first and foremost as members of body of Christ

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We, as people living in the 21st century should not be too quick to judge or condemn our ancestors who lived and participated in the Crusades because we need to remember that we will also be judged and condemned by God; we are not the perfect generation and no generation was, is, and will be. We cannot fully understand the struggles that our ancestors have faced as they saw their fellow Christians lose their world, culture, and lifestyle. Although the crusaders may have thought logically and realistically about the barbarians taking over their land and of course their response was to defend, they lost their appeal when Christians began to no longer identify themselves first and foremost as members of body of Christ. Because of the way they have responded to the barbarians, maybe out love charity, love, pride, but also out of anger, and frustration, and ignorance, they have not only destroyed their world but left a long term, unsolvable effects on the lives of Christians and Islamic followers. The Western-Middle East relations up to the 21st century show the mutual hurt from the past. Yes, it is true that history repeats itself and that is why there were numerous wars and ongoing wars, however, history is also continuous. Through examining major arguments that Urban II has made while portraying the Muslims as “ignorant”, “despicable”, “degenerate” and “enslaved by demons”, Christians naively believed that there will be remission of sins and be allowed to enter the Kingdom of heaven. His unfair approach and Christians’ lack of knowledge on the true Word led to numerous battles, unnecessary deaths, economic problems, and an ongoing bitterness between both parties. The crusades were understandable but definitely unacceptable. Christia...

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...he Crusaders failed to identify themselves as Christians and blended in with the world by not living by the Word and most importantly, not reflecting the life Jesus has lived. This horrific event in history which killed many innocent lives and portrayed foul actions of Christians could have been avoided. As Thomas Jefferson said, “I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past”. We, Christians, made many mistakes in the past, one being the Crusades, and we are continuing to fail constantly, but through our continuous effort to follow God’s instructions, I wish to see a day where non-Christians would be able to appreciate what we, Christians truly believe in. I hope that we can seek to reflect nothing but the pure, amazing image of Jesus. In order to do this, first and foremost, we need to identify ourselves as Christians, followers of Christ.

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