish follows syncs with the ancient one at the Holy Sepulcher. Enjoy the show!

Most places in the Holy Land today are approximate locations, often churches to evoke a memory or celebrate and event. Golgotha is a real place and exact location to be visited and it sits under the dome of the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. This podcast will consider the meaning of crucifixion as it relates to the nearby Temple, and the Good News of the Empty Tomb.Reflection Questions:What do you think the centurion saw, causing him to see Jesus as God's Son?In light of the problems caused by the Temple, how are out churches the same problem?

Welcome to my interview with Robert Siefker, an engineer and an expert on the Shroud of Turin; where we talk about Siefker's work with the Shroud of Turin and The Holy Fire. Siefker was brought up in California and attended UCLA on a Navy scholarship with a major in engineering. After his nearly five years of Naval service he worked in the software industry eventually serving as a VP for two software companies, the second being in Colorado. It was in Colorado that he became an associate of the Turin Shroud Center of Colorado (TSC), headed by Dr. John Jackson, who was the leader of the 1978 Shroud of Turin Research Project. Siefker was the co-author and editor of the TSC book on the Shroud entitled The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of the Observations , Data and Hypotheses. Most recently he has been involved in research on the so-called Miracle of the Holy Fire, a phenomena that occurs every year at the tomb of Christ in the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem on Orthodox Holy Saturday. Subscribe to the podcast for more episodes that release every Thursday/Friday. Head to https://guypowell.com/interview-guy-powell/ (www.guypowell.com) for more information on the book The Only Witness and interviews.

Fr. Roger J. Landry Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem Latin Altar of the Nailing of Christ on the Cross Leonine Forum Pilgrimage to the Holy Land December 4, 2021 Nm 21:4-9, Ps 78, Phil 2:6-11, Jn 3:13-17   To listen to an audio recording of today’s homily, please click below:  https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/catholicpreaching/12.4.21_Homily_1.mp3   The following […] The post Continuing the Pilgrimage on the Way of the Cross, December 4, 2021 appeared first on Catholic Preaching.

Fr. Roger J. Landry Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem Tomb of Jesus December 2, 2021   To listen to an audio recording of today’s homily, please click below: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/catholicpreaching/12.2.21_Homily_Tomb_1.mp3   The Following points were attempted in the homily:  In the Gospel, we see both people running to and from the tomb. We are meant to […] The post Running to and From the Tomb, Mass at the Holy Sepulcher, December 2, 2021 appeared first on Catholic Preaching.

Fr. Roger J. Landry Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem Mass inside the Tomb of Christ December 1, 2021 To listen to an audio recording of today’s brief homily, please click below:  https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/catholicpreaching/12.1.21_Homily_Tomb_1.mp3 The post Putting the Risen Body of Christ Back into the Empty Tomb, December 1, 2021 appeared first on Catholic Preaching.

James Carroll, in his new memoir, “The Truth at the Heart of the Lie,” recalls this experience.  On his first visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, he was taken aback by the rudely jostling pilgrims fighting for the best places. When he returned a few days later, he saw it with new eyes:“I saw for the first time what it actually meant that Jesus Christ was a human being, in the thick of human life, with all its chaos, treason and ruined dreams. The Holy Sepulcher, as I saw it now, was a sacrament of Christ's part in our human condition.” frjoedailey@gmail.com 

Jon 3:1-10 Did God actually change his mind? Lk 10:38-42 Father has an alternate translation for today's Gospel–“Mary has taken the good portion” Mass Hysteria: Father talks about reading scripture at mass Letters: Who are the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher? Pastor's homilies have embraced a universal oneness–but rarely mentions God Word: He shall crush […]

Jon 3:1-10 Did God actually change his mind? Lk 10:38-42 Father has an alternate translation for today’s Gospel–“Mary has taken the good portion” Mass Hysteria: Father talks about reading scripture at mass Letters: Who are the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher? Pastor’s homilies have embraced a universal oneness–but rarely mentions God Word: He shall crush […] All show notes at Father Simon Says – October 5, 2001 – Does God Change His Mind? - This podcast produced by Relevant Radio

Full Text of ReadingsFeast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Lectionary: 638All podcast readings are produced by the USCCB and are from the Catholic Lectionary, based on the New American Bible and approved for use in the United States _______________________________________The Saint of the day is Exaltation of the Holy Crossof the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Early in the fourth century, Saint Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ's life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior's tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman. The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the fourth century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus' head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.” To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica's dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, 15 years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim. Reflection The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief. Countless generations of artists have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry. To the eyes of the first Christians, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with decaying corpses, as a threat to anyone who defied Rome's authority—including Christians who refused sacrifice to Roman gods. Although believers spoke of the cross as the instrument of salvation, it seldom appeared in Christian art unless disguised as an anchor or the Chi-Rho until after Constantine's edict of toleration. Saint of the Day Copyright Franciscan Media

Join Deacon Tom and Mary Jane Fox for a spiritual pilgrimage to the holiest site for all Christians, the Tomb of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem. This has been identified as an area of abandoned stone quarries just outside the city walls of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus. During this program, Deacon Tom and Mary Jane will discuss: Who built the church? How do we know this is an authentic site? What is it like inside the tomb? Much, much more! Jewel for the Journey:  Jesus on the Cross feels the whole weight of the evil, and with the force of God’s love he conquers it, he defeats it with his resurrection. – Pope Francis Learn more at PilgrimCenterOfHope.org/Journeys Help us spread hope! PilgrimCenterOfHope.org/Donate

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Good Friday, 1626, Franciscus Quaresmius delivered a sermon in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem calling on King Philip IV of Spain to undertake a crusade to 'liberate' the Holy Land. Jerusalem Afflicted: Quaresmius, Spain, and the Idea of a 17th-century Crusade (Routledge, 2019) introduces readers to this unique call to arms with the first-ever edition of the work since its publication in 1631. Aside from an annotated English translation of the sermon, this book also includes a series of introductory chapters providing historical context and textual commentary, followed by an anthology of Spanish crusading texts that testify to the persistence of the idea of crusade throughout the 17th century. Quaresmius' impassioned and thoroughly reasoned plea is expressed through the voice of Jerusalem herself, personified as a woman in bondage. The friar draws on many of the same rhetorical traditions and theological assumptions that first launched the crusading movement at Clermont in 1095, while also bending those traditions to meet the unique concerns of 17th-century geopolitics in Europe and the Mediterranean. Quaresmius depicts the rescue of the Holy City from Turkish abuse as a just and necessary cause. Perhaps more unexpectedly, he also presents Jerusalem as sovereign Spanish territory, boldly calling on Philip as King of Jerusalem and Patron of the Holy Places to embrace his royal duty and reclaim what is rightly his on behalf of the universal faithful. Quaresmius' early modern call to crusade ultimately helps us rethink the popular assumption that, like the chivalry imagined by Don Quixote, the crusades somehow died along with the middle ages. Elizabeth Spragins is assistant professor of Spanish at the College of the Holy Cross. Her current book project is on corpses in early modern Mediterranean narrative. You can follow her on Twitter @elspragins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neville GoddardImagination Plus Faith1971 This series is really a combination of both the Law and the Promise. Tonight, naturally, will be the Law, and yet some parts of the Promise may be woven into it. The title, as you know, is “Imagination Plus Faith.” So, we will have to define the words as we use them. I firmly believe that: “Man is all imagination, and God is man and exists in us, and we in Him;” [Wm. Blake, from “Annotations to Berkeley's ‘Siris'”] “The Eternal Body of man is the imagination, and that is God Himself' [Wm. Blake, from “Laocoon . . The Angel of the Divine Promise”] . . the Divine Body that we speak of as Jesus Christ. I firmly believe that this is the Christ of Scripture that is buried in man . . buried in the only Holy Sepulcher that there ever was, and that is the skull of man. And there he dreams the Dream of Life, and one day He will awaken within your skull, and then the drama of Christ as defined for us in Scripture will unfold within you, casting you in the first-person-singular, present tense experience of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then you will know who He really is! You will actually awaken as the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the climax for everyone born of woman. But tonight let us get back to what I mean by imagination and what I mean by faith. First of all, faith is defined for us in the 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews. It is called a hymn in praise of faith. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) By faith we understand a world was created by the Word of God, so that Things seen are made out of things that do not appear.” (Hebrews 11:3) That's what we are told in the very first few verses of the 11th chapter of Hebrews. Now, if faith is the evidence of things not seen and all things are made out of things that do not appear, then we must come to the conclusion that every natural effect has a spiritual cause, and not a natural. A natural cause only seems. It is a delusion of the fading memory. Man does not remember his imaginal acts, so when they come up and the harvest is ripe, he denies his own harvest. He cannot see where on earth what he is now experiencing could have been caused by him, because he has forgotten his imaginal acts. That is when he sowed it, and all things bring forth after their kind. Let no one be deceived, for God . . which is his own imagination . . is not mocked. As a man sows, so shall he reap.” (Galatians 6:7) So, I AM forever reaping what I have planted, but because of my fading memory, I can't remember when I did it. So, then, I deny what I am seeing as my own harvest. Well, now, who is this God spoken of in this verse? He said, “By faith we understand that the world was created by the Word of God.” (Hebrews 11:3) Well, we are told in Scripture in the very first few verses of the book of John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) Then we are told, “The Word was made flesh and dwelt within us;” (John 1:14) therefore the Word spoken of here is equated with God. If the Word was not only with God, it was God, well, then, that's God, and it now dwells in us. Music By Mettaverselove the universal constantthe language of lighta still mindlight holdersa universal languageinto the omniverse ➤ Listen on Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2KjGlLI➤ Follow them on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2JW8BU2➤ Join them on Facebook: http://bit.ly/2G1j7G6➤ Subscribe to their channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyvjffON2NoUvX5q_TgvVkw All My Neville Goddard Videos In One Playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo8kBZsJpp3xvkRwhbXuhg0M For all episodes of the Reality Revolution – https://www.therealityrevolution.com Like us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RealityRevolutionPodcast/ Subscribe to my Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOgXHr5S3oF0qetPfqxJfSw #nevillegoddard #audiobooks #imagination #newthought #lawofattraction #totalhumanoptimization

Transitions is part II of a three part mini-series. In part I (Origin of a Word), I discussed the origin of anti-semitism starting with Noah's son Shem, covering a wide canvas of little known history through the Second Temple period. In this episode, I outline the events that transpired after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, through the perils of the Dark and Middle Ages and finally reaching the shores of the Age of Discovery in the Renaissance period. Music: Cinematic Middle EasternPhoto: The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem was ordered to be constructed by Emperor Constantine in 326 A.D. Taken by T.Terroade

For Books order click the link below: https://www.onefridayinjerusalem.com/shop   For donations click the link below: https://www.twinstours.org/becomeapartner   Connect with us on Social Media: Twitter: http://twitter.com/twinstours Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/andre.moubarak Instagram: http://instagram.com/twinstours   Day 8 - IN THE STEPS OF JESUS – Crucifixion, Death, Burial and Resurrection - Theme - Last week of Jesus life in Jerusalem Mount of Olives – Overlook and Palm Sunday Route Dominus Flevit Church, where Jesus Wept over Jerusalem  Mt Zion - Cenacle / Upper Room Garden of Gethsemane - Church of Agony Walk through kidron to Caifas House Antonia Fortress (Praetorian) where Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate Walking from Jaffa Gate to the Holy Sepulcher - Via Dolorosa Holy Sepulcher Church – Traditional site of Calvary/ Golgotha Dinner & Overnight in Jerusalem

Ask most Muslims what the holiest site is in Islam, and they would all obviously tell you it is the Kaaba at the Great Mosque of Mecca. Ask most Jews, and they probably know what the holiest site is in Judaism. It is the Western Wall of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Ask most Christians what the holiest site is in Christianity, and you might get a blank stare or at least several different answers.  Through most of Christianity, there has been one place that has been agreed upon as the holiest site, and it has been the cause of wars and disagreements which have continued to this day. Learn more about the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on this Episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Book your G Adventures tour today! http://bit.ly/EEgadventures -------------------------------- Executive Producer James Makkyla Become a supporter on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/everythingeverywhere Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everythingeverywhere/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/everywheretrip Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/EEDailyPodcast/ Website: https://everything-everywhere.com/everything-everywhere-daily-podcast/

Each year the Canon Law Society of America presents its distinguished Role of Law Award to an individual considered to be outstanding in the field of canonical science. The By-Laws of the Society directs the Board of Governors to select a person who demonstrates in his or her life and legal practice the following characteristics: Embodiment of pastoral attitude, commitment to research and study, participation in the development of law, response to needs or practical assistance, facilitation of dialogue and the interchange of ideas within the Society and with other groups. These qualifications are a concise re-statement of the constitutionally-expressed purposes of the Society. The person to whom this award is given is viewed by us as one who embodies all that we, as members of the Society hold dear, as one to whom we can look for guidance and inspiration. Such an official statement alone is perhaps the greatest honor that can be bestowed on anyone – to be selected by one's friends and peers as outstanding among them. This year's recipient of the Role of Law Award was ordained a priest of the Maronite Church in 1976. After being awarded a doctorate in Eastern canon law by the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome in 1980, he served in the administration of the Eparchy of Saint Maron for sixteen years in several offices, the last being Protosyncellus (Vicar General). In 1991, he was ordained a chorbishop of the Maronite Church. He worked at the Catholic Near East Welfare Association from 1996 to 2009. In 2009, he was appointed pastor of Saint Louis Gonzaga Church in Utica, New York. Our honoree this year has served in a wide variety of ministries in the Catholic Church. He has lectured at the Catholic University of America for more than a decade. He has written a commentary on the structures and governance of the Eastern Catholic Churches as well as numerous articles on the Eastern Churches, Eastern canon law, and ecumenism. He has served in the past as consultor of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Conference Liaison Committee for Latin and Eastern Church Affairs. In the field of ecumenism, the recipient of this year's Role of Law Award is currently a member of the Catholic delegation of the Joint Working Group, a liaison body of the Holy See and the World Council of Churches. He also serves on the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation and the United States Oriental Orthodox-Roman Catholic Consultation. He has been deeply involved for many years with the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher. For his work on behalf of Christians in the Holy Land, he was recently awarded the Golden Palm, the highest honor given by the Order. Our honoree has generously served the Canon Law Society of America. He is a past-president of the Society. He currently is the chair of the Research and Development Committee and a member of the Governance Committee and Publications Committee. He has served in the past as chair of the Eastern Law Committee and as Consultor. He was also chair of the ad hoc committee responsible for the preparation of the most recent English translation of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. Tonight we honor a friend, a colleague, an educator, a pastor, and a fellow canonist. He is truly a Catholic who breathes with both lungs of the Church. It my privilege to present the 2011 Role of Law Award, on behalf of the Canon Law Society of America and the Board of Governors, to Chorbishop John D. Faris.

