Was the War on Terror a Crusade?

While the term “crusade” has become a generality used to describe action taken towards a particular issue, the history of the “crusade” is based in death and suffering. When Pope Urban II first called for the first Crusade to reclaim the Holy Lands and aid Eastern Christians, he hoped that he would solve many of the problems faced by medieval Europe in 1095. However, the resulting events of the first crusade arguably created many more long term problems than solutions. In a recent article from by author James Carroll, he compares the failure of the first and subsequent crusades to the Bush Administration’s crusade to avenge the 9/11 attacks.

Following the 9/11 attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States entered the War on Terror, which was aimed at combating international terrorism. On September 16th, President Bush addressed the nation and stated that “This crusade, this war on terrorism, is going to take a while.” (1) James Carroll reasons that President Bush’s use of the word crusade in this instance is meant to be positive, and that the word crusade is synonymous with a noble act of justice. Carroll also uses the word “crusade” to describe the US’s entry into the War on Terror, however, it means something different in his opinion.

Much like the first Crusade advocated for by Pope Urban II, he suggests that this modern crusade was a failure for many reasons. For one, Carroll shows how the objectives of the War on Terror were not exactly clearly defined, and often this led to confusion for the ground units deployed to fight. Similarly, the knights, peasants, and other able bodies that traveled to the Holy Lands did not exactly know the objectives of their conquest. Pope Urban II offered the consolation of “remission of your sins, with the assurance of the reward of imperishable glory” to every brave warrior, yet the actual objective of the crusade was not tangibly defined nor did it have an established end point (2).

In both instances, they were given a goal that was not concretely defined and therefore this led to confusion that ultimately cost innocent lives and resources.

The use of the word “crusade” varies wildly, and I believe it is most important to tread carefully when using it. People have used the term “modern crusade” to describe Hitler’s persecution of the Jewish population during the Holocaust, and that is a clearly negative connotation, just like James Carroll’s use (3). In the instance of President Bush’s speech, I believe it would have been appropriate to use another more neutral term (like campaign) to describe America’s involvement in the war- especially considering the region’s history and the demographics of the area at that time.

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Sources:

https://www.thenation.com/article/donald-trump-is-on-a-crusade/
Pope Urban II: Speech at Clermont 1095 (Robert the Monk version)
https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/millennium/m4/armstrong.html

Islam and Christianity

Christianity and Islam serve at the two largest universalizing religions in the world. Upon initially examining these religions and the historic feuds (The Crusades) between them, it can appear that they do not have anything in common. However, once one begins to understand the origins and beliefs of the religions, they will begin to notice many similar tenants. Although some of their ideological and theological beliefs significantly differ, these two religions share many connections. Both of these religions trace their origins to the prophet Abraham, believe in a centralized holy text, and profess to one true God. Oftentimes referenced as religions of the book, the Bible and the Qur’an serve as the baseline of these two religious cultures. After closer examination of the two holy texts, I was shocked to notice a surprising amount of similarities between the two. The central texts of Christianity and Islam both mirror similar stories and characters which are sometimes unrecognized by many.

One of these stories is the dispute between Cain and Abel, sons of Adam and Eve. As the story goes, the brothers made sacrifices to God. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice due to his righteousness. Cain, out of jealousy for his brother, then killed Abel and was exiled by God. In the Bible says, “And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.” (Genesis 4:8). Although not mentioned explicitly by name, the Qur’an shares a virtually identical narrative of two brothers by saying, “Then his mind facilitated to him the slaying of his brother so he slew him; then he became one of the losers” (Sura 5:30). Although the stories were annotated differently, they remarkably describe the same story. Growing up Catholic, I did not realize that Muslims believed in many of the same parables that I did.

Another surprising fact to me is that the Qur’an and the Bible have over fifty characters in common. One of the most important of these to appear in both texts is the Angel Gabriel. In Bible states, “In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God…And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” (Luke 1:26-29). The Qur’an narrates a similar story by stating, “…Then We sent to her Our Angel, and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man….He said, “I am only the messenger of your Lord to give you [news of] a pure boy.” (Surah Maryam, 17-19). Among other similar characters are Abraham, Noah, Joseph, John the Baptist. However, one character upon which both religions differ in the belief of is Jesus. While Jesus is mentioned in both of the books, the two religions believe in his divinity differently. In the Bible, Jesus is the son of God, but in the Qur’an, he was just a prophet sent by Allah. Having no previous knowledge of the Qur’an, I thought the two religions shared more differences like with Jesus than similarities like Gabriel.

