Let’s look at this whole scene from Jewish eyes and re-think the whole thing.
One sign of a good ambassador and guest is that they avoid topics that are issues of controversy around their hosts and that they respect in advance the feelings of all concerned. The Crusades are such a topic. Christian pilgrims and tourists read much before they board the flight to make their aliyot to The Land. They will envelope themselves in the Bible, travel guides, history books that cover everything from Egyptian Pharaohs, Assyrian and Babylonian armies, Roman emperors and legions, Muslim Caliphs and Sultans and Crusaders.
Jerusalem is a puzzle in stone that had many makers and builders, much remains from the time of the Crusades. It has been said that history is written by the winners. Actually history is often written by winners and victims. Perhaps it’s time to look at the Crusades from a different point of view and ask just how “Christian” were they and how do we discuss these wars when the subject comes up on our journey to Jerusalem and The Land.
Christians view the Crusading period in a more Hollywood setting than in the geopolitical one in which it resides. Complex issues are easy ones for Hollywood to solve because they can compress time, add in some anachronisms and now you have heroes and villains. This is continued in today’s sound bite social media simplicity where evidence is ignored and we get to vote on truth, or someone’s version of it The history of the Jews who somehow had returned to the vicinity of Jerusalem and The land after Roman times is a mixed one. After the Western Empire essentially fell apart, the Eastern Empire thrived. Constantinople became one of the most successful empires in history and was for the most part fairly tolerant of the Jews.
The rise of an energetic, fire and sword Islam changed much of the world. Expanding into Europe and capturing Jerusalem in the early years, the Temple Mount saw two mosques take the place once occupied by the Temple. Jews and Christians saw the challenge of convert or else. Depending upon who was administering Jerusalem, usually ambivalence and taxes were the rule. For the most part Jews were left alone in the land. However, the Byzantine Emperor saw some danger from its Muslim neighbors and decided to ask for a band of knights, essentially wanting some warriors for hire and word got to Europe. The Papacy had not been doing so well politically and it was time to assert its authority. Rumors and outright propaganda began to spread after the Pope made a declaration about the need to re-assert the rights of Christians to enter the holy places. Depending on who was delivering the message and who received it, this was a call to arms, not merely a “warriors wanted” call.
Attitudes towards European Jews varied all over Christendom. It was a very local affair. Jews did have certain conditions and terms for coexistence listed as a rule. Europe was for the most part Christian and depending on their personalities and influences, rulers usually dictated living conditions for the Jewish population. In some places Jews were prohibited from certain trades and professions, often times they had to wear some type of identifying type of clothing.
The first Crusaders’ journey across Europe to the Holy Land resembled Sherman’s March to the Sea in more ways than one. Often times hungry knights and camp followers often demanded and accepted ransoms for cities, raided food supplies and otherwise behaved quite poorly. Finally arriving at the gates of Jerusalem an outright slaughter of the population began. The violence was indescribable.
The City was ruled by a conglomeration of knightly forces and local kingdoms were established. The Latin’s had landed. When Salah eh Din Al Yub Al Yusef, A Kurd, captured the city a later Crusade was called, and Richard the Lionhearted led. There were others but at some point things wore down and the Europeans all went home.
What remained was a more hardened attitude towards the Jews and a regular pattern of ghetto life, pogroms and deportations. The Inquisition, expulsion from Spain and modern day institutional anti-Semitism are the stepchildren of the Crusades.
Perhaps just as critical is the inheritance of the antagonism that the entire period that has become part of the Arab population’s view of European and Western culture. It is viewed as a negative flashpoint and is best left to academic discussions. Are the Crusades a historic fact? Yes, they are certainly. Have they had a long lasting effect on East –West relationships, absolutely. As Christian visitors to Israel a respect for our hosts and the mixed populations of Israel make a careful re-examination of this critical series of events necessary and perhaps changing the subject is the best choice for some time to come. Besides, there is so much to learn from each other we need to concentrate on our common ground and firm up our foothold.
In this day of flashpoint communications and social media frenzy a slipped or unintended comment can set off a digital storm that takes days to calm. Even more than today visitors to Israel need to think of themselves as ambassadors and consider the things said or intended to be said. Ambassadors always think before they speak and choose their words wisely. We are also charged to speak the truth in love. The Crusades are one subject where these guidelines will work rather well.
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