Journey to Jerusalem! Learn about Constantine the Great and the story of how his devout mother, Helena, discovered the Cross of Christ. Walk thru the chapels located on that site. Hear about the hope for healing and freedom that this story teaches us for our lives today. Learn more at PilgrimCenterOfHope.org/Journeys Help us continue to spread hope! PilgrimCenterOfHope.org/Donate

Name The Surah takes its name Ar-Rum from the second verse in which the words ghulibat-ir-Rum have occurred. Period of Revelation The period of the revelation of this Surah is determined absolutely by the historical event that has been mentioned at the outset. It says: "The Romans have been vanquished in the neighboring land."In those days the Byzantine occupied territories adjacent to Arabia were Jordan, Syria and Palestine, and in these territories the Romans were completely overpowered by the Iranians in 615 A. D. Therefore, it can be said with absolute certainty that this Surah was sent down in the same year, and this was the year in which the migration to Habash took place. Historical Background The prediction made in the initial verses of this Surah is one of the most outstanding evidences of the Quran's being the Word of Allah and the Holy Prophet Muhammad's being a true Messenger of Allah. Let us have a look at the historical background relevant to the verses. Eight years before the Holy Prophet's advent as a Prophet the Byzantine Emperor Maurice was overthrown by Phocus, who captured the throne and became king. Phocus first got the Emperor's five sons executed in front of him, and then got the Emperor also killed and hung their heads in a thoroughfare in Constantinople. A few days after this he had the empress and her three daughters also put to death. The event provided Khusrau Parvez, the Sassanid king of Iran; a good moral excuse to attack Byzantium. For Emperor Maurice had been his benefactor; with his help he had got the throne of Iran. Therefore, he declared that he would avenge his godfather's and his children's murder upon Phocus, the usurper. So, he started war against Byzantium in 603 A. D. and within a few years, putting the Phocus armies to rout in succession, he reached Edessa (modern, Urfa) in Asia Minor, on the one hand, and Aleppo and Antioch in Syria, on the other. When the Byzantine ministers saw that Phocus could not save the country, they sought the African governor's help, who sent his son, Heraclius, to Constantinople with a strong fleet. Phocus was immediately deposed and Heraclius made emperor. He treated Phocus as he had treated Maurice. This happened in 610 A. D., the year the Holy Prophet was appointed to Prophethood. The moral excuse for which Khusrau Parvez had started the war was no more valid after the deposition and death of Phocus. Had the object of his war really been to avenge the murder of his ally on Phocus for his cruelty, he would have come to terms with the new Emperor after the death of Phocus. But he continued the war, and gave it the color of a crusade between Zoroastrianism and Christianity. The sympathies of the Christian sects (i. e. Nestorians and Jacobians, etc.) which had been excommunicated by the Roman ecclesiastical authority and tyrannized for years also went with the Magian (Zoroastrian) invaders, and the Jews also joined hands with them; so much so that the number of the Jews who enlisted in Khusrau's army rose up to 26,000. Heraclius could not stop this storm. The very first news that he received from the East after ascending the throne was that of the Iranian occupation of Antioch. After this Damascus fell in 613 A. D. Then in 614 A.D. the Iranians occupying Jerusalem played havoc with the Christian world. Ninety thousand Christians were massacred and the Holy Sepulcher was desecrated. The Original Cross on which, according to the Christian belief, Jesus had died was seized and carried to Mada'in. The chief priest Zacharia was taken prisoner and all the important churches of the city were destroyed. How puffed up was Khusrau Parvez at this victory can be judged from the letter that he wrote to Heraclius from Jerusalem. He wrote: "From Khusrau, the greatest of all gods, the master of the whole world: To Heraclius, his most wretched and most stupid servant: You say that you have trust in your Lord. why didn't then your Lord save Jerusalem from me?...

I have read two different accounts of the letter of the Holy Sepulcher. Can you please comment on your understanding of which devotion is correct?, I’m wondering what your take on justification is? Is our righteousness given to us by Christ’s death?, Was humanity incorporated into the Trinity?, and more on today's episode of Open Line Friday with EWTN VP of Theology Colin Donovan!

World of Darkness > EchoesLicking their wounds after the fight at Holy Sepulcher, the Coterie takes some time off. While some go off to feed, others begin to investigate some odd steps taken by the Detroit Circle of the Crone. It all culminates in the interrogation of their captured neonate friend, and finally coming face to “face” with their enemy.

Rabbi Reuven Chaim Klein joins us to talk about God vs. gods, his wonderful book about idolatry in the development of Torah. (Throughout the episode, we use the Hebrew term for idolatry, avodah zarah, literally, 'foreign worship' or 'alien work'. If you didn't know the term before, you will by the end of the episode.) Is Hinduism idolatry? Is Christianity? Are ideologies idolatries? ... and why the religious and anti-religious might suggest they are and what they get wrong... (Do we need to revisit our take on Social Justice Worshipers? https://holymadness.org/blog/podcast-episodes/social-justice-worshipers-season-1-episode-11/) We discuss the sensual draw of alien worship, worshiping the poop god, and famous places of worship, including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Sistine Chapel, the Western Wall, May poles, and Meron. Tzvi asks a pointed and loaded question about Ultra-Orthodoxy. Meir-Simchah differentiates avodah from Torah, and Torah from religion. Rabbi Reuven discusses how Molech might have survived into modernity, conjectures that living with morality demonstrates freedom from idolatry, and suggests that Christianity and Islam pave the path to ultimate redemption. Some glowing recommendations: Buy Rabbi Reuven's book G-d Versus Gods: Judaism in the Age of Idolatry - https://amzn.to/2ZZ6LWb Buy his first book, Lashon HaKodesh: History, Holiness, & Hebrew (English, Hebrew and Aramaic Edition) https://amzn.to/32142gP And subscribe to his email series illuminating apparent synonyms' deep differences in the Torah: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/whats-in-a-word Subscribe to Holy Madness here, get more at holymadness.org, and follow us on Twitter: @holymadnessshow, and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/holymadness.theshow/. Intro music by bensound.com, outro music written, performed, & mixed by Meir-Simchah.

This episode was originally scheduled to up load a couple of week ago but is as fresh and pertinent as ever. Glenn opines on the emotional effect of the fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris vise a vise the Catholic pedophile scandal and relates his experiences at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem and the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Owen plays Napoleon Hill and Glenn plays the devil in a reading from “Outwitting the Devil.” The Big O explains the difference in the musical notes heard at 444 hertz vs 432 hertz. We meet Dena Lynn’s husband Robin Wengert from their home in Oregon. A fascinating, wide-ranging discussion ensues around the topic of Dena and Robin’s choice to have a monogamous marriage, plus much, much more. It ain’t going to be boring!  NSFW or children. Strong Sexual Content, Language, Intellect, Humor and Condemnation of Religion.  A portion of all proceeds donated to combat human sex slave trafficking.

The Empty Tomb April 21, 2019   When I was in Israel for work a few years ago, I visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (tomb) in Jerusalem. Tradition holds that this church was built over the site of Christ’s crucifixion and the tomb where His body was laid on Good Friday. If tradition is true, this would be the site where Mary and the disciples discovered the empty tomb on Easter morning; the very site of Christ’s resurrection. Whether this is the historical site of Christ’s resurrection or not, millions of people visit this church every year to see the empty tomb and the slab of stone believed to have held Jesus’ lifeless body for three days.   When I entered this church, I was joined by a few thousand of my closest friends. Well, "close" as in physically close. The church was packed with people from all over the world. There was barely any standing room as I was shoulder-to-shoulder with at least four other people at any given time. The crowd pushed and some shoved as they made their way to one of the attractions. The whole scene was incredibly disappointing as I considered my expectations of a solemn experience of my Lord’s resting place. Some people were shouting at friends on the other side of the room, while others were sobbing and emotionally touched by the experience. I thought, “Why am I here?” as I bounced between shoving, shouting, and sobbing “friends” in this hot and sticky crowd.  I knew why I was there; I had wanted to see the empty tomb where Jesus had lain. But as I shuffled about in the crowd, I wondered, why? What about this empty tomb draws so many of us to come and see it? I think all of us are drawn to see the empty tomb in one way or another because we want to understand it, we want to experience the hope and power this tomb experienced. In this Easter Sunday message we visit the empty tomb and find why an empty tomb has such a powerful draw.   -Kap 

Come on a journey with Deacon Tom and Mary Jane Fox to this ancient basilica, shared by many faiths. It encompasses the site of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, anointing, and burial, as well as many other ancient tombs and chapels. Learn more at PilgrimCenterOfHope.org/Journeys

Mass in the Holy Sepulcher!

Mass in the Holy Sepulcher!

The Holy Fire. This show is dedicated to explaining the miracle that happens every Pascha in Jerusalem at the Holy Sepulcher, where the Lord was buried and rose from the dead. A blue light flashes around the Church lighting lamps and candles. Is it a fake or real miracle? Listen to this show and find out.Presented by Dr. Al (Petros) Maeyens Doc. of Div.This show is broadcast live on Monday's at 12PM ET on W4CY Radio – (www.w4cy.com) part of Talk 4 Radio (http://www.talk4radio.com/) on the Talk 4 Media Network (http://www.talk4media.com/).

My guest for this episode is Ambassador Patrick Theros. In March 2000, Ambassador Theros assumed the office of President of the US-Qatar Business Council after a 36-year career in the United States Foreign Service. Ambassador Theros joined the Foreign Service in 1963 and, prior to his appointment as Ambassador to the State of Qatar, served in a variety of positions including Political Advisor to the Commander in Chief Central Command; Deputy Chief of Mission and Political Officer in Amman; and Charge d’affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission in Abu Dhabi; Economic and Commercial Counselor in Damascus. During these periods he earned four Superior Honor Awards. In 1990 he was accorded the personal rank of Minister Counselor. In 1992 he received both the President’s Meritorious Service Award for career officials and the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service. The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem honored Ambassador Theros with the honor of Knight Commander Order of the Holy Sepulcher. In 1999 His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifah Al-Thani awarded Ambassador Theros Qatar’s Order of Merit. Immediately before his appointment to Qatar in 1995, Ambassador Theros served as Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, responsible for the coordination of all U.S. Government counterterrorism activities outside the United States. He speaks Spanish, Arabic and Greek fluently. In addition to his duties as President of the US-Qatar Business Council, Ambassador Theros has the following affiliations: Member of the Board of Directors, Middle East Policy Council (elected 2010) Council of Foreign Relations, Member Representative to USA of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, Arab American Bankers Association of America, Member Washington Institute of Foreign Affairs, Member American Academy of Diplomacy, Member Ambassador Theros was born in 1941 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and attended public schools in Michigan, Ohio and the District of Columbia. He graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in 1963 and has done advanced studies at the American University in Washington, D.C., the Universidad Centroamericana in Managua, Nicaragua, the Armed Forces Staff College at Norfolk, Virginia, and the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.

Name The Surah takes its name Ar-Rum from the second verse in which the words ghulibat-ir-Rum have occurred. Period of Revelation The period of the revelation of this Surah is determined absolutely by the historical event that has been mentioned at the outset. It says: "The Romans have been vanquished in the neighboring land."In those days the Byzantine occupied territories adjacent to Arabia were Jordan, Syria and Palestine, and in these territories the Romans were completely overpowered by the Iranians in 615 A. D. Therefore, it can be said with absolute certainty that this Surah was sent down in the same year, and this was the year in which the migration to Habash took place. Historical Background The prediction made in the initial verses of this Surah is one of the most outstanding evidences of the Quran's being the Word of Allah and the Holy Prophet Muhammad's being a true Messenger of Allah. Let us have a look at the historical background relevant to the verses. Eight years before the Holy Prophet's advent as a Prophet the Byzantine Emperor Maurice was overthrown by Phocus, who captured the throne and became king. Phocus first got the Emperor's five sons executed in front of him, and then got the Emperor also killed and hung their heads in a thoroughfare in Constantinople. A few days after this he had the empress and her three daughters also put to death. The event provided Khusrau Parvez, the Sassanid king of Iran; a good moral excuse to attack Byzantium. For Emperor Maurice had been his benefactor; with his help he had got the throne of Iran. Therefore, he declared that he would avenge his godfather's and his children's murder upon Phocus, the usurper. So, he started war against Byzantium in 603 A. D. and within a few years, putting the Phocus armies to rout in succession, he reached Edessa (modern, Urfa) in Asia Minor, on the one hand, and Aleppo and Antioch in Syria, on the other. When the Byzantine ministers saw that Phocus could not save the country, they sought the African governor's help, who sent his son, Heraclius, to Constantinople with a strong fleet. Phocus was immediately deposed and Heraclius made emperor. He treated Phocus as he had treated Maurice. This happened in 610 A. D., the year the Holy Prophet was appointed to Prophethood. The moral excuse for which Khusrau Parvez had started the war was no more valid after the deposition and death of Phocus. Had the object of his war really been to avenge the murder of his ally on Phocus for his cruelty, he would have come to terms with the new Emperor after the death of Phocus. But he continued the war, and gave it the color of a crusade between Zoroastrianism and Christianity. The sympathies of the Christian sects (i. e. Nestorians and Jacobians, etc.) which had been excommunicated by the Roman ecclesiastical authority and tyrannized for years also went with the Magian (Zoroastrian) invaders, and the Jews also joined hands with them; so much so that the number of the Jews who enlisted in Khusrau's army rose up to 26,000. Heraclius could not stop this storm. The very first news that he received from the East after ascending the throne was that of the Iranian occupation of Antioch. After this Damascus fell in 613 A. D. Then in 614 A.D. the Iranians occupying Jerusalem played havoc with the Christian world. Ninety thousand Christians were massacred and the Holy Sepulcher was desecrated. The Original Cross on which, according to the Christian belief, Jesus had died was seized and carried to Mada'in. The chief priest Zacharia was taken prisoner and all the important churches of the city were destroyed. How puffed up was Khusrau Parvez at this victory can be judged from the letter that he wrote to Heraclius from Jerusalem. He wrote: "From Khusrau, the greatest of all gods, the master of the whole world: To Heraclius, his most wretched and most stupid servant: You say that you have trust in your Lord. why didn't then your Lord save Jerusalem from me?" Within a year after this victory the Iranian armies over-ran Jordan, Palestine and the whole of the Sinai Peninsula, and reached the frontiers of Egypt. In those very days another conflict of a far greater historical consequence was going on in Makkah. The believers in One God, under the leadership of the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah's peace be upon him), were fighting for their existence against the followers of shirk under the command of the chiefs of the Quraish, and the conflict had reached such a stage that in 615 A. D., a substantial number of the Muslims had to leave their homes and take refuge with the Christian kingdom of Habash, which was an ally of the Byzantine Empire. In those days the Sassanid victories against Byzantium were the talk of the town, and the pagans of Makkah were delighted and were taunting the Muslims to the effect: "Look the fire worshipers of Iran are winning victories and the Christian believers in Revelation and Prophethood are being routed everywhere. Likewise, we, the idol worshipers of Arabia, will exterminate you and your religion." These were the conditions when this Surah of the Quran was sent down, and in it a prediction was made, saying:"The Romans have been vanquished in the neighboring land and within a few years after their defeat, they shall be victorious. And it will be the day when the believers will rejoice in the victory granted by Allah." It contained not one but two predictions: First, the Romans shall be victorious; and second, the Muslims also shall win a victory at the same time. Apparently, there was not a remote chance of the fulfillment of the either prediction in the next few years. On the one hand, there were a handful of the Muslims, who were being beaten and tortured in Makkah, and even till eight years after this prediction there appeared no chance of their victory and domination. On the other, the Romans were losing more and more ground every next day. By 619 A. D. the whole of Egypt had passed into Sassanid hands and the Magian armies had reached as far as Tripoli. In Asia Minor they beat and pushed back the Romans to Bosporus, and in 617 A. D. they captured Chalcedon (modern, Kadikoy) just opposite Constantinople. The Emperor sent an envoy to Khusrau, praying that he was ready to have peace on any terms, but he replied, "I shall not give protection to the emperor until he is brought in chains before me and gives up obedience to his crucified god and adopts submission to the fire god." At last, the Emperor became so depressed by defeat that he decided to leave Constantinople and shift to Carthage (modern, Tunis). In short, as the British historian Gibbon says, even seven to eight years after this prediction of the Quran, the conditions were such that no one could even imagine that the Byzantine Empire would ever gain an upper hand over Iran. Not to speak of gaining domination, no one could hope that the Empire, under the circumstances, would even survive. bid`i sinin, and the word bid` in Arabic applies to a number upto ten. Therefore, make the bet for ten years and increase the number of camels to a hundred." So, Hadrat Abu Bakr spoke to Ubayy again and bet a hundred camels for ten years. In 622 A. D. as the Holy Prophet migrated to Madinah, the Emperor Heraclius set off quietly for Trabzon from Constantinople via the Black Sea and started preparations to attack Iran from rear. For this he asked the Church for money, and Pope Sergius lent him the Church collections on interest, in a bid to save Christianity from Zoroastrianism. Heraclius started his counter attack in 623 A. D. from Armenia. Next year, in 624 A. D., he entered Azerbaijan and destroyed Clorumia, the birthplace of Zoroaster, and ravaged the principal fire temple of Iran. Great are the powers of Allah, this was the very year when the Muslims achieved a decisive victory at Badr for the first time against the mushriks. Thus both the predictions made in Surah Rum were fulfilled simultaneously within the stipulated period of ten years. The Byzantine forces continued to press the Iranians hard and in the decisive battle at Nineveh (627 A.D.) they dealt them the hardest blow. They captured the royal residence of Dastagerd, and then pressing forward reached right opposite to Ctesiphon, capital of Iran in those days. In 628 A. D. in an internal revolt, Khusrau Parvez was imprisoned and 18 of his sons were executed in front of him and a few days later he himself died in the prison. This was the year when the peace treaty of Hudaibiya was concluded, which the Quran has termed as "the supreme victory", and in this very year Khusrau's son, Qubad II, gave up all the occupied Roman territories, restored the True Cross and made peace with Byzantium. In 628 A. D., the Emperor himself went to Jerusalem to install the "Holy Cross" in its place, and in the same year the Holy Prophet entered Makkah for the first time after the Hijrah to perform the `Umra-tul-Qada'. After this no one could have any doubt about the truth of the prophecy of the Quran, with the result that most of the Arab polytheists accepted Islam. The heirs of Ubayy bin Khalaf lost their bet and had to give a hundred camels to Hadrat Abu Bakr Siddiq. He took them before the Holy Prophet, who ordered that they be given away in charity, because the bet had been made at a time when gambling had not yet been forbidden by the Shari`ah ; now it was forbidden. Therefore, the bet was allowed to be accepted from the belligerent disbelievers, but instruction given that it should be given away in charity and should not be brought in personal use. Theme and Subject matter The discourse begins with the theme that the Romans have been overcome and the people the world over think that the empire is about to collapse, but the fact is that within a few years the tables will be turned and the vanquished will again become victorious. This introductory theme contains the great truth that man is accustomed to seeing only what is apparent and superficial. That which is behind the apparent and superficial he does not know. When in the petty matters of life, this habit to see only the apparent and superficial can lead man to misunderstandings and miscalculations, and when he is liable to make wrong estimates only due to lack of knowledge about "what will happen tomorrow", how stupendous will be his error if he risks his whole life-activity by placing reliance only upon what is visible and apparent with respect to his worldly life as a whole. In this connection, the Signs of the universe which have been presented as evidence to prove the doctrine of the Hereafter arc precisely the same which support the doctrine of Tauhid. Therefore from verse 28 onward, the discourse turns to the affirmation of Tauhid and the refutation of shirk, and it is stressed that the natural way of life for man is none else but to serve One God exclusively. Shirk is opposed to the nature of the universe as to the nature of man. Therefore, whenever man has adopted this deviation, chaos has resulted. Again here, an allusion has been made to the great chaos that had gripped the world on account of the war between the two major powers of the time, and it has been indicated that this chaos too, is the result of shirk, and all the nations who were ever involved in mischief and chaos in the history of mankind were also mushriks. In conclusion, a parable has been presented to make the people understand that just as dead earth comes to life, all of a sudden, by a shower of rain sent by God and swells with vegetation and plant life, so is the case with the dead humanity. When God sends a shower of His mercy in the form of Revelation and Prophethood, it also gives a new life to mankind and causes it to grow and develop and flourish. Therefore: "If you take full advantage of this opportunity, the barren land of Arabia will bloom by Allah's mercy and the whole advantage will be your. But if you do not take advantage of it, you will harm only your selves. Then no regret will avail and no opportunity will be provided to make amends." Source: Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi - Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Quran