After examining the holy texts of Islam and Christianity more closely, I was generally surprised to find how many similarities that they share. It also got me thinking that Islam and Christianity might not be distinctly different religious traditions that many people think they are. They are merely varying understandings of a coinciding religious culture, deeply rooted within the centralized holy texts.

Melissa Cortese (Word Count: 572)

Islam and Christianity

Both Christianity and Islam begin with having similar roots and history. They are both monotheistic religions that are guided by a book. These are the Bible for Christianity and the Quran for Islam. They share similar quotes. In our class, when we looked at quotes from the Quran and from the Bible, it was sometimes difficult to even tell which book it was from. The religions believe in the same prophets up until Jesus, whom they believe was a prophet but not the son of God like Christians believe. Although they do not believe he was divine, it is interesting to learn that they still believe he was born of the Virgin Mary. After all, a virgin birth is something that is not all that common… However they also both still believe that Jesus was an important prophet who performed many miracles. I did not realize until now that Jesus, although not considered the son of God, was still such an important person in the Islamic religion.

Both Islam and Christianity use the same justification for their fighting in the crusades. They both believed that it was the will of their god to fight and interpreted this from passages in each of their religious books. Dying in battle in the name of their god was considered a great act and worthy of eternal life. This is made clear in Pope Urban the II’s speech for persuading people to join the crusade when he says, “Everyone that hath forsaken houses…shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life”. The Quran also makes it very clear in Sura 9:39 that Muslims believed in fighting against the Christians when it states “If you do not go to war (Jihad), He will punish you severely and replace you with other men. You can in no way harm him: For Allah has power over all things”. In the end, both sides thought that they were right and were just fighting for what they believed in.

Although Christianity and Islam have many similarities, they are mutually exclusive because of their fundamental beliefs about Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus Christ is indeed God and the savior, and Muslim people believe that Jesus was only a prophet. The basis of Christianity is this belief in Jesus. Therefore, this one principle alone means that no person can be both Islamic and Christian. However, they can still believe in many of the same other things because of the many similarities between the two religions. Whether someone is Muslim or Christian, they will still practice the golden rule of loving thy neighbor as thyself and working in this life on achieving eternal life in heaven with God or Allah.

Word Count: 449

Sources:

Second Crusade Document from readings

Pope Urban II speech Robert the Monk version

https://www.onfaith.co/text/9-similarities-between-christianity-and-islam

Islam and Christianity

Christianity and Islam have many apparent and well-known similarities. Both are “Religions of the book”, both are a form of monotheism, and both regard Jerusalem as the holy land. However, these are also things reflected in Judaism—the third of the three prominent monotheistic religions in the world. Having recently learned more about both Christianity and Islam, there are many other details that show how similar they really are, and highlight ways in which Christianity and Islam contrast with Judaism.

The Caliphate represents the community of Islamic people, and is headed by the Caliph. The Caliph is someone that the Islamic people look up to as an example, as someone pure, someone to get advice from and to seek guidance from. If you are a Christian, you are a follower and member of the church. The Pope is in charge of the church, and supposed to be an example for the community of someone pure and free of sin—someone completely invested and dedicated to God and teaching the ways of a good Christian. In this way, Christianity and Islam are very similar.

Jesus Christ is seen in both Islam and Christianity as an important figure. Christianity views Jesus as both divine and human, the son of God and the Messiah. Islam sees Jesus as a prophet of God. Each religion’s belief doesn’t quite line up. However, when compared to that of Judaism, they are more similar than it originally appears. In Judaism, Jesus was not an important religious figure. In fact, the Jewish people regard Jesus Christ as a false prophet. The fact that Islam and Christianity both believe in Jesus as an important religious figure sets them apart from Judaism, and closer to each other.

Both Christianity and Islam have had to fight many battles in order to keep their religion and expand its influence. For Christianity, these battles were the Crusades. The First Crusade came about when the Christian city of Constantinople became overrun. Pope Urban II then called for the Christian men of Europe to assemble and reclaim the city and protect their religion. Fighting in the Crusades was the will of God, and those who died in conflict earned a spot in heaven. In Islam, the term “Jihad” translates to “the struggle”. Jihad is the struggle to protect Islam and spread its influence. Dying while participating in Jihad is seen as Holy. The likenesses of Jihad and the Crusades highlight the similarity between Islam and Christianity.

