He said Jesus was subordinate to God. That is not a God. Voting that Jesus is equal to God is making him a God. These aren't semantics.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
The Arians were Christians. For the most part, most of the Germanic tribes that migrated into an through Western Europe were Arians, and they waged war against the Roman Empire for several centuries before they were defeated by Byzantium.
Using your own words the Turkish Empire. That's some pretty dishy real estate.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
You didn’t answer the question: what coercive state power did Christian missionaries have, during Christianity’s incipient centuries, to extort this “fine treasure” or to expropriate the “choice real estate”? Christianity predates any Turkish empire in Anatolia by nearly a millennium.
By the first Crusade the Roman Empire was gone.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
No. No it wasn’t.
What country or territory of the Western European nations was attacked and by whom to validate the Crusades. No, the Crusaders attacked a culture and religion. They had a jehad against the Muslims. Mind you, I'm not a big fan of either group or their Gods.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
The Seljuk Empire was an empire. The kingdoms of Western Europe were beckoned by Byzantium, as allies (like great Britain sought U.S. military aid against Germany during WWII), to help throw out the Turkish invaders.
And these mother fuckers, according to Christianity, can go to heaven along with the people they killed. It's either a cruel joke or grown up Santa Clauseism.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
Lenin, Stalin and Mao were atheistic communists who have demonstrated Christians – or Islam – have no monopoly on persecution and death.
For their religion, culture and stopping the flow of dollars back to Rome. So what you're saying is that one day the Muslims attacked the Christian nation of Turkey and won setting up Muslim theocracies / or monarchies supported by the divine right to rule, and that the Christian Crusaders returned fire. Right?
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
“Turkey” – derived from “Turks” – was never a Christian Empire. However, Rome and Byzantium were Christian Empires, and the geographic region which is modern day Turkey – Anatolia – once belonged to the Roman and subsequently to the Byzantium Empire before it was conquered by the Turks.
Here I always thought the Crusades were started when the Christians tried to recapture Jerusalem because the now Muslim rulers made it hard on Christians to make their pilgrimages.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
The key word is “recapture”.
That wasn't a jehad. It was a war started for territory and economic needs.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
Actually, the military expansionism of both Islam and Imperial Japan was for territory and booty.
The Crusades began with Christians trying to "recapture" Jerusalem because Christendom thought, no felt, Jerusalem was their Holy Ground.
Originally Posted by OliviaHoward
Again, the key word is “recapture”.