War, the Holy Sepulcher, and the rosary have one intriguing common connection: the crusades. This hot-topic issue has garnered significant attention for the Church throughout the course of history, but the primary motivation for the crusades was mainly spiritual, opposite of what common myths imply. Tune into this Catholic Bytes episode to hear Fr. Conrad Murphy continue the history of Islam intertwined with the Catholic faith.

Following his visit to the Holy Land, Fr. Lawrence Farley offers some of his impressions of the Holy Sepulchre.

Next Step #205: Obama evolves on homosexual marriages while others evolve on the genocide recognition. Gay and Lesbian Marriages and the Armodoxy Response; "Chapter" books have the answer. More on Mary Madelyn's status update from the Holy Sepulcher. Armodoxy surfaces.Song: "Sevani Tzugnors Baru" - 1970 Personal RecordingAni's Bubbles: Touchstone Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for epostle.netLook for The Next Step on blubrry.com

Today's guest(s): Gregory Tracy, managing editor of The Pilot, the newspaper of the Boston archdiocese Links from today's show: Some of the stories discussed on this show will be available on The Pilot's and The Anchor's websites on Friday morning. Please check those sites for the latest links. Today's topics: Lent begins; fasting; new cardinals; Catholic Press Month; local news Summary of today's show: Scot Landry and Susan Abbott sit with Greg Tracy during Thursday's news roundup while Fr. Roger Landry flies to the Holy Land. The beginning of Lent is the big story of the week, including free fasting bread from a local baker, as well as the consistory that created 22 new cardinals, including two from the US; Msgr. James Moroney's new column on the Mass prayers for Lent; a behind-the-scenes look at how The Anchor comes together each week; and more local news. 1st segment: Scot welcomed Susan to the show on the second day of Lent. Scot said Susan is preparing for the Catechetical Congress on March 24 at Boston College High School. They have a couple dozen workshops planned in English plus more in Spanish and Portuguese. There will be hundreds of attendees. Scot said today is Fr. Roger Landry's birthday and thus Susan said it is also Scot's birthday. Scot said Fr. Roger is leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and Scot's wife and son are on the trip along with Scot and Fr. Roger's parents. They left for the Holy Land today. Scot said Fr. Edward O'Flaherty, the director of the office for ecumenical affairs, died this week. He and Susan worked very closely over the past 10 years. Scot said he'd been sick for several months. 2nd segment: Scot and Susan welcome Greg to the show today. Scot said the big news this week is the beginning of Lent. They discussed their Lenten resolutions. Greg said he is giving up fresh-baked bread for Lent. In his house, they have fresh bread four or five days a week in his house. Susan said she gave up Diet Coke for Lent last year and never went back to it. She went from 32 ounces per day to one or two cans per week. Scot said the Pilot has a front-page story on Andy LaVallee of LaVallee's Bakery Distributors, who we had on The Good Catholic Life, going more in-depth on the fasting breads that his company is providing free of charge this Lent. These are breads that are all-natural and more nutritious so that people don't become more hungry while fasting. Most breads make you more hungry, making fasting more difficult, whereas these breads satisfy. It's a great story of a Catholic businessman seeing some aspect of the faith and taking it to the next level, using his business to help people live their faith. Scot then discussed Pope Benedict's remarks on Ash Wednesday about Lent being tied to Jesus' 40 days in the desert and Israel's 40 years in the desert. Susan recalled the Gospel passage in which the angels ministered to Jesus at the end of the temptations in the desert and the Holy Father says the angels are there to minister to us as well. New in the Pilot is a column by Msgr. James Moroney, who will be rector of St. John Seminary in July, in which he writes about the new prayers of the Liturgy. This week is the opening prayer for the First Sunday of Lent. Greg said Msgr. Thomas McDonald used to do a similar column some years ago, until he passed away. They hope to do this during Lent and Advent. Scot said he's heard priests say that they are glad that the new prayers bring back the treasures of the Liturgy that we haven't had for so long. Grant, almighty God, through the yearly observances of holy Lent, that we may grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ and by worthy conduct pursue their effects Susan quoted from the column: The observances of holy Lent are just such outward signs: for when I fast from food and from vengeance and from anger and from hate, I grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ: Christ who graciously showers me with mercy and peace and love. The observances of holy Lent are outward signs. When I go to the Stations of the Cross on Friday night, or to confession on Saturday afternoon, when I pray an extra fifteen minutes at the end of each day, I grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ: Christ who fills my heart with his hope and strength and a clear vision of his love for me. 3rd segment: Scot said last Saturday Pope Benedict XVI made 22 new cardinals, including two from the United States and one from Canada. They discussed why the Catholic News Service lumps together Canadian and American news, i.e. “The Pope created three cardinals from the US and Canada.” Greg said Catholic News Service is also used in many Canadian Catholic newspapers so they have tried to broaden their coverage. Scot said much of the coverage focused on Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York. In a great honor for Cardinal Dolan, he was asked to give a keynote address to all of the cardinals of the world the day before the consistory. A lot of the secular press asked whether that made Cardinal Dolan high on the list as papabile. He told a reporter that what he really aspires to is becoming a saint. “As grateful as I am for being a cardinal,” he told reporters later, “I really want to be a saint. I mean that, but I have a long way to go.” Susan noted that both Cardinal Dolan and Cardinal Edwin O'Brien, grandmaster of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem and former archbishop of Baltimore, stressed in their remarks that this is not a personal honor, but a call to greater service to the Church. Scot said the Holy Father told the cardinals that they also have to be prepared for martyrdom, giving their lives for the faith. 4th segment: Scot said the Anchor this week celebrates Catholic Press Month by providing a front-page story about how the newspaper is produced behind the scenes. It shows how much work goes into making a 24-page paper every week. Susan said when she was in college she worked as a copy editor at the Boston Globe on weekends and find it hasn't changed much since then. Greg found it enlightening to see how others do the same work and to see how similar their work is. Scot said the Anchor goes to press on Tuesday afternoon and they get started on the next week's paper the next day. Greg said the Pilot goes to press on Wednesday between 5 and 6pm and drops in the mail by 10 or 11am on Thursday so it arrives in parishes on Saturday. He said Wednesdays are difficult days. Putting the paper together is like fitting pieces of a puzzle and by Wednesday you have to start fitting things in every little space. Scot said about 1/3 of the paper is local news, 1/3 is advertising, and about 1/3 comes from Catholic news services. Greg added that the number of pages of the newspaper comes from the amount of advertising, which leaves you the “news hole” to fill. He said local content comes from news stories and opinion pieces and columns. They are often asked to give more local content, but they also have a mission to help the people in the archdiocese get exposed to Catholic news beyond the borders of the Archdiocese. A recent study shows that the only Catholic publication that most Catholics see is their diocesan newspaper. The panel discussed the life and death and service of Fr. William Burckhart. Greg noted an anecdote that Fr. Burckhart and his sister were the impetus behind the change in Massachusetts from handicapped license plates to handicapped placards, which allows the person to park in a handicapped space whatever car they are in. Scot mentioned the announcement of new appointments of two pastors. Fr. Edward Doughty will become Pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Medford, effective March 1, and Fr. Mark Ballard will become Pastor of St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish in Melrose. Also in the Anchor this week is a profile of the “Catholicism” TV and DVD series by Fr. Robert Barron, which Scot called the greatest long form presentation of the faith in broadcast media.

Baltimore Archbishop Edwin O'Brien discusses the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty recently signed by the U.S. and Russia; Rome Report: Vatican endorses University of Maryland stem cell research project; Pro Life Commentary: Richard Doerflinger on the aftermath of the health care bill; Fact of Faith: Church of the Holy Sepulcher; Fr. David Toups discusses a new web site about vocations to the priesthood and religious life; CNS Spotlight-Christian Legal Society vs. Martinez; Movie Review: "Furry Vengeance."

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The Amateur Traveler talks again to Douglas Duckett the author of a popular free travel guide to Israel. This time we talked to Douglass about traveling to the holy city, Jerusalem. We step back and look at Jerusalem through the eyes of the three major faiths for which it is a significant location: Christianity, Islam and Judaism. We look at significant sites for all three religions such as the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Al-Aqsa Mosque mosque, the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall. We talk about surprises that are continually being uncovered in Jerusalem like Hezikaih’s tunnel, Robinson’s Arch and Burnt House. And in the process we talk about the practical considerations for visiting this amazing city.

The Amateur Traveler talks again to Douglas Duckett the author of a popular free travel guide to Israel. This time we talked to Douglass about traveling to the holy city, Jerusalem. We step back and look at Jerusalem through the eyes of the three major faiths for which it is a significant location: Christianity, Islam and Judaism. We look at significant sites for all three religions such as the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Al-Aqsa Mosque mosque, the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall. We talk about surprises that are continually being uncovered in Jerusalem like Hezikaih’s tunnel, Robinson’s Arch and Burnt House. And in the process we talk about the practical considerations for visiting this amazing city.

The Amateur Traveler talks again to Douglas Duckett the author of a popular free travel guide to Israel. This time we talked to Douglass about traveling to the holy city, Jerusalem. We step back and look at Jerusalem through the eyes of the three major faiths for which it is a significant location: Christianity, Islam and Judaism. We look at significant sites for all three religions such as the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Al-Aqsa Mosque mosque, the Dome of the Rock and the Western Wall. We talk about surprises that are continually being uncovered in Jerusalem like Hezikaih’s tunnel, Robinson’s Arch and Burnt House. And in the process we talk about the practical considerations for visiting this amazing city.