While all these things compare Islam and Christianity, many parts of the two ideologies remain mutually exclusive. For example, while the Crusades have happened in the past and do not represent a constant push of Christianity, Jihad is seen as more of a concrete part of Islam.

Both ideologies structures and many of their beliefs line up. However, there also remain parts that are mutually exclusive of each other. My recently gained knowledge of both Islam and Christianity have made it clear that these two ideologies are a lot more alike than your average Joe might think.

508 Words

Islam vs Christianity

5 NOV 18

Two of the largest religions in the world today are Christianity and Islam. While many people may argue that these two religions differ vastly in their beliefs and practices, there are actually many similarities between the two. Starting with the most general fact about Islam and Christianity, they are both monotheistic which means belief in one god. Islam believes in Allah and Christians believe in God. Following this is Jesus. Each religion has a Jesus who were both virgin born. Islam however, believes that Jesus is not the son of god but rather a messiah. Christians believe Jesus is the divine son of God and savior to humanity. Two of the biggest differences between the two religions deal with the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. The Islamic religion believe that someone was substituted for Jesus so the real one could hide and meet with his disciples. Per Christianity though, Jesus was crucified on the cross for the atonement of sin and salvation of all those who believed. Due to the Islamic people not believing in the crucifixion, they do not believe in the resurrection. Christians though believe Jesus rose on the third day. Another comparison between these religions deals with the idea of man. Islam states that when men are created, they are sinless. Christians believe that man is created in God’s image and is sinful by nature and have to believe and serve to wash away their sin. After doing some small research and looking at the similarities between these two religions, I was very shocked to see how much the two have in common. A majority of the beliefs are very similar and only differ by one or two small details if that. Both religions have similar overarching ideas within their practices and beliefs such as the idea of judgment day and also the idea of heaven and hell. The two religions also share the belief that Jesus will come again one day to defeat the Antichrist. To answer the last question are they mutually exclusive, I believe the answer cannot be decided by one person. I believe that respect should be given towards all religions and that a Christian could study Islam in order to become a better Christian and vice versa. Although very similar, each religion had exclusive lessons and principles that although aren’t taught in other religions, could still be applied to whatever religion you practice. So my answer is yes and no. I do not believe that you could be Islamic and Christian, but I do believe you could be a Christian and study the Islamic religion alongside to help you in your religious journey or vice versa.

Kody Crider

Blog Post 5

Christianity and Islam share many characteristics that most people are not aware of. Prior to taking HH215, I, like many others, was quite ignorant to the several similarities shared by Islam and Christianity. I found it interesting that Islam and Christianity share many prophets, both recognize Jesus as a figure in the religion, and hail from the same background. With that being said, I would say that with the current state of the world that the two religions are mutually exclusive.

The two religions share many prophets, most notably prophets such as Jesus, Moses, and Noah. While their roles and stories are not exactly the same, the presence of these people was a shock to me. For example Noah is portrayed as a drunk in the bible, but not in the Islamic religion, because prophets would never be portrayed like that in Islam. Regardless of that, the reality is that the two share this figure. This parallel between the two religions is so shocking due to the fact that today they are perceived as polar opposites.

The most surprising fact is that both religions involve Jesus. Obviously, the Christian religion recognizes Jesus Christ as the most prominent figure, as the Messiah. They worship him as their God. Whereas the Islamic religion as a prophet of God, not as a god. Although the religions don’t view him in the same way, it is very interesting that they both include Jesus as a figure.

The previous two points prelude to the fact that they came from the same background. To someone growing up in this day and age it comes as a surprise that these two religions come from the same roots. Most probably believe the similarities end with monotheism, and nothing other than that. But the truth is that these religions share prophets, and similar beliefs, and come from the same origins, even share Jesus.

But are these religions mutually exclusive? I would say that in this world’s current state that they are. The world is filled with so much hate and conflict, and because of that fact these religions cannot seem to get along. If people on both side realized all of the similarities stated above, as well as the countless others, then these two religions could come together in harmony. For people on both sides they merely see the stereotypical radicalized groups, skin color, and background of each respective religion, and write them off completely. Until people on both sides overcome these differences then the religions will remain exclusive.

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http://www.islamforchristians.com/greatest-prophets-christianity-islam-prophet-noah/

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1tViPIynK3_bqu_Rzf_DD1kP4Sagpe3EV

Justified War?