In our first installment in our series, we talked about the mission of the church and how God has given to the church its precious message-the good news of Jesus Christ. God was in the world reconciling Himself to men through the cross. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5 (page 1144 of pew Bibles) that He has given to us the church, the ministry of reconciliation. We are ambassadors for Christ, making an appeal to the world to be reconciled to God. The Bible also says theres an enemy. God has an enemy; the church has an enemy who is named Satan, and he desires to thwart that mission. Paul says in the Book of 2 Corinthians 2:11 (page 1143 of pew Bibles), the church is not to be ignorant of his schemes or ignorant of his devices. How does he work? How does he operate? His method of operation has not changed since the beginning. It has not changed since the Garden of Eden. The first thing that Satan will do is he will attack the truth. Paul says of first importance, in 1 Corinthians 15:3 (page 1139), …I delivered unto you of first importance: that Jesus was crucified for our sins according to the Scripture, that He was buried and that He rose again on the third day. That is of first importance to the church. That is our mission: to protect, to defend, to communicate and share with the world that important news of Gods hope-of our hope, of salvation through Christ. So, where does Satan attack first? Satan will attack the truth of the Gospel. Satan will attack the integrity of the Gospel. He will seek to pervert it; to distort it; to dilute it, but he attacks the truth. When he attacks the truth, that leads to a breakdown in unity. We become divided or fragmented as the body of Christ. When that happens, we are not as effective as we could be because we are a divided people. Our energies are not channeled in the same direction. I read an article recently about a man who found a large amount of money hidden inside a wall. When he tore down the wall in the bathroom of a church, there inside the wall were these two medal cases filled with envelopes of money from the Depression Era. We all have fantasies of finding something like that, right? Wouldnt that be fun if you were renovating a house and found almost $200,000 in currency, in cash? Wow! [He said], So, what can I do? I can keep it to myself, which wouldnt be moral, thought the man, or I can share with the owner of the house this good news of the money I found. She was about ready to declare bankruptcy, so she was ecstatic. I saw a picture of them in happier times around their hoard, holding up the money with big smiles on their faces. They had all the dreams of the things they were going to buy and the things they were going to do with all of that money. The relationship soured when he said, I think Im entitled to some of this since I found it. You wouldnt know about it if not for me. She said, Well, I think you can have 10 percent. He was offended by that and wanted much more. She was offended by that, Hes greedy. So their relationship broke down, and it made the newspapers. When it made the newspapers, the heirs of the original homeowner, the man who put the money in the wall, heard about it and hired a lawyer. They sued those two and won. The remodeler and the woman who now owned the house got a pittance. The lawyer for the family said, You know, if they would have just worked out their differences, they would have split these thousands and thousands of dollars; and the family would not have known. When unity broke down, of course, problems began to ensue. When we break down as brothers and sisters in Christ, when Christians are fighting amongst themselves or denominations are fighting amongst ourselves, we lose our effectiveness. Thirdly then, love is damaged. The first thing that Satan does is he distorts the truth. He attacks the Gospel. We see that, the rise of Gnosticism, in movies like the Da Vinci Code-where they are trying to attack the integrity, the purity of the Gospel message. Thats where he attacks first and foremost. If the church does not rise up and defend that, then what happens is unity breaks down. When unity is destroyed, love is displaced. He seeks to get us to love our structures, our denominations, our buildings, our programs, our systems more than we love God, more than we love one another and more than we love the message that has been entrusted to us. He gets us to diminish in our love, and that is to be our witness to the world. They will know you are My Disciples, and that you love one another, said Christ. We saw that in the media this morning. When the truth was distorted, that distortion was adhered to and believed, unity broke down, and love was diminished. We see the same thing happen in relationships, and we can see the same thing happen in the church from time to time. You and I have all heard stories like that. Were going to take a look in the Bible and see what happened when Satan attacked the church. There was a region in which he got a foothold in. There was a region that we read about in which he attacked the truth, and the domino effect took place. Unity was damaged, and love was diminished amongst those believers; and there are lessons we can learn from them. Lets open our Bibles up to the Book of Galatians 1 (page 1151 of pew Bibles). I want to first of all draw your attention to the uniqueness of this book. If you look at Verse 2, [youll see] what Paul says to the churches in Galatia. Youll notice that in the other epistles that he writes, he writes it either to a person as in the Pastoral Epistles, or he writes it to a specific church: the church in Rome, the church in Corinth, or the church in Ephesus. Here he writes to a group of churches in Asia Minor, which is now Turkey, that he visited on his first missionary journey. Among them are Iconia, Lystra and Derbe. All these cities represent this Roman providence called Galatia. He writes to this region because this region had come under a satanic attack. The mission of the church-the all important mission of communicating the Gospel-was under attack. Were going to see that domino effect that I talked about happen, and were going to see how Paul counter-attacks the enemy. Before we begin reading, let me tell you a little bit about whats going on. There are a group of men that history now looks back on and calls Judaisers. The Judaisers were men who were always going around stirring up trouble for Paul. When Paul would preach, they would come around, and they would say, Oh, hes against the law of Moses. Theyd stir the crowd up against Paul. Recall that happening: the riots and troubles that followed Paul because of them? The Judaisers taught that its not just enough to believe in Jesus. You have to believe in Jesus and practice the law. Men, if youre going to convert to Christianity, you Gentiles, you Greeks out here, you need to become circumcised as a sign of the covenant. You need to follow these laws, these principles, of the Mosaic Law. It is Christ plus the law, Christ plus the works of the law, that justify you before God. So, in essence, the Gospel becomes this innocuous thing. Its just added to this list of requirements. Its simply another requirement to add. It is the Jesus plus theology. Paul sees this as an extreme threat to the church. It still is a threat to the church. The essence of that said, that Christs atonement was not enough… When Jesus said on the cross, It is finished, bowed his head and gave up His spirit, the debt was not paid. You have to add to what Christ has already done. You have to add through your righteous works of the law. They shared this with the Galatian churches, and they believed it. Now, Paul is writing, and he is angry at the men who have perpetrated this perversion of the Gospel. He has grieved because he taught them better. When you see your children do something contrary to what you taught them, youre grieved. You might say to them, I taught you better than this. You know better than that. Thats what is happening here. Paul is reprimanding them. They should have known better. Chapter 1:6 (page 1151), he says, I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the One who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel… The word different is heteros. Youve all heard of the word hetero. It means of another kind. Youve turned to another gospel… This is not the same Gospel I taught you. When you add Christ to the old covenant, this is not what I taught you. …which is no gospel at all. The word Gospel means good news. It means saying, Listen, if you have to be justified by the works of the law, that is not good news. If nothing has changed but we simply added Christ, and you still have to rely upon your righteous works to be right with God, thats not good news, and its not the Gospel that was delivered to you. I want you to notice how Paul uses the strongest words he can possibly use to communicate with the churches. Thats because so much is at stake. This is not a minor difference of opinion. This is not a peripheral, doctrinal matter. This is the core of the Gospel that is under attack. He is perverting the truth of the Gospel, and Paul says, We must rise to defend that. [Verse 7], …Evidently, some people are throwing you into confusion or trying to pervert the Gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from Heaven… Wow! …should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! Anathema-cursed, cut off from God. If an angel comes to you in glowing robes and speaks to you in an angelic, heavenly, majestic voice and tells you a different gospel, let him be cursed. [Verse 9], As I have already said and now say again: if anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! How strong of words could Paul have used here? [There is] nothing stronger than the word he used. They had believed a lie. They had bought in to this perversion of the gospel. As a result, disunity had taken hold in the Church of Christ because thats what happens. When truth is attacked and a lie is believed, disunity is the result. Even good people can be led astray. Thats why its so important in churches, and our elders and our ministerial staff and all of us-all of us from the youngest to the oldest-from those who have been Christians for a short period of time to those who have been Christians their entire lives-guard the truth of the Gospel. In Chapter 2:11 (page 1152), were going to read about a confrontation or a conflict between the Apostle Paul and the Apostle Peter. Judaisers are going to come into the group that is meeting, and Peter is going to withdraw from the Gentile Christians. Verse 11 says, When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. Before certain men from James… That means from Jerusalem. Its not at all saying that James believes or aligns himself with the Judaisers; he simply wants us to identify that these men had come from Jerusalem where James was the head of the church. …he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. The Judaisers. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. A wonderful man of God. When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all… I made Peter an example. ‘…You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile… You live under the new covenant. You dont follow the law anymore. …‘and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? Why do you seem not to be aligning yourself with the party of the circumcision? Gentiles are hurt, and that was part of it. Paul is coming to their defense. Imagine youre in junior high, and you are a nerd. Youre a dweeb. A cool kid comes and sits by you in the lunchroom. Youre like, Wow! Ive arrived. A cool kid is eating with me. I matter! Into the lunchroom comes a bigger group of cool kids. Immediately, they realize they are with a nerd, so they stand up and leave you alone and go and sit with the cool kids. Aw, I wasnt really sitting with that guy. He had to help me with my homework. Then youre embarrassed and ashamed. Thats what they feel like. Peter and others immediately withdraw from them and head over and associate with the Judaisers. The Judaisers are bullies. They were intimidators. They had some power and clout. There is peer pressure that is taking place here, and Peter, sadly, lets us down; but a bigger picture is what is at stake. You can see unity begin to break down. Unity was breaking down in the church-churches in this region. Peter is going to stress to them the importance of oneness and unity in Christ. As Satan seeks to destroy unity, the church must display unity-unity in the midst of our diversity. In Chapter 3:26 (page 1153), Paul writes, You are the sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. These divisions have to seize. These barriers have to be brought down. We are one in Christ. We are a body of believers. The same Spirit we are baptized into is in all of us. The same Gospel ties us together and unifies us. The Gospel, the truth of the Gospel, is our unity. Thats why when the Gospel is attacked and that distortion is believed, unity breaks down because it is that unity which ties us together as brothers and sisters in Christ. That unity should be seen by the world. Sometimes its not. Sometimes what the world sees from Christians is our infighting, squabbling and bickering as we parse verbs. Im not talking about the core of the Gospel. Im not talking about the 1 Corinthians 15:3 (page 1139), the Lord Jesus, the deity of Christ, the atonement on the cross, the resurrection. Im not talking about that. Im talking about other matters that divide Christians. Augustine said, In the essentials, unity; in the non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, love. What do we communicate to the world when we squabble and fight and cant get along as Christians? I heard about a man who wanted to end his life. This is an illustration; this is not true. He walked on top of a bridge; he looked at the raging waters below; and he said, All I have to do is jump off, and Ill end my life. A passerby came and saw the man ready to jump. He said, Dont do it! Dont do it! The man said, Why should I live? Thinking quickly, he said, Do you believe in God? Well, yes, I believe in God. Well, see, thats a reason. You believe in God. Now, Im just curious, do you believe in the Christian God, the Muslim god or….where are you coming from here? He said, Oh, Im a Christian. Oh, good. Im a Christian too. Now are you a Protestant or a Catholic? He said, Well, Im a Protestant. Oh, yeah, me too. Im a Protestant too. Now are you Episcopalian or a Baptist, Assembly of God or Presbyterian, Methodist? He tells him what denomination he is and says, I am too. Thats the denomination I am. Thats really cool! So are you like pre-trib or post-trib? Me too! Im pretrib. Now, in our denomination, we revitalized our bylaws. Are you from the 1936 convention or the 1954 revised convention? Oh, Im of the 1954 revised convention. Then he pushed him off the bridge and said, Die heretic! The message Im trying to convey to you: in the Gospel, if we are in agreement on the essentials, you are my brother and my sister, regardless of your denomination. You are my brother and sister in Christ regardless of some of the differences we have in those peripheral matters. One of the things I love about our church is we come from all different backgrounds, all different denominations and theologies, and we love each other. We love each other, and that always has gotten me excited to think about because unity, when it is displayed, is a powerful manifestation of the presence of God in the church. Some of us were moved by the story of genocide in Rwanda in 1994. The civil war there between the Hutus and the Tutsis-and Im not going to get into that; you can look that up. Thats why God made Wikipedia. If you have any questions about that, you can study it for yourself. There were some Tutsi warriors who wanted to kill the Hutus in a region. They went into the church with guns, and they told the pastor, We demand you to tell us who are the Tutsis and who are the Hutus in your congregation. The pastor said, We have no Tutsis and Hutus here, only Christians. He said, I need to know! I must know! You tell me now who the Hutus are in your congregation! He said, We are Christians here. There are no Tutsis. There are no Hutus in this body. We all belong to Jesus Christ. He said, I have orders to kill the Hutus in this church. If you value your life, you will tell me who in your church is a Hutu. The pastor understanding what was on the line stared the man in the face, and he said, There are no Hutus and Tutsis in this church. We are all Christians here. The men with the guns then broke their way into the church and killed every single Christian. We are going to live together, or were going to die together. We are not Hutus or Tutsis. We belong to Christ. Friends, I dont know what your political persuasion is; I dont know what your theological background is; I dont know what union or non-union you belong to, but the highest bond we have is the bond that we have in Jesus Christ. That is our greatest loyalty: the blood of Christ which has taken away our sin. The grace of Christ that has forgiven us our sins is what binds us together as brothers and sisters. When the unity is present, it is a powerful witness to the world that God is among us. We said the third thing that happens is when the truth is distorted; thats how the enemy attacks, distorts and perverts the truth. The church is called to defend the truth, and Paul defended the truth of the Gospel-the churches in Galatia. We said the second thing that happens, the second domino that falls, is unity is destroyed; so Paul encourages the churches to display unity. The third domino that falls is when love is displaced. People start to love the wrong things, to love themselves and their mission or their cause, rather than the cause of Christ or the mission of the church. So Paul is going to encourage the churches of Galatia to demonstrate love. In Galatians 5:5 (page 1154), Paul says hes going to try to put them on the right track here, But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts… How many things count? The only thing that counts-this one thing. …is faith expressing itself through love? You are running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? What kind of persuasion? That kind of persuasion does not come from the One who calls you. ‘A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough. I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves! If theyre going to go around saying they had to circumcise the Greeks, why dont they just go all the way and castrate themselves? Tell us how you really feel about this issue, Paul. I understand when Paul says, I am serious about defending the purity of the Gospel. When somebody attacks the purity of the Gospel, the church has to be serious about that and in defending that. It says, You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge in the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. How many of you know of churches that have allowed this kind of disunity to happen in the body and ended up devouring each other and causing the church to split? Let me see your hand if you know churches like that? That's sad, isnt it? Isnt that just pitiful sad? That happened in this church. They werent loving each other. They werent demonstrating love. They were fighting amongst themselves. Thats what happens when we depart from the truth-when the truth is not protected. I see its time for me to be quiet, but I want to just share one more illustration with you. In the Holy Land, the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, supposedly the burial place of Christ-on top of that, above that, on the ground there is a monastery, a chapel. Theres a big debate over who owns the rights to that property between the Coptic or the Egyptian Christians and the Ethiopian Christians. They have guards up there. They have a priest up there at the top of the chapel from the Coptic Church and one from the Ethiopian Church. One time, the Ethiopian priest was too hot in the sun, so he moved his chair toward the shade and got too close to the Coptic side. A big fist fight broke out. Christians from either side came up and began to fight. The police were called, and people were hospitalized because of this. There was a ladder that was put up there to repair something that has never been brought down because they cant agree on who has authority to take the ladder down. There was a needed fire exit that Israel wanted to put in the building in case there was a fire, but the Coptics and the Ethiopians cannot decide where the exit should go. More importantly, there are repairs that need to be done. There are people who are afraid that structurally if these repairs are not done, this building could collapse-not only destroying the chapel, but possibly causing damage to the church of the Holy Sepulcher, including the loss of life. Israel says, We will do these repairs for you, but we first have to know who were working with. Who is in charge? They, of course, cannot agree. So this chapel that they claim to love so much, in order to be right-in order for their cause to win-they are willing to let the building collapse under their feet and be destroyed. Its a sad thing when we put our agendas, our structures and our systems over the unity that is in Christ. What does that say to the non-Christians in Jerusalem when these two groups of people who both claim to love the Lord Jesus Christ are fighting like children over territory of a place that is so holy? Its sad! Its sad when it happens there; its sad when it happens in the churches of Galatia; its sad when it happens here. Augustine said, In the essentials, unity; the non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, love. Might we follow that creed today.

This episode of Communio Sanctorum is titled, “Liturgy.”What comes to mind when you hear that word – “Liturgy.”Most likely—it brings up various associations for different people. Some find great comfort in what the word connotes because it recalls a time in their life of close connection to God. Others think of empty rituals that obscure, rather than bring closer a sense of the sacred.The following is by no means meant as a comprehensive study of Christian liturgy. Far from it. That would take hours. This is just a thumbnail sketch of the genesis of some of the liturgical traditions of the Church.First off, using a broad-brush the word ‘liturgy' refers to the order and parts of a service held in a church. Even though most non-denominational, Evangelical churches like the one I'm a part of doesn't call our order of service on a Sunday morning a “liturgy” – that's in fact what it is. Technically, the word “Liturgy” means “service.”  But it's come to refer to all the various parts of a church service, that is, when a local church community gathers for worship. It includes the order the various events occur, how they're conducted, what scripts are recited, what music is used, which rituals are performed, even what physical objects are employed to conduct them; things like special clothes, furniture, & implements.Even within the same church, there may be different liturgies for different events and seasons of the year.For convenience sake, churches tend to get put into 2 broad categories; liturgical & non-liturgical. Liturgical churches are often also called “high-church” meaning they have a set tradition for the order of the service that includes special vestments for priests & officiants; and follow a pattern for their service that's been conducted the same way for many years. Certain portions of the Bible are read, then a reading from another treasured tome of that denomination, people sit, stand and kneel at designated times, and clergy follows a set route through the sanctuary.In a non-liturgical church, while they may follow a regular order of service, there's little of the formalism and ritual used in a high-church service. In many liturgical churches, the message a pastor or priest is to share each week is spelled out by the denominational hierarchy in a manual sent out annually. In a non-liturgical church, the pastor is typically free to pick what he wants to speak on.The great liturgies arose in the 4th to 6th Cs then codified in the 6th & 7th. They were much more elaborate than the order of service practiced in the churches of the 2nd & 3rd Cs.Several factors led to the creation of liturgies àFirst: There's a tendency to settle on a standard way to say things when it comes to the beliefs & practices of a group. When someone states something well, or does something in an impressive way, it tends to get repeated.Second: Bishops & elders tended to take what they learned in one place and transplanted it wherever they went.Third: A written liturgy made the services more orderly.Fourth: The desire to hold on to what was thought to be passed down by the Apostles became a priority. This worked against any desire for change.Fifth: A devotion to orthodoxy, combined for a concern about heresy tended to sanctify what was old and opposed innovation. Changes in a liturgy sparked controversy.The main liturgies that emerged during the 5th & 6th Cs bear similarities in structure & theme; even in wording, while also having distinct features.The main liturgical traditions can be listed as . . .In the EastThe Alexandrian or sometimes called Egyptian liturgies.The West Syrian family includes the Jerusalem, Clementine, & Constantinoplitan liturgies.The East Syrian family includes the liturgies that were used in the Nestorian churches of the East.In the West, the principal liturgical families were Roman, Gallican, Ambrosian, Mozarbic & Celtic.As we saw in Epsidoe 41, Pope Gregory the Great in the 7th C embellished the liturgy & ritual practiced in the Western Roman Church. Elaborate rituals were already a long-time tradition in the Eastern Church, influenced as it was by the court of Constantinople.If Augustine laid down the theological base for the Medieval church, Pope Gregory can be credited with its liturgical foundation. But no one should assume Gregory created things out of a vacuum. There was already extensive liturgical fodder for him to draw from.And this brings us to a 4th C document called The Pilgrimage of Etheria – or The Travels of Egeria.We're not sure who she was but can narrow it down to either a nun or a well-to-do woman of self-sufficient means from Northern Spain.She toured the Middle East at the end of the 4th C, then wrote a long letter to some women she call her sisters & friends, chronicling her 3 year adventure. While the beginning and end of the letter are missing, the main body gives a detailed account of her trip, made from extensive notes.The first part describes her journey from Egypt to Sinai, ending at Constantinople. She visited Edessa, and travelled extensively in Palestine. The second and much longer section is a detailed account of the services and observances of the church in Jerusalem, centered on what the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.What's remarkable in reading her account is the tremendous sense of freedom and safety Egeria seems to have had as she travelled over long distances in hostile environs. She was accompanied for a time by some soldiers, and no doubt these provided a measure of security. But that she felt safe WITH THEM, is remarkable and speaks to the impact the Faith was already having on the morality of the ancient world.Remarkable as well was the large number of Christian communes, monks & bishops she met on her travels. Every place mentioned in the Bible already had a shrine or church. As she visited each, using her Bible as a guide, she was shown dozens of places where this or that Biblical event was supposed to have occurred.I've been to the Holy Land several times. I know the many sites today that claim to be the place where this or that Bible story unfolded. Most of the sites are at best a guess. What I found fascinating about Egeria's account is that already, by the end of the 4th C, most of these sites were already boasting to be the very place. I have to wonder if the obligatory souvenir shop was also hawking wares at each location.You can't read Egeria's chronicle without being impressed with how thoroughly the Church had covered the Middle East in just 300 years, even in isolated locations; places mentioned in passing in the account of the Exodus. Every little town & village mentioned in the Old and New Testaments had a church or memorial and a group of monks ready to tell the story of what happened there. 300 years may seem like a long time, but remember that almost ALL that time was marked by persecution of Jesus' followers.Egeria's account of the liturgy of the church in Jerusalem, occupying the bulk of her record, is interesting because it reveals a pretty elaborate tradition for both daily services & special days like the Holy Week. They observed the hours and Holy Service marking off the day in different periods of devotion led by the Bishop.Accepted history tells us that the idea of a liturgical year was only just beginning in Egeria's time. Her description of the practices of the Jerusalem Church community make clear many aspects of the liturgical year were already well along, and had been for some time.If you're interested in reading Egeria's account yourself, you can find it on the net. I'll put a link in the show notes. http://www.ccel.org/m/mcclure/etheria/etheria.htm

Episode 55 – The Crusades, Part 2As Bruce Shelly aptly states in in his excellent book Church History in Plain Language, for the past 700 years Christians have tried to forget the Crusades, though neither Jews nor Muslims will let them. Modern Christians want to dismiss that era of Church History as the insane bigotry of the illiterate and superstitious. But to do so is to show our own kind of bigotry, one neglectful of the historical context of the European Middle Ages.The Crusaders were human beings, who like us, had mixed motives often in conflict. The word crusade means to “take up the cross,” hopefully after the example of Christ. That's why on the way to the Holy Land crusaders wore the cross on their chest. On their return home they wore it on their back. [1]In rallying the European nobility to join the First Crusade, Pope Urban II promised them forgiveness of past sins. Most of them held a deep reverence for the land Jesus had walked. That devotion was captured later by Shakespeare when he has King Henry IV say:We are impressed and engag'd to fight … To chase those pagans in those holy fields, Over whose acres walked those blessed feet, Which fourteen hundred years ago were nail'd, For our advantage on the bitter cross.For Urban and later popes, the Crusades were a Holy War. Augustine, whose theology shaped the Medieval Church, laid down the principles of a “just war.”  He said that it must be conducted by the State; its broad purpose was to uphold an endangered justice, which meant more narrowly that it must be defensive to protect life and property. In conducting such a just war there must be respect for noncombatants, hostages, and prisoners. And while all this may have been in the mind of Pope Urban and other church leaders when they called the First Crusade, those ideals didn't make it past the boundary of Europe. Once the Crusaders arrived in the East, the difficulties of their passage conspired to justify in their minds the wholesale pillaging of the innocent. Even those who'd originally taken up the Crusader cross with noble intent, didn't want to be left out of acquiring treasure once the looting began. After all, everyone else is doing it?As we return to our narrative of the First Crusade, let's recap …What triggered the Crusade was a request for assistance from Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos. Alexios worried about the advances of the Muslim Seljuk Turks, who'd reached as far west as Nicaea, a suburb of Constantinople. In March 1095, Alexios sent envoys to the Council of Piacenza to ask Pope Urban II for aid against the Turks. Urban's reply was positive. It's likely he hoped to heal the Great Schism of 40 yrs before that had sundered Western and Eastern churches.In the Summer of 1095, Urban turned to his homeland of France to recruit for the campaign. His journey ended at the Council of Clermont in November, where he gave an impassioned sermon to a large audience of French nobles and clergy, detailing the atrocities committed against pilgrims and Christians living in the East by the Muslims.Malcolm Gladwell wrote a bestseller in 2000 called The Tipping Point. The Pope's speech was one of those, an epic tipping point that sent history in a new direction. Urban understood what he proposed as an act so expensive, long, and arduous that it amounted to a form of penance capable of discharging all sins for those who went crusading. And he understood how his audience's minds worked. Coming from a noble house himself and having worked his way up through the ranks of the monastery and Church, he understood the puzzle that lay at the heart of popular religious sentiment. People were keenly aware of their sinfulness and sought to expunge it by embarking on a pilgrimage, or if that wasn't possible, to endow a monk or nun so they could live a life of sequestered holiness on their behalf. But their unavoidable immersion in the world meant it was impossible to perform all of the time-consuming penances which could keep pace with their ever-increasing catalog of sin. Urban saw that he could cut the Gordian knot by prescribing a Crusade. Here at last was a way for men given to violence, one of the most grievous of their misdeeds, to USE it as an act of penance. Overnight, those who were the most in need of penance became the very ones most likely to be the cause of the Crusade's success.While there are different versions of Urban's sermon, they all name the same basic elements. The Pope talked about the need to end the violence the European knights continued among themselves, the need to help the Eastern Christians in their contest with Islam, and making the pathways of pilgrims to Jerusalem safe again.  He proposed to do this by waging a new kind of war, an armed pilgrimage that would lead to great spiritual and earthly rewards, in which sins would be remitted and anyone who died in the contest would bypass purgatory and enter immediately into heaven's bliss.The Pope's speech at Clermont didn't specifically mention liberating Jerusalem; the goal at first was just to help Constantinople and clear the roads to Jerusalem.  But Urban's later message as he travelled thru Europe raising support for the Crusade, did include the idea of liberating the Holy City.While Urban's speech seemed impromptu, it was in fact well-planned.  He'd discussed launching a crusade with two of southern France's most important leaders who gave enthusiastic support. One of them was at Clermont, the first to take up the cause. During what was left of 1095 and into 96, Pope Urban spread the message throughout France and urged the clergy to preach in their own regions and churches throughout Europe.Despite this planning, the response to call for the Crusade was a surprise. Instead of urging people to JOIN the campaign, bishops had to dissuade certain people from joining.  Women, monks, and the infirm were forbidden, though many protested their exclusion. Some did more than protest; the defied officials and made plans to go anyway. When Pope Urban originally conceived the crusade, he envisioned the knights and nobility leading out trained armies. It was a surprise when thousands of peasants took up the cause.What was the bishop to say to these peasants when they indicated their intent to go? “You can't. You have to stay and tend your fields and herds.” When the peasants asked why, the bishops had no good answer, so they formed companies and set off. The clergy was forced to give grudging permission. They gathered local groups of peasants and had them take a vow of devotion to the Holy Cause, setting as their destination, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.Alongside the enthusiasm of the peasants, Urban courted the nobility of Europe, especially in France, to lead the Crusade. Knights from both northern and southern France, Flanders, Germany, and Italy were divided into four armies. Sadly, they often saw themselves in competition with each other rather than united in a common cause. They vied for prominence in bringing glory to God; oh, and of course, the loot that went along with it.While it was the scion of the noble houses that led a few of the armies, the bulk of the knights were lesser sons of the nobility whose only route to wealth lay in conquest. The eldest brother was set to inherit the family name and estate. So hundreds of these younger sons saw the Crusades as a way to make a name for themselves and carve out their own domain in newly acquired lands. If they didn't return to Europe laden with treasure, they hoped to settle down on land they'd won with the sword.One of the many sad results of the spin-up for the First Crusade was the persecution of Jews in Northern France and the Rhineland. Anti-Semitism bubbled beneath the surface of this region for generations. It spilled over now as peasants and commoners mobilized to remove the infidels form the Holy Land. Some began to question why a trip to the Middle East was needed when there were Christ-haters living right at hand. So Jews were attacked, their homes burned, businesses sacked.As we saw in our last episode, the peasants formed into bands and rampaged their way across Europe to Constantinople. They lacked the discipline and supplies of the knights so they foraged their way East like Sherman on his march to the Sea during the American Civil war. Though we don't know the numbers, thousands of these peasant crusaders were killed along the way as armed defenders came out to oppose their trek across their lands.When they finally arrived in Constantinople, they were hurriedly escorted across the Bosporus in August of 1096. At that point they split into two groups. One tried to recapture Nicaea but failed when the Turks surrounded and wiped them out. The other group was ambushed and massacred in October.This phase of the First Crusade is called The People's Crusade because it was made up of btwn 20 and 30,000 commoners. Its leadership include some minor nobles but its most visible leader was the odd Peter the Hermit.Peter's leadership of The People's Crusade was due to his fiery recruitment sermons. He wasn't so skilled in the tactical management of 30,000 would-be warriors. Once they arrived in Constantinople, his lack of administrative skill became obvious and the handful of knights who'd joined up realized they need to take control. But they refused to submit to one another and fragmented into different groups based on nationality. This lack of leadership proved fatal. They lost control of their so-called army which set to looting the homes and towns of Eastern Christians. The German contingent managed to seize a Seljuk city and the French began agitating for their leaders to do likewise. A couple Turkish spies spread a rumor in the French camp that the Germans were marching on Nicaea. So the French rushed out to beat them to it. While passing thru a narrow valley, they were wiped out by waiting Seljuk forces.A remnant made it back to Constantinople where they joined up with the knights who were just then, at the end of the Summer, arriving from Europe. This force formed into contingents grouped around the great lords. This was the kind of military force Pope Urban II and the Emperor Alexius had envisioned.The Crusaders realized they had to conquer and occupy Antioch in Syria first or a victory over Jerusalem would be short-lived. They took the city, but then barely survived a siege laid in by the Turks. Breaking the siege in the Spring of 1099, the leaders of the Crusade ended their quarrels and marched South. Their route took them along the coast to Caesarea, where they headed inland toward their goal. They arrived in the vicinity of Jerusalem in early June.By that time the army was reduced to 20,000. The effect of seeing the Holy City for the first time was electrifying. These men had fought and slogged their way across thousands of miles, leaving their homes and cultures to encounter new sights, sounds and tastes. And every step of the way, their goal was Jerusalem—the place where Jesus had lived and died. Accounts of that moment say the warriors fell on their knees and kissed the sacred earth. They removed their armor and in bare feet w/tears, cried out to God in confession and praise.A desperate but futile attack was made on the City five days later. Boiling pitch and oil were used by Jerusalem's defenders, with showers of stones and anything else they could get their hands on that would do damage. Then the Crusaders set a siege that took the usual course. Ladders, scaling towers, and other siege-engines were built. The problem is, they had to travel miles to get wood.  The trees around Jerusalem had all been cut down by the Roman General Titus twelve centuries before. They'd never grown back.The City was surrounded on 3 sides by Raymund of Toulouse, Godfrey, Tancred, and Robert of Normandy. It was a hot Summer and the suffering of the besiegers was intense as water was scarce. Soon, the valleys and hills around the city walls were covered w/dead horses, whose rotting carcasses made life in camp unbearable.Someone got the brilliant idea to duplicate Joshua's battle plan at Jericho. So the Crusaders took off their shoes and with priests leading, began marching around Jerusalem, hoping the walls would fall down. Of course, they didn't. I wonder what they did with the guy who came up with the idea. Help at last came with the arrival of a fleet at Joppa harbor from Genoa carrying workmen and supplies who went to work building new siege gear.The day of the final assault finally arrived. A huge tower topped by a golden cross was dragged up to the walls and a massive plank bridge was dropped so the Crusaders could rush from tower to the top of the wall. The weakened defenders couldn't stop the mass of warriors who flooded into their City.The carnage that followed is one more chapter in the many such scenes Jerusalem has known.Once they'd secured the City, the blood-splattered Crusaders paused to throw God a bone. Led by Godfrey, freshly changed into a suit of white linen, the Crusaders went to the church of the Holy Sepulcher and offered prayers and thanksgiving. Then, devotions over, the massacre recommenced. Neither the tears of women, nor the cries of children, did anything to halt to terror. The leaders tried to restrain their troops but they'd been let off the chain and were determined to let as much blood out of bodies as possible.When it was finally over, Muslim prisoners were forced to clear the streets of the bodies and blood to save the city from pestilence.Remember Peter the Hermit, who'd lead the peasant army to disaster? He made it to Jerusalem before returning to Europe where he founded a monastery and died in 1115.Pope Urban II also died just 2 weeks after the fall of Jerusalem, before the news reached him.Looking back, it's clear the First Crusade came at probably the only time it could have been successful.  The Seljuk Turks had broken up into rival factions in 1092. The Crusaders entered into the region like a knife before a new era of Muslim union and conquest opened. That's what those newly arrived Crusaders would now have to face.Just eight days after capturing Jerusalem, a permanent government was set-up. It was called “The Kingdom of Jerusalem.” Godfrey was elected king, but declined the title of royalty, unwilling to wear a crown of gold where the Savior had worn a crown of thorns.  He adopted the title Baron and Defender of the Holy Sepulcher.From the moment of its birth, the Kingdom of Jerusalem was in trouble. Less than a year later they made an appeal to the Germans for reinforcements. And Godfrey survived the capture of Jerusalem by only a year. He was buried in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where his sword and spurs are still on display. On his tomb is the inscription: “Here lies Godfrey of Bouillon, who conquered all this territory for the Christian religion. May his soul be at rest with Christ.”Rome immediately moved to make The Kingdom of Jerusalem part of it's region of hegemony. The archbishop of Pisa, Dagobert, who'd been a part of the Crusade, was elected to be Jerusalem's Patriarch.The new rulers turned from conquest to defense and governing. They tried to layer the feudal system of Europe onto Middle Eastern society. The conquered territory was distributed among Crusader barons, who held their possessions under the king of Jerusalem as overlord. The four chief fiefs were Jaffa, Galilee, Sidon, and east of the Jordan River, a region called Kerat. The counts of Tripoli and Edessa and the prince of Antioch were independent of Jerusalem but were closely allied due to the nearby Muslim menace.The Crusader occupation of Israel was far from peaceful. The kingdom was torn by constant intrigues of civil rulers and religious clerics. All that while it faced unending threats from without. But it was the inner strife that was the main cause of weakness. Monks settled in swarms all over the country. The Franciscans became guardians of the holy places. The offspring of the Crusaders by Moslem women, called pullani, became a blight as they were given over to unrelenting greed and the most grotesque immorality.When Godfrey died, he was succeeded by his brother Baldwin, count of Edessa. Baldwin was intelligent and the most active king of Jerusalem. He died after eight years; his body laid next to his brother's.During Baldwin's reign, the kingdom grew significantly. Caesarea fell to the Crusaders in 1101, then Ptolemais in 1104. Beirut in 1110. But Damascus never fell to the Crusaders. With the progress of their arms, they built castles all over their holdings in the Middle East. The ruins of those fortifications stand today and are premier tourist sites.Many of the Crusaders, who began the adventure planning to return to Europe, decided rather to stay once the work of conquest was finished. One wrote, “We who were Westerners, are now Easterners. We have forgotten our native land.” Other Crusaders did return to Europe, only to return later. Even several European kings spent long stays in the Holy Land.During Baldwin's reign most of the leaders of the First Crusade either died or went home. But their ranks were continually replenished by fresh expeditions from Europe. Pope Pascal II, successor to Urban II, sent out a call for recruits. The Italian cities furnished fleets, and coordinated with land forces. The Venetians, Pisans, and Genoese established quarters of their own in Jerusalem, Acre, and other cities. Thousands took up the Crusader cause in Lombardy, France, and Germany. They were led by Anselm, archbishop of Milan, Stephen, duke of Burgundy, William, duke of Aquitaine, Ida of Austria, and others. Hugh who'd gone home, returned. Bohemund also came back with 34,000.  Two Crusader armies attacked the Islamic stronghold at Bagdad.Baldwin's nephew, also named Baldwin, succeeded his uncle and reigned for 13 years, till 1131. He conquered the strategic city of Tyre on the coast. It was 1124 and that marked the high-water point of Crusader power.Over the next 60 yrs, Jerusalem saw a succession of weak rulers while the Muslims from Damascus to Egypt were uniting under a new band of competent and charismatic leaders. The last of these was Saladin. He became caliph in 1174 and set out to retake Jerusalem.But that's for our next episode . . .[1] Shelley, B. L. (1995). Church history in plain language (Updated 2nd ed.) (187–188). Dallas, Tex.: Word Pub.