MIDN 3/C Ionatan Soule, USN

The First Crusade was the first Christian attempt to retake the holy land promised in the Old Testament. Even though the Crusaders defended Constantinople, they had no greater claim to the holy land than any of the other Abrahamic religions.

To discuss this topic fully, it is important to recognize the significance of the holy land, primarily Jerusalem, has for each of the three religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. To the Christians, Jerusalem is home to the majority of Jesus’ actions and life, especially his death and resurrection. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is supposedly built on the hill of Calvary, the location of Jesus Crucifixion, and his tomb, where he was resurrected, is located inside. The significance of these is events is core to the Christian religion and it is no wonder that they believe they had the rightful claim to this land during the first crusade. The Muslims would disagree, however, because Jerusalem also contains the al-Aqsa Mosque. This mosque is the third most holy location in the Islamic tradition because it is said that Mohammad ascended into heaven there. For the Jews, Jerusalem contains the Wailing Wall which supported the Holy Temple before its collapse. Additionally, they believe the foundation stone from which the rest of the world was created is located there. All these reasons make it clear that every branch of the Abrahamic religions has significant claims to Jerusalem.

Since every branch has a very good and valid reason why Jerusalem should be under their control, it would be unfair to give one branch sole rights to the area for these reasons. Looking back to the first crusade, the crusaders may have been fighting for what they thought were noble reasons, but their reasons were no nobler than those of the Muslims and Jews. Since they did not have a greater claim to Jerusalem, other methods must be used to determine the justifiability or unjustifiability of the crusades.

Using Just War Theory as an ulterior way to analyze the situation, it is clear that the Christian Crusaders were not justified in capturing Jerusalem. Despite their claims, the local population—with similar claims—had already inhabited that region for many centuries and had established their own government and way of life. Since they posed no threat to the European powers, Europe was not retaliating against an aggressor, rather it was the aggressor thereby making their actions unjust.

Though the Crusaders had many biblical and traditional reasons to fight the first crusade, they were not justified in doing so. An ideal solution would have been to diplomatically arrange safe passage to all faiths in order to make the pilgrimage to the holy lands and practice their beliefs without the need to control the region outright.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-26934435

Modern Crusaders?

The word “crusade” much like the word “tyrant” has come around in the modern age to mean something different than what it did in history. Many writers and journalists compare anti-Trump movements and wars on terrorism to crusades. I believe that this use of the word is unfair. The word’s initial meaning was nothing more than a name for the expeditions made by Europeans in order to reclaim the Holy Lands from the Muslims. Now, when we hear the word crusade, we think of it as a strong movement to change something or to fight a certain oppression that people are experiencing. Although the Europeans did feel extremely strong in their values to reclaim the Holy Lands, the use of the word in a modern context takes away from the true meaning. The crusades were a series of very intense battles, with loads of gore and violence. Using the word to describe things such as political movements seems relatively extreme.

In an article written by Selwyn Duke in The New American, the soldiers fighting ISIS are compared to the crusaders. I believe that this is an inaccurate comparison. The reason for fighting ISIS has nothing to do with religious beliefs or values. Also, the goal of the United States military is not to reclaim any land. It is a fight to squander the values that are associated with terrorism. Although some people believe the ongoing fight between various militaries around the world and ISIS is a religious expedition, the main reason for the fighting is to stop terrorism, and does not have anything to do with a religious grudge, essentially. This is quite different from the actual crusaders, as their goal was to reclaim the land from Muslims. Although there are parallels in the actual fighting, the reasons do not justify the battle against ISIS as being a crusade. I believe that a more fitting word to describe the battle against ISIS would be something like “the just war”.

Disregarding the article by Duke, I believe that straying away from using crusade to describe peaceful movements would be beneficial in providing a more accurate meaning to the word and not taking away from the meaning. Just like the word tyrant, crusade has come to mean something different. Both of these words should be used conservatively by modern media in order to not take away from the meaning that is actually intended.

WC: 403

https://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/europe/item/20163-modern-crusaders-fighting-isis

The War on Terror: The Modern Medieval

Many throughout the years have compared our current goal to eliminate terrorist organizations, specifically ISIS, as the modern-day crusade. This both misuses the word crusade and misuses the word medieval. In fact, I think the use of the word crusade brings about an unnecessary antisemitism in the US. Many politicians have referred to our involvement in the war against terrorism as a crusade and likewise, some of the terrorist organizations tie the same parallel in an attempt to gain momentum and draw a comparison to the crusades in order to be divisive and separate the world into jihadist and crusaders.