This episode of CS is part 3 of our series on The Crusades.A major result of the First Crusade was a further alienation of the Eastern and Western Churches. The help provided Byzantium by the crusaders were not what The Eastern Emperor Alexius was hoping for.It also resulted in an even greater alienation of the Muslims than had been in place before. 200 years of crusading rampages across the Eastern Mediterranean permanently poisoned Muslim-Christian relations and ended the spirit of moderate tolerance for Christians living under Muslim rule across a wide swath of territory. The only people who welcomed the Crusaders were a handful of Christian minorities who'd suffered under Byzantine and Muslim rule; the Armenians and Maronites living in Lebanon. The Copts in Egypt saw the Crusades as a calamity. They were now suspected by Muslims of holding Western sympathies while being treated as schismatics by the Western Church. Once the Crusaders took Jerusalem, they banned Copts from making pilgrimage there.Things really went sour between East and West when the Roman church installed Latin patriarchates in historically Eastern centers at Antioch and Jerusalem. Then, during the 4th Crusade, a Latin patriarch was appointed to the church in Constantinople itself.To give you an idea of what this would have felt like to the Christian of Constantinople; imagine how Southern Baptists would feel if a Mormon bishop was installed as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. You get the picture = No Bueno.Another long-lasting effect of the Crusades was that they weakened the Byzantine Empire and hastened its fall to the Ottoman Turks a couple centuries later. Arab governments were also destabilized leaving them susceptible to invasion by Turks and Mongols.A significant new development in monastic history was made at this time in the rise of the knightly monastic orders. The first of these was the Knights Templar, founded in 1118 under Hugh de Payens. King Baldwin gave the Templars their name, and from them the idea of fighting for the Temple passed to other orders. Bernard of Clairvaux, although not the author of the Templar rule, as legend has it, did write an influential piece called In Praise of the New Militia of Christ which lauded the new orders of knights.The Templars were imitated by the Hospitallers, who had an earlier origin as a charitable order. They'd organized in 1050 by merchants from Amalfi living in Jerusalem to protect pilgrims. They provided hospitality and care of the sick, and helped morph the word “hospitality” into “hospital.” Under Gerard in 1120, the Hospitallers gained papal sanction. Gerard's successor was Raymond de Provence who reorganized the Hospitallers as a military order on the pattern of the Knights Templar. The Hospitallers, also known as the Knights of St. John eventually moved to the islands of Rhodes, then Malta, where they held out in 1565 in a protracted siege against the Turks in one of history's most significant battles.Another important military order, the Teutonic Knights arose in 1199, during the 3rd Crusade.The knightly monastic orders had certain features in common. They viewed warfare as a devotional way of life. The old monastic idea of fighting demons, as seen in the ancient Egyptian desert hermits, evolved into actual combat with people cast as agents of evil. Spiritual warfare became actual battle. Knights and their attendants took the vows similar to other monks. They professed poverty, chastity, and obedience, along with a pledge to defend others by force of arms. While personal poverty was vowed, using violence to secure wealth was deemed proper so it could be used to benefit others, including the order itself. The Templars became an object of envy for their immense wealth.In studying the relations between Christianity and Islam during the Middle Ages, we should remember there were many peaceful interchanges. Some Christians advocated peaceful missions to Muslims. These peaceful encounters can be seen in the exchange of art. Christians highly valued Muslim metalwork and textiles. Church vestments were often made by Muslim weavers. Such a vestment is located today at Canterbury. It contains Arabic script saying, “Great is Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.”On the positive side, if there was anything positive to be gleaned from the Crusades, it did promote a greater sense of unity in Western Europe. Remember that one of the reasons Pope Urban sparked the Crusade was to vent the violent habits of the European nobles who were constantly at each other's throats. Instead of warring with each other back and forth across Europe, watering its fields with blood, they united to go against infidels “way over there.”The Crusades also led to increased prestige for the papacy as they were able to mobilize huge numbers of people.  The Crusades also stimulated an intellectual revival in Europe as Crusaders returned with new experiences and knowledge from another part of the world.After the 1st Crusade, over the next 60 years, Jerusalem saw a succession of weak rulers while the Muslims from Damascus to Egypt united under a new dynasty of competent and charismatic leaders. The last of these was Saladin, or, more properly, Salah ad-Din. Founder of the Ayyubid dynasty of Islam, he became caliph in 1174 and set out to retake Jerusalem.The king of Jerusalem at the time was (and warning: I'm going to butcher this poor guy's name) Guy de Lusignan. Let's just call him “Guy.” He led the Crusaders out to a hill on the West of the Sea of Galilee called the Horns of Hattin. Both the Templars and Hospitallers were there in force, and the much vaunted “true cross” was carried by the bishop of Acre, who himself was clad in armor. On July 5, 1187, the decisive battle was fought. The Crusaders were completely routed. 30,000 perished. King Guy, the leaders of the Templars and Hospitallers along with a few other nobles were taken prisoner. Saladin gave them clemency. The fate of the Holy Land was decided.On Oct. 2, 1187, Saladin entered Jerusalem after it made brave resistance. The generous conditions of surrender were mostly creditable to the chivalry of the Muslim commander. There were no scenes of savage butchery as followed the entry of the Crusaders 90 years before. The people of Jerusalem were given their liberty if they paid a ransom. Europeans and anyone else who wanted to, were allowed to leave. For 40 days the procession of the departing continued. Relics stored in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were redeemed for the sum of 50,000 bezants. Named after Byzantium where they were the medium of exchange, the bezant was a gold coin of 5 grams.Thus ended the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. Since then the worship of Islam has continued on Mount Moriah without interruption. The other European conquests of the 1st Crusade were then in danger from the unending feuds of the Crusaders themselves, and, in spite of the constant flow of recruits and treasure from Europe, they fell easily before Saladin.He allowed a merely ceremonial Latin ruler to hold the title King of Jerusalem but the last real king was Guy, who was released, then travelled around claiming the title of king but without a court or capital. He eventually settled in Cyprus.We'll go into less detail for the rest of the Crusades as we finish them off over the next episode .The 2nd Crusade was sparked by 2 events; the Fall of the Crusader state of Edessa in Syria and the preaching of Bernard of Clairvaux. And note that the 2nd Crusade took place BEFORE the arrival of Saladin on the scene.Edessa fell to the Turks in Dec., 1144.  They built a fire in a large breach they'd made in the city wall. The fire was so hot it cracked a section of the wall a hundred yards long. When the wall collapsed, the Turks rushed in and unleashed the same kind of brutality the Crusaders had when they conquered Jerusalem.Pope Eugenius III saw the Turk victory at Edessa as a threat to the continuance of the Crusaders in Palestine and called upon the king of France to march to their relief. The forgiveness of all sins and immediate entrance into heaven were promised to all embarking on a new Crusade. Eugenius summoned Bernard of Clairvaux to leave his abbey and preach the crusade. Bernard was the most famous person of his time and this call by the Pope came at the zenith of his fame. He regarded the Pope's summons as a call from God.On Easter in 1146, King Louis of France vowed to lead the Crusade. The Pope's promise of the remission of sins was dear to him as he was stricken with guilt for having burned a church with 1300 inside. How grand to be able to gain forgiveness by killing more! He assembled a council at Vézelai at which Bernard made such an overpowering impression by his message that all present pressed forward to take up the crusading cause. Bernard was obliged to cut his own robe into small fragments, to give away to all who wanted something of his they could carry to the East. He wrote to Pope Eugenius that the enthusiasm was so great “castles and towns were emptied of their inmates. One man could hardly be found for 7 women, and the women were being everywhere widowed while their husbands were still alive.” Meaning most of the men set off on the Crusade, leaving the population of France with 7 women to every man. Hey – lucky them!From France, Bernard went to Basel, in modern day Switzerland, then up thru the cities along the Rhine as far as Cologne. As in the 1st Crusade, persecution broke out against the Jews in this area when a monk named Radulph questioned why they needed to go to the Middle East to get rid of God-haters and Christ-killers. There were plenty of them in Europe.  Bernard objected vehemently to this. He called for the Church to attempt to win the Jews by discussion and respect, not killing them.Bernard was THE celebrity of the day and thousands flocked to hear him. Several notable miracles and healings were attributed to him. The German Emperor Konrad III was deeply moved by his preaching and convinced to throw his weight to the Crusade.Konrad raised an army of 70,000; a tenth of whom were knights. They assembled at Regensburg and proceeded thru Hungary to the Bosporus. All along their route they were less than welcome. Konrad and the Eastern Emperor Manuel where brothers-in-law, but that didn't keep Manuel from doing his best to wipe out the German force. The guides he provided led the Germans into ambushes and traps then abandoned them in the mountains. When they finally arrived at Nicea, famine, fever and attacks had reduced the force to a tenth is original size.King Louis set out in the Spring of 1147 and followed the same route Konrad had taken. His queen, Eleanor, famed for her beauty and skill as a leader, along with many other ladies of the French court, accompanied the army. The French met up with what was left of Konrad's force at Nicea.The forces then split up into different groups which all reached Acre in 1148. They met King Baldwin III of Jerusalem and pledged to unite their forces in an attempt to conquer Damascus before retaking Edessa. The siege of Damascus was a total failure. The European nobles fell to such in-fighting that their camp fragmented into warring groups. Konrad left for Germany in the Fall of 1148 and Louis returned to France a few months later.Bernard was humiliated by the failure of the Crusade. He assigned it to the judgment of God for the sins of the Crusaders and Christian world.A little more about King Louis's wife Eleanor. Eleanor of Aquitaine was really something. In a world dominated by men, Eleanor's career was something special. She was one of the wealthiest and most powerful people in Europe during the Middle Ages.Eleanor succeeded her father as the ruler of Aquitaine and Poitiers at the age of 15. She was then the most eligible bride in Europe. Three months after her accession, she married King Louis VII. As Queen of France, she went on the 2nd Crusade. Then, with it's defeat and back in France, she got an annulment from Louis on the basis that they were relatives, then married Henry Plantaget, Duke of Normandy and Count of Anjou, who soon became King Henry II of England in 1154. This despite the fact that Henry was an even closer relative than Louis had been and 9 years younger than she. They were married just 8 weeks after her annulment. Over the next 13 years Eleanor bore Henry 8 children: 5 sons, 3 of whom would become king, and 3 daughters. However, Henry and Eleanor eventually became estranged. She was imprisoned between 1173 and 1189 for supporting her son's revolt against her husband.Eleanor was widowed in July 1189. Her husband was succeeded by their son, Richard I, known as the Lion-hearted. As soon as he ascended the thrown, Richard had his mother released from prison. Now the queen dowager, Eleanor acted as regent while Richard went on the 3rd Crusade. She survived Richard and lived well into the reign of her youngest son John, known as the worst king in England's long history. It's this King John who's cast as the chief villain in the story of Robin Hood.The 3rd Crusade is referred to as the Kings' Crusade due to the European monarchs who participated in it. It was an attempt to reconquer the Holy Land from the Muslims who, under Saladin, had reclaimed the lands the Crusaders took in the 1st Crusade. The 3rd was for the most part successful but fell short of its ultimate goal, the re-conquest of Jerusalem.When Saladin captured Jerusalem in 1187, the news rocked Europe. The story goes that Pope Urban III was so traumatized, he died of shock. Henry II of England and Philip II of France ended their dispute with each other to lead a new crusade. When Henry died 2 years later, Richard the Lionheart stepped in to lead the English. The elderly Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa also responded to the call to arms, and led a massive army across Turkey. Barbarossa drowned while crossing a river in June, 1190 before reaching the Holy Land. His death caused great grief among the German Crusaders. Most were so discouraged they returned home.After driving the Muslims from the port of Acre, Frederick's successor Leopold V of Austria and King Philip of France left the Holy Land in August 1191, leaving Richard to carry on by himself. Saladin failed to defeat Richard in any military engagements, and Richard secured several key coastal cities. But the English King realized a conquest of Jerusalem wasn't possible to his now weakened force and in September of 1192, made a treaty with Saladin by which Jerusalem would remain under Muslim control, but allowed unarmed Christian pilgrims and merchants to visit the city. Richard departed the Holy Land a month later.The successes of the 3rd Crusade allowed the Crusaders to maintain a considerable kingdom based in Cyprus and along the Syrian coast. Its failure to recapture Jerusalem led to the call for a 4th Crusade 6 years later.The 3rd Crusade was yet another evidence of the European's inability to form an effective union against the Muslims. The leaders and nobility of Europe made great promises of unity when they embarked on a Crusade, but the rigors of the journey, along with the imminent prospect of victory saw them more often than not falling out with each other in incessant and petty squabbles.On Richard's journey back to England he was seized by the afore mentioned Leopold, duke of Austria, whose enmity he'd incurred in the battle for the city of Joppa. The duke turned his captive over to the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VI who also had a grudge to settle. The Lionheart was released on the humiliating terms of paying an enormous ransom and consenting to hold his kingdom as a fiefdom of the Empire.  It's this hostage taking of Richard the Lionhearted that forms the backdrop for the tale of Robin Hood.Saladin died in March, 1193, by far the most famous of the foes of the Crusaders. Christendom has joined with Arab writers in praise of his courage, culture, and the magnanimous manner in which he treated his foes.Historians debate how many Crusades there were. It wasn't as though Kings Henry and Philip said, “Hey, let's make nice and launch the 3rd Crusade.” They didn't number them as historians have since. History tends to ascribe 9 as the number of Crusades, but then add 2 more by assigning them with names instead of numbers; the Albigenian and the Children's Crusades, which took place between the 4th and 5th Crusades.Generally, the 5th thru 9th Crusades are considered lesser armed movements while the first 4 are called the Great Crusades.We'll finish with a quick review of the 4th Crusade.Innocent III became Pope in 1198.  He called for the 4th Crusade which was the final blow that forever sundered the Western and Eastern churches, though that was certainly never his aim. In fact, he warned the Crusaders against it.Pope Innocent's plan was simply to destroy a Muslim military base in Egypt. The merchants of Venice had promised to supply the Crusaders with ships at a huge discount; one the Crusaders couldn't pass up. So in the summer of 1202, they arrived in Venice expecting to sail to Egypt. But there was a problem: Only a third of the expected number of warriors showed. And they came up with a little more than half the required sailing fee.A prince from the East offered to finance the balance under one condition: That the Crusaders sail first to Constantinople, dethrone the current Emperor and hand it over to him. They could then sail on their merry way to Egypt. Pope Innocent forbade this diversion, but no one paid him any attention.On July 5th, 1203, the Crusaders arrived in the Eastern capital. The people of Constantinople were by now fed up with Europeans meddling in their affairs and formed a counter revolution that swept the current emperor off the throne, but only so they could install their own fiercely anti-Crusader ruler. Being now shut out of his hopes, the would-be emperor who'd paid the Crusaders way to Constantinople refused to pay their way to Egypt, leaving them stranded in increasingly hostile territory.They were furious. Their leaders decided to try and make the best of it and called for a quick plundering of Constantinople. One of the Crusade chaplains proclaimed; in complete disregard for the Pope's wishes, “If you rightly intend to conquer this land and bring it under Roman obedience, all who die will partake of the pope's indulgence.”  That was like letting a rabid dog off its chain. For many of the Crusaders, this was not only an excuse to get rich by taking loot, it meant a license to do whatever they pleased in Constantinople.On Good Friday, 1204, the Crusaders, with red crosses on their tunics, sacked Constantinople. For 3 days, they raped and killed fellow Christians. The city's statues were hacked to pieces and melted down. The Hagia Sophia was stripped of its golden vessels. A harlot performed sensual dances on the Lord's Table, singing vile drinking songs. One Eastern writer lamented, “Muslims are merciful compared with these men who bear Christ's cross on their shoulders.”Neither the Eastern Empire nor Church ever recovered from those 3 days. For the next 60 years Crusaders from the Roman church ruled what was once the Eastern Empire. The Eastern emperor established a court in exile at Nicaea. Rather than embrace Roman customs, many Eastern Christians fled there. There they remained until 1261, when an Eastern ruler retook Constantinople.

This is part 4 of our series on the Crusades.The plan for this episode, the last in our look at the Crusades, is to give a brief review of the 5th thru 7th Crusades, then a bit of analysis of the Crusades as a whole.The date set for the start of the 5th Crusade was June 1st, 1217. It was Pope Innocent III's long dream to reconquer Jerusalem. He died before the Crusade set off, but his successor Honorius III was just as ardent a supporter. He continued the work begun by Innocent.The Armies sent out accomplished much of nothing, except to waste lives. Someone came up with the brilliant idea that the key to conquering Palestine was to secure a base in Egypt first. That had been the plan for the 4th Crusade. The Crusaders now made the major port of Damietta their goal. After a long battle, the Crusaders took the city, for which the Muslim leader Malik al Kameel offered to trade Jerusalem and all Christian prisoners he held. The Crusaders thought the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II was on his way to bolster their numbers, so they rejected the offer. Problem is, Frederick wasn't on his way. So in 1221, Damietta reverted to Muslim control.Frederick II cared little about the Crusade. After several false starts that revealed his true attitude toward the whole thing, the Emperor decided he'd better make good on his many promises and set out with 40 galleys and only 600 knights. They arrived in Acre in early Sept. 1228. Because the Muslim leaders of the Middle East were once again at odds with each other, Frederick convinced the afore-mentioned al-Kameel to make a decade long treaty that turned Jerusalem over to the Crusaders, along with Bethlehem, Nazareth, and the pilgrim route from Acre to Jerusalem. On March 19, 1229, Frederick crowned himself by his own hand in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.This bloodless assumption of Jerusalem infuriated Pope Gregory IX who considered control of the Holy Land and the destruction of the Muslims as one and the same thing. So the Church never officially acknowledged Frederick's accomplishments.He returned home to deal with internal challenges to his rule and over the next decade and a half, the condition of Palestine's Christians deteriorated. Everything gained by the treaty was turned back to Muslim hegemony in the Fall of 1244.The last 2 Crusades, the 6th and 7th, center on the career of the last great Crusader; the king of France, Louis IX.Known as SAINT Louis, he combined the piety of a monk with the chivalry of a knight, and stands in the front rank of all-time Christian rulers.  His zeal revealed itself not only in his devotion to religious ritual, but in his refusal to deviate from his faith even under the threat of torture. His piety was genuine as evidenced by his concern for the poor and the just treatment of his subjects. He washed the feet of beggars and when a monk warned him against carrying his humility too far, he replied, “If I spent twice as much time in gambling and hunting as in such services, no one would find fault with me.”The sack of Jerusalem by the Muslims in 1244 was followed by the fall of the Crusader bases in Gaza and Ashkelon. In 1245 at the Council of Lyons the Pope called for a new expedition to once again liberate the Holy Land. Though King Louis lay in a sickbed with an illness so grave his attendants put a cloth over his face, thinking he was dead, he rallied and took up the Crusader cross.Three years later he and his French brother-princes set out with 32,000 troops. A Venetian and Genoese fleet carried them to Cyprus, where large-scale preparations had been made for their supply. They then sailed to Egypt. Damietta once again fell, but after this promising start, the campaign turned into a disaster.Louis' piety and benevolence was not backed up by what we might call solid skills as a leader. He was ready to share suffering with his troops but didn't possess the ability to organize them.  Heeding the counsel of several of his commanders, he decided to attack Cairo instead of Alexandria, the far more strategic goal. The campaign was a disaster with the Nile being chocked with bodies of slain Crusaders. On their retreat, the King and Count of Poitiers were taken prisoners. The Count of Artois was killed. The humiliation of the Crusaders had rarely been so deep.Louis' fortitude shone brightly while suffering the misfortune of being held captive. Threatened with torture and death, he refused to renounce Christ or yield up any of the remaining Crusader outposts in Palestine. For the ransom of his troops, he agreed to pay 500,000 livres, and for his own freedom to give up Damietta and abandon the campaign in Egypt.Clad in garments given by the sultan, in a ship barely furnished, the king sailed for Acre where he stayed 3 yrs, spending large sums on fortifications at Jaffa and Sidon. When his mother, who acted as Queen-Regent in his absence, died—Louis was forced to return to France. He set sail from Acre in the spring of 1254. His queen, Margaret, and the 3 children born them in the East, returned with him.So complete a failure might have been expected to destroy all hope of ever recovering Palestine. But the hold of the crusading idea upon the mind of Europe was still strong. Popes Urban IV and Clement III made renewed appeals, and Louis once again set out. In 1267, with his hand on a crown of thorns, he announced to his assembled nobles his purpose to go a 2nd time on a holy crusade.In the meantime, news from the East had been of continuous disaster at the hand of the “Mohammaden” enemy (as they called Muslims) and of discord among the Christians. In 1258, 40 Venetian vessels engaged in battle with a Genoese fleet of 50 ships off Acre with a loss of 1,700 souls. A year later the Templars and Hospitallers held forth in a pitched battle, not with the Muslims, but  each other. Then in 1268, Acre, greatest of the Crusader ports, fell to the Muslims Mamelukes.Louis set sail in 1270 w/60,000 into disaster. Their camp was scarcely pitched on the site of ancient Carthage when plague broke out. Among the victims was the king's son, John Tristan, born at Damietta, and King Louis himself.  His body was returned to France and the French army disbanded.By 1291, what remained of the Crusader presence in the Holy Land was finally uprooted by Muslim control.Those more familiar with the history of the Crusades may wonder why I've neglected to mention the disastrous Children's Crusade of 1212, inserted between the 4th and 5th Crusades. The reason I've decided to mostly skip it is because historians have come to doubt the veracity of the reports about it. It seems now more apocryphal than real, conflated from several disparate reports of groups that wandered around Southern Europe looking to hop on to another campaign to capture Jerusalem. The story goes that a French or German child of 10 years had a vision in which he was told to go to the Middle East and convert the Muslims by peaceful means. As he shared this vision and began his trek to Marseilles, other children joined his cause, along with some adults of dubious reputation. As their ranks swelled, they arrived at the French coast, expecting the seas to part and make a way for them to cross over to the Middle East on dry land. Never mind that it was a trip of hundreds of miles. Anyway, the waters failed to part, and the children, most of them anyway, ended up dispersing. Those who didn't were rounded up by slavers who promised to transport them to the Holy Land, free of charge. Once they were aboard ship though, they were captives and were hauled to foreign ports all over the Mediterranean where they were sold off.As I said, while the Children's Crusade has been considered a real event for many years, it's recently come under scrutiny and doubt as ancient records were examined closely. It seems it's more a product of cutting and pasting various stories that took place during this time. The children were in fact bands of Europe's landless poor who had nothing better to do than wander around Southern France and Germany, waiting for the next Crusade to be called so they could go and hopefully participate in the plunder of the rich, Eastern lands.I want to offer some commentary now on the Crusades. So, warning, what follows is pure opinion.For 7 centuries Christians have tried to forget the Crusades, but critics and skeptics are determined to keep them a hot issue. While Jews and Muslims have (mostly rightly, I think) used the Crusades for generations as a point of complaint. In more recent time, New Atheists like Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris have raised them like a crowbar and beaten Christians over the head with them. Isn't it interesting that these God-deniers have to first assume Biblical morality to then deny it? If they were consistent with their own atheistic beliefs they'd have to find some other reason to declaim the Crusades than that it's wrong to indiscriminately kill people. Why, according to their Darwinist evolutionary, Survival of the Fittest motif, shouldn't they in fact applaud the Crusades? After all, they were advancing the cause of evolution by getting rid of the weaker elements of the race.But no! The New Atheists don't use this line of reasoning because it's abhorrent. Instead, they have to first don a belief in Christian morality to attack Christianity. Talk about being hypocritical.And let's get our facts straight. The 20th Century saw more people killed for political and ideological reasons than all previous centuries combined! Between the Communists, Nazis, and Fascists, well over 100 million were killed. Stalin, Hitler, and Mao Zedong were motivated by an atheistic agenda, one rooted in a social application of Darwinism.Karl Marx, the ideological father of Communistic socialism, applied Darwin's evolutionary ideas to society and turned human beings into mere parts of a vast machine called the State. Anyone deemed a cog instead of a gear was to be removed so the machine could run as the leaders wanted. In the name of Communism, Stalin killed at least 20 million; Mao, about 70 million!Adolf Hitler was inspired by the atheist Fredrick Neizsche's Darwinian concept of the ubermensche = the superman; humanity's next evolutionary step. He justified the killing of 10 million saying the Final Solution was simply removing those who would hinder humanity's evolution. He employed an entire army of science-minded killers who believed it was right and good to rid the world of “human weeds” as they called Jews, Slavs, homosexuals and the infirm.It takes a colossal ignorance of history to neglect this. Yet the New Atheists ignore the facts because they destroy their premise that atheism has the moral high ground.As calculated by historical evidence, the Crusades, Inquisition and witch trials killed about 200,000 in all over a period of 500 years. Adjusting for population growth, that would be about a million in today's terms. That's just 1% of the total killed by Stalin, Mao and Hitler; and they did it in a few decades!So, let's keep the Crusades, as brutal as they were, and as utterly contrary to the nature and teaching of Christ as they were, in the proper historical perspective. No! I'm not justifying them. They were totally wrong-headed! To turn the cross into a sword and slay people with it is blasphemous and deserves the loud declamation of the Church.But let's not forget that the Crusaders were human beings with motives not unlike our own. Those motives were mixed and often in conflict. The word crusade comes from “taking the cross,” after the example of Christ. That's why on the way to the Holy Land the crusader wore the cross on his breast. On his journey home, he wore it on his back.But the vast majority of those who went crusading were illiterate, even most of the nobles. They weren't taught the Bible as Evangelicals are today. People throughout Europe thought salvation rested IN THE CHURCH and was doled out by priests at the direction and discretion of the Pope. So if the Pope said Crusaders were doing God's work, they were believed. When priests broadcast that dying in the holy cause of a Crusade meant they'd bypass purgatory and gain immediate access to heaven, thousands grabbed the nearest weapon and set off.For Urban and the popes who followed him, the Crusades were a new type of war, a Holy War. Augustine had laid down the principles of a “just war” centuries before. Those principles were . . .A Holy War was conducted by the State;Its purpose was the vindication of justice, meaning the defense of life and property;And its code called for respect for noncombatants; civilians and prisoners. While these principles were originally adopted by the Crusaders when they set out on the 1st Campaign, they evaporated in the heat of the journey and reality of battle.The Crusades ignited horrible attacks on Jews. Even fellow Christians were not exempt from rape and plunder. Incredible atrocities befell the Muslim foe. Crusaders sawed open dead bodies in search of gold.As the Crusades progressed, the occasional voice was lifted calling into question the propriety of such movements and their ultimate value. At the end of the 12th C, the abbot Joachim complained that the popes were making the Crusades a pretext for their own advancement.Humbert de Romanis, general of the Dominicans, in making out a list of matters to be handled at the Council of Lyons in 1274, was obliged to refute no less than 7 well-known objections to the Crusades. They included these 4 . . .It was contrary to the precepts of the NT to advance religion by the sword;Christians may defend themselves, but have no right to invade the lands of another;It is wrong to shed the blood of unbelievers;And the disasters of the Crusades proved they were contrary to the will of God. Christians in Europe during the 14th and 15th Cs were to face far more pressing problems than a conquest of the Holy Land. So while there was still an occasional call for one, it fell on deaf ears.Erasmus, writing at the close of the Middle Ages, made an appeal for the preaching of the Gospel as a way to deal with Muslims.  He said the proper way to defeat the Turks was by conversion, not annihilation. He said, “Truly, it is not meet to declare ourselves Christian men by killing very many but by saving very many, not if we send thousands of heathen people to hell, but if we make many infidels Christian; not if we cruelly curse and excommunicate, but if we with devout prayers and with our hearts desire their health, and pray unto God, to send them better minds.”The long-range results of 2 centuries of crusading were not impressive. If the main purpose of the Crusades was to win the Holy Land, to check the advance of Islam, and heal the schism between the Eastern and Western Churches, they failed spectacularly.For a time, the 4 Crusader kingdoms held a beach-head on the Mediterranean coast of the Holy Land. In them, three semi-monastic military orders formed: the Templars, whose first headquarters were on the site of the old Temple of Jerusalem; the Hospitallers, also known as the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, originally founded to care for the sick and wounded; and the Germanic Teutonic Knights. These orders combined monasticism and militarism and had as their aims the protection of pilgrims and perpetual war against Muslims. They fielded 500 armed knights. Their great castles guarded the roads and passes against attack. For 2 centuries the Templars in their white robes decorated with a red cross, the Hospitallers in black robes emblazoned with the white Maltese cross, and the Teutonic Knights in white robes with a black cross were common sights in Crusader States and across Europe.While the Crusades seem to us today a terrible betrayal of Biblical Christianity, we must bring the historian's mindset to them and consider them against the times in which they occurred. This doesn't excuse them, but it does make them a bit more understandable.European society of the Middle Ages was ir-redeemably warlike. In feudal Europe, the whole economic and social system depended on the maintenance of a military; the knights, permanent professional soldiers; by necessity due to the cost involved, noblemen whose only profession was fighting. The city-states of Italy were frequently at war. In Spain, a line was drawn across the map for centuries by the presence of the Muslim Moors. So even if Christians had wanted to create a peaceful society, it would have been socially and practically difficult to do.One way of dealing with this was to idealize warfare. That is, casting war as a contest between good and evil. In the development of the idea of the Christian knight, there was an attempt to give the spiritual battle a corresponding literal application. The knight was a ‘soldier of Christ', a warrior for good.  At a time when priests and monks were deemed the only ones able to make contact with God, the Crusades were a way for laypeople to enter the spiritual realm and rack up some serious points with God. Priests fought the good fight by prayer; now laymen could fight as well, with a sword, mace, or if that's all they could afford, a pitchfork, until they got to the battlefield where hopefully they'd find a more suitable weapon.So it was important for medieval Christians to convince themselves the war they were fighting was justified. A sophisticated system of identifying a ‘just' war developed. Augustine had said a good deal about this, explaining that someone whose property or land was stolen is entitled to get it back, but that this was different from warfare designed to enlarge one's territory. The underlying principle was that reasonable force could be used to maintain order.The late 11th C saw the arrival of a new thought; not Augustine's “Just War,” but the concept of “Holy War”, one God called His people to fight to restore Christian control to the Holy Land. This was war which could not only be regarded as ‘justified', and the sins committed in the course of it forgiven, but meritorious. God would reward those who fought it. Guibert of Nogent, in his book The Acts of God through the Franks, explained how to identify a Holy War. It wasn't motivated by the desire for fame, money or conquest. Its motive was the safeguarding of liberty, the defense of the State and the protection of the Church. He considered this kind of warfare a valid alternative to being a monk.This idea was so engaging to the Medieval mind that as the 12th C wound on it had to be discouraged as it seemed everyone began seeing knighthood and combat as spiritual warfare. Bullies have always been able to villainize those they want to victimize. They justified their brutality by calling it a divine mission. So priests and theologians emphasized not all fighting came under the same umbrella. Crusading was special.Of course, one of the major tenets of Muslim theology is jihad, Holy War to spread the faith. Despite loud protests by some today, the fact remains that the Islam Mohammad taught, which of course is true Islam, endorses jihad. How else did it spread from its desert base in Arabia across the Middle East, North Africa, and into Europe in such a short time if not by the power of the scimitar?I find it interesting that modern Muslims decry the Crusades when it was their own bloody campaigns that took the lands the Crusaders sought to what? RECLAIM! How could they RECLAIM something what wasn't CLAIMED and conquered by the Muslims previously? I say it again: This in no way justifies the Crusades. They're an indefensible period of Church history that stands as a dark stain. But let's be clear; if they're a stain on Church history, the conquests by the Muslims that predate the Crusades are just as dark.