Most dangerously, far-right political groups use the term in an attempt to justify their calls for Islamophobia. Noticeably news organizations like Breitbart make the parallel to support their argument for the expulsion of Muslim foreigners and the general isolation of the religion. In the most modern context, the use of words like medieval brings a context to the terrorist and the general middle east that suggest that they are savages, less than, of a less than civilized era. Using the word medieval to describe terrorist organizations suggest that their religion is somehow innately evil and prone to violence. Many people have pointed to text in their sacred book to make this comparison and justify their fear of the religion. It is interesting that these terrorist organizations, at times, also point to text in Bible that do the same thing. Instead, these terrorist organizations use their text and the history of the crusade to justify their use of violence in defense of their people. Much like these terrorist organizations, a far-right organization like the Kansas Crusaders due the same. Think of the name crusades, it suggests that there is some divine power that has demanded that we fight terrorist also pointing to experts of violence. Is this not the same ideology of the terrorist organizations?

Using the word medieval suggest that these terrorist have technology that is insufficient and their societies are less than sufficient to survive. It paints them as savages and tying this terrorist with any person that is from the middle eastern region is a very dangerous thing to do. It underestimates the ability of ISIS., in fact, this organization is a result of the breakup of the Ottoman Empire in the 20th century. It uses some of the same modern communications and movement techniques and it is so modern that our military has had to change our tactics to account for their insurgency style fighting. The uses of the word medieval to describe this horrible organization are not accurate and we should be careful to compare the two if we want to defeat them. Moreover comparing this to a modern crusade is yet another dangerous precedent to set. If we want to end terrorism, we should be careful to stop fueling their base by assuming the middle easter equals violent terrorist.

Words: 485

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/16/opinions/nothing-medieval-about-isis-perry/index.html Crusader_Christ__warned_ISIS_about

Sun Tzu and the Naval Academy

In The Art of War, Sun Tzu explains the various ways an officer attains success in the military. The way Sun Tzu presents the topic of war, the reader gets the sense that Sun Tzu does not think of war as a violent or sought out engagement. In fact, Sun Tzu state that “better take an army…intact than destroy them”, suggesting that direct battle is not what we should strive for. Instead, Sun Tzu speaks about strategy and deception. One common theme that could be found in each of Sun Tzu’s chapters is knowledge-knowledge of self and of the enemy. Sun Tzu places a general’s ability to succeed based on his awareness of his own strengths, the strengths of his men, the strengths of the enemy, and the awareness of how the surrounding environment can enhance or hinder each of these strengths.

Similarly, one technique we are taught at the Naval Academy is our ability to manage time. We must know where we exceed and where we struggle in order to know how to prioritize the tasks we are given with the limited time we have. For example, a midshipman who is already fit and can pass the PRT but struggles with academics will most likely put more time into their studies than in working because that is where they are weak.

I think both Sun Tzu and the Naval Academy teach a necessary and effective technique. As military officers we must be able to evaluate ourselves and our men, constantly seeking improvement. If we neglect to do this then we run the risk of remaining complacent. This lack of awareness also keeps us from either not using the combined talents of our forces to their fullest potential, or stretching ourselves too far to the point of breaking. I also think that knowing the enemy and understanding where their strengths and weaknesses lie allow us to strategize effectively.

In the beginning of Chapter One, Sun Tzu states that there are Five Fundamentals when thinking about war. One of these fundamentals is what Sun Tzu calls Command, described as “Wisdom; Integrity; Compassion; Courage; Severity.” Reading this I immediately thought of the ethics and leadership classes we are required to take, and the discussion of virtues in both of these classes. One thing that is stressed to us as midshipmen and future naval officers is the importance of virtues, and how knowing what our own virtues help us develop our leadership skills as well how we are influenced when making decisions as an officer in charge of Sailors and Marines. This another example of how the teachings of both Sun Tzu and the Naval Academy are in alignment with their view on what is most important when serving in the military and in war. I do not think it is a coincidence that the teachings of the Naval Academy and those of Sun Tzu overlap, and both are effective in helping the officer comprehend the complete magnitude of war and the full impact the consequences of our actions can make.

Word Count: 508