Episode 54 – The Crusades – Part 1In the first episode of Communio Sanctorum, we took a look at the various ways history has been studied over time. In the Ancient world, history was more often than not, propaganda. The old adage that “History is written by the winners” was certainly true for the ancients. With the implementation of the Scientific Method in the Modern Era, the researching and recording of history became more unbiased and accurate. It was far from a pure report, but it could no longer be considered blatant propaganda. The Post-Modern Era has seen a return to bias; this time an almost knee-jerk suspicion of ALL previous attempts at recording history. Even attempts of Modernity to document history are suspect and assumed guilty of recording little more than the bias of the authors, though their works were footnoted and peer-reviewed. Post-modern critics adopt a presupposition all recorded history is fabrication, especially if there's anything heroic or virtuous. If it's a dark tale of hopelessness and tragedy, well, then, maybe it can be accepted. It's almost as though Post-moderns want to make up for the ancient historians' penchant for propaganda. Post-Moderns cast history as “neg-paganda” if I can coin a word.Let's attempt a shedding of our bias, even though we can't fully do that, as we look at the Crusades. Instead of layering onto the Christians of Europe in the 11th and 12th Cs the sensibilities of people who live a thousand years later, let's attempt to understand the reasoning behind the idea of taking up a pitchfork or sword and making a life-altering trip over hundreds of miles, through strange lands, to risk one's life for è What? Oh yeah, to rid the Holy Land of pagan infidels.Wait; Mr. Crusader-person; have you ever been to the Holy Land? Do you own land there that's been stolen? Do you have relatives or friends there you need to protect?  Have you ever met one of these infidels? Do you know what they believe or why they invaded?No? Then why are you so amped about marching half-way around the world to liberate a land you've not been all that interested in before from a people you know nothing about?See? There must have been some powerful forces at work in the minds and hearts of the people of Europe that they'd go in such large numbers on a Crusade. We may find their reasons for crusading to be horribly ill-conceived, but they were totally sold out to them.The Crusades reflected a new dynamism in the Christianity of Medieval Europe. People were driven by religious fervor, a yearning for adventure, and of course if some personal wealth could be thrown in, all the better. For 200 years, Crusaders tried to expel the Muslims from the Holy Land. It seems all the colorful figures of this era were caught up in the cause, from Peter the Hermit in the 1st Crusade, to the godly Louis IX, King of France, who inspired the 6th and 7th.Many Europeans of the medieval period viewed a pilgrimage as a form of especially poignant penance. These pilgrimages were usually trips to a local holy place or shrine erected to commemorate a miracle or to cathedrals where the relics of some saint were kept in a reliquary. But there was one pilgrimage that was thought to gain a special dose of grace – a trip to the Holy City of Jerusalem. The merchants of Jerusalem did a good business in keeping the constant flood of Christian pilgrims supplied with food, lodging and of course sacred mementos. Some pilgrims went by themselves; others in a group—ancient versions of the modern day Holy Land Tour. When pilgrims arrived in Jerusalem they'd make the rounds of all the traditional points of interest. They walked the Via Dolorosa to Calvary then sat for hours praying. When these pilgrims returned home, they were esteemed by their community as real saints; towering figures of spirituality.For centuries, peaceful pilgrims traveled from Europe to Palestine. The arrival of Islam in the Middle East in the 7th C didn't interfere. By the 10th C European bishops organized mass pilgrimages to the Holy Land. The largest we know of set out from Germany in 1065, with some 7,000 ! That's a lot of buses.To impede a pilgrim's journey was considered by the medieval Church as a serious breach of protocol because you endangered the pilgrim's salvation. If his pilgrimage was penance for some sin, you might deny him pardon by your altering his course. The mind-set of European Christians became one of extreme care to not interfere with Pilgrims once they'd set out.All of this faced a major problem in the 11th C when a new Muslim force took control of the Middle East. The Seljuk Turks, new and fanatical converts to Islam, came sweeping in to plunder the region. They seized Jerusalem from their fellow Muslims, then moved north into Asia Minor.The Byzantine Empire tried desperately to stop their advance, but at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 the Turks captured the eastern emperor and scattered his army. Within a few years nearly all Asia Minor, the chief source of Byzantine wealth and troops, was lost, and the new Byzantine emperor sent frantic appeals to the West for help. He pleaded with Europe's nobility and the Pope, seeking mercenaries to aid in the rescue of lost territory.Then, reports began to trickle back about the abuse of Christian pilgrims on the Turkish controlled roads to Jerusalem. The trickle turned to a stream, the a river. Even when pilgrims weren't mistreated, they were subject to heavy fees to travel thru Muslim lands.The standard, brief description of the inception of the First Crusade goes like this ... In 1095, the Eastern Emperor Alexius I sent an urgent appeal for help against the Muslims to Pope Urban II. The Pope responded by preaching one of history's most influential sermons. In a field near Clermont, France he said to the huge crowd that had gathered, “Your Eastern brothers have asked for your help. Turks and Arabs have conquered their territories.  I, or rather, the Lord begs you, destroy that vile race from their lands!”But there was more to Urban's appeal than just liberating the East from infidel hordes. He also mentioned the European need for more land. He said, "For this land which you inhabit is too narrow for your large population; nor does it abound in wealth; and it furnishes scarcely food enough for its cultivators. Hence it is that you murder and devour one another, enter upon the road to the Holy Sepulcher; wrest that land from the wicked race, and subject it to yourselves.”Popes and bishops were accustomed to making such bold proclamations and issuing stirring appeals. They were nearly always met by loud “Amens!” and affirmations of the rightness of their call. Then people went home to lunch and promptly forgot all about what they'd just heard.  So the response to Urban's sermon that day was astonishing. The crowd began to chant, “Deus vult = God wills it!” But they did more than chant. People across the entire socio-economic spectrum of Europe began preparations to do precisely what the Pope had said è Go to Jerusalem and liberate it from the Muslims. They sewed crosses onto their tunics, painted them on their shields, fired up the smithies and made swords, spears and maces. Commoners who couldn't afford armor or real weapons, made clubs and sharpened sticks.They were going to go on a new kind of pilgrimage. Not as humble worshippers but as armed warriors. Their enemy wasn't the world, the flesh and the devil; it was the Muslim infidel defiling the Holy Places.As the Pope ended his impassioned appeal to the loud affirmation of the crowd, he declared their slogan Deus Vult! would be the crusader battle cry in the coming campaign.The pilgrims agreed to make their way east any way they could, gathering at Constantinople. Then they'd form into armies and march south toward the enemy.The First Crusade was underway.As word spread across France and Germany of the holy mission, people from across all social levels were caught up in Crusader fervor. A similar excitement was seen in the California and Yukon Gold Rushes. It's not difficult to understand why. We need to be careful here because removed by a thousand years we can't presume to know the motivations that shaped every Crusader's actions, even though there are not a few historians who claim to be able to do so. Surely motives were mixed and diverse. Some, out of simple obedience to the Church and Pope, believed it was God's will to expel the Muslims from the Holy Land. Being illiterate peasants, they couldn't read the Bible or know God's will on the matter. They believed it was the Pope's duty to tell them what God willed and trusted him to do it. When the Pope declared anyone who died in the holy cause would bypass purgatory and enter directly into heaven, all the incentive needed to go was provided for thousands who lived in the constant fear of ever being good enough to merit heaven.Another powerful incentive was the opportunity for wealth. Medieval Europe was locked in a rigid feudalism that kept the poor in perpetual poverty. There was simply no rising above the social level one was born into. A Crusade offered a chance at the unthinkable. The loot of a successful campaign could bring great wealth, even to a peasant. And those who returned gained a reputation as a warrior that could see them and their sons raised into positions of relative honor in a noble's army.The risks were great; but the benefits both tangible and significant. So thousands took up the crusader cause.The problem for the thousands of peasants who wanted to go was that no noble would lead them. On the contrary, the nobles wanted their serfs to stay home and tend their fields and farms. But the Pope's appeal had gone out to all and no noble wanted to be seen as contradicting the Church. So they just hoped no one would rise to lead them. It was one of those moments of profound leadership vacuum that just begged to be filled; who filled it was a man known as Peter the Hermit.Of all the Crusaders, Peter surely had the strongest scent. The monk had not bathed in decades. He rode a donkey that, eyewitnesses said, bore a remarkable resemblance to its owner. Peter's preaching was even more powerful than his odor. In 9 months, he gathered 20,000 peasants under his banner, then began the long and difficult trek east to Constantinople.They created chaos as soon as they arrived. Complaints of robbery poured into the Emperor's office. He knew these Western European peasants were no match for the Muslims, but he couldn't let them camp out in his city. They were ferried across the river where they immediately began pillaging the homes of Eastern Christians. Many of these poor, uneducated and illiterate peasants had come for loot and saw plenty of it right there. They'd already travelled a long way from home and were now among a people who spoke a different language, wore different styles and ate different foods. “Why, they don't look like Christians at all! And what's that you say? These people don't follow the Pope? Well, then maybe they aren't Christians. Didn't we set out to fight unbelievers? Here are some. Let's get to work.”“But these aren't Muslims!”“Okay. We'll compromise. We won't kill them; we'll just take their stuff.”Peter's peasant army put additional strain on the already poor relations between the Eastern and Roman churches. Two months later, the peasants marched straight into a Muslim ambush and were wiped out. Peter, who was in Constantinople rounding up supplies—was the lone survivor. He then joined another army, this one led by European nobility who arrived well after the peasants. These Crusaders defeated the Muslims at Antioch then continued on to Jerusalem.The Muslims failed to take this second movement of the Crusade seriously. It's not difficult to understand why. They'd just defeated a huge force of Europeans easily. They assumed they'd do the same to the smaller force that came against them now. What they didn't realize was that this force, while indeed smaller, was the cream of Europe's warrior class; mounted and armored knights who grew up on battle.On July 15, 1099, Jerusalem fell to the Crusaders. It was a brutal massacre. Around the Temple Mount, blood flowed ankle-deep. Newborn infants were thrown against walls. It wasn't just Muslims who knew the Crusaders' wrath. A synagogue was torched, killing the Jews trapped inside. Some of the native Christians were also put to the sword. To this day, the wholesale slaughter of the First Crusade affects how Jews and Muslims perceive the Christian faith.But -- and this in no wise is meant to be a justification for the brutality of the Crusades; it seems just a tad hypocritical for Muslims to decry the atrocities of the Crusades when it was by the very same means they'd laid claim to the holy land in the 7th C. In truth, while crusading under the Christian cross is a horrible violation of the morality of Biblical Christianity—Jihad, Holy War is one of the main tenets of Islam. Long before the Pope erroneously offered absolution to Crusaders and the promise of heaven to those who died in the campaign, Islam promised paradise to Muslims who died in Jihad. Historically, while the Christian faith has spread by the work of humanitarian missionaries, Islam has spread by the sword. Or we might say, while true Christianity expands by the sword of the Spirit, Islam spreads by a sword of steel.Following the conquest of Jerusalem, the Crusaders carved out four states in the Middle East; the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the County of Tripoli, the Principality of Antioch, and the County of Edessa.This First crusade was followed by eight more, none of them really able to accomplish the success of the first, if we can call it success. All told, the gains of the Crusades lasted less than 200 years. But one major accomplishment was the reopening of international trade between Europe and the Far East, something that had languished for a few hundred years.The Crusades have proven to be the focus of much historical study and debate. They're usually linked to the political and social situation in 11th C Europe, the rise of a reform movement within the papacy, and the political and religious confrontation of Christianity and Islam in the Middle East. The Umayyad Caliphate had conquered Syria, Egypt, and North Africa from the predominantly Christian Byzantine Empire, and Spain from the Arian Christian Visigoths. When the Ummayads collapsed in North Africa, several smaller Muslim kingdoms emerged and attacked Italy in the 9th C. Pisa, Genoa, and Catalonia battled various Muslim kingdoms for control of the Mediterranean.The Crusaders were emboldened in their prospects for success in the Holy Land because of the successes they'd had in the Reconquista, the conquest of the Muslom Moors in the Iberian Peninsula. Earlier in the 11th C, French knights joined the Spanish in their campaign to retake their homeland. Shortly before the First Crusade, Pope Urban II encouraged the Spanish Christians to reconquer Tarragona, using much of the same symbolism and rhetoric he later used to preach Crusade to the people of Europe.Western Europe stabilized after the Saxons, Vikings, and Hungarians were brought into the Church by the end of the 10th C. But the demise of the Carolingian Empire gave rise to an entire class of warriors who had little to do but fight among themselves. The incessant warfare sapped Europe of its strength and wealth. Europe needed an external enemy they could turn their wrath on. As we saw in a previous episode, while the violence of knights was regularly condemned by the Church, and there was the attempt to regulate them in the treaties known as the Peace and Truce of God, the knights largely ignored these attempts at pacification. The Church needed an external threat they could direct the knights lust for battle toward.It was also at this time that the Popes were in constant competition with the Western emperors over the issue of investiture - the question of who had the authority to appoint bishops; the Church or the nobility. In some of the squabbles between Church and State, the popes weren't above calling out knights and nobles loyal to them to back down the power of the Emperor and recalcitrant nobles. So the Pope's mobilizing an armed force wasn't that far out of context.Another reason Pope Urban called for the First Crusade may have been his desire to assert control over the East. Remember that the Great Schism had occurred 40 years before and the churches had been rent ever since. While historians suggest this as one of several reasons driving Pope Urban's decision to start the Crusade, there's no evidence from any of his letters this factored into his plans.Until the crusaders' arrival, the Byzantines had continually fought the Muslim Turks for control of Asia Minor and Syria. The Seljuks, Sunni Muslims, had at one time ruled the Great Seljuk Empire, but by the First Crusade it had divided into several smaller states at odds with each other. If the First Crusade and been waged just a decade before it would probably have been crushed by a united Seljuk force. But by the time they arrived in the Middle East, the Seljuks were at odds with each other.Egypt and most of Palestine was controlled by the Arab Shi'ite Fatimid Caliphate, which was far smaller since the arrival of the Seljuks. Warfare between the Fatimids and Seljuks caused great disruption for the local Christians and western pilgrims. The Fatimids lost Jerusalem to the Seljuks in 1073, then recaptured it in 1098 just before the arrival of the Crusaders.As I said at the outset of this episode, this is just a summary of the First Crusade. Because this is such a crucial moment in Church History, we'll come back to it in our next episode.As we end, I want to once again say, “Thanks” to all the kind comments and those who've given the CS Facebook page a like.Every so often I mention that CS is supporter solely by a few subscribers. You can probably tell the podcast is your typical sole-author, “guy, a mic, and a computer” arrangement. I'm so thankful for those who occasionally send in a donation to keep CS going.

April 27, 2012 - Robert Hanning