Author’s note: This article was originally posted at TRP on the 28th of April, 2012.
Everything that is wrong with the world is the fault of some people who believe in the Constitution and a man named Jesus …
Currently there is a fervent effort by the Left to ridicule Christian conservatives at every level of Western society, while simultaneously embracing Islam. This is most curious, especially when you consider that Islam and fascism have been allies before (see the Second World War). They share anti-Semitic, anti-Christian visions; and are convenient for one another. They are attempting to remove God from every facet of our lives (unless you’re Muslim), and this is not by accident; it is purposeful.
Christian conservatives are the direct objects of derision and insult by the Progressive Left and their Marxian, malcontent occupiers. The Left has kept these young people ignorant of history and convinced them that conservatives are the cause of all ruin … they and their Tea Party cohorts are the scourge of the planet. The assault on God knows many targets: our currency, our Christmas displays, our education, our courts, and other ceremonial traditions have all been assailed for containing some reference to God or Christianity. We must have separation of church and state … unless you are Muslim, then you get your own prayer room, prayer rug–maybe even a foot bath. The Left has even gone so far as to force the teachings of Islam in our public schools, while simultaneously demanding that Christianity not be allowed to be taught!
We are told the Bible is a collection of fairy tales by people who practice Celtic rituals and worship trees–whose deepest spiritual effort was watching “Lord of the Rings” three times and reading all of the Harry Potter books. The Left does not believe our “faith” is anything to respect, but if you question the foundations of their beliefs, then you are committing hate-speech.
Yes, everything that is wrong with the world is the fault of some people who believe in the Constitution and a man named Jesus … give me oxygen …
How Did We Get Here?
The following is a brief over-view of the history of Israel in which I have left out a great deal of detail in order to present this information in a time-conscious manner.
There could not be a more exciting time to be alive …
We are at a pinnacle–a crossroads of societal evolution; and we are going to either move forward or go back a thousand years in the very near future. The individual liberty to worship your Creator as you believe should not be subjugated to any government, nor any other religion. Socialist governments throughout history have always sought to squelch the religious, because they want the state to be the focus of worship. They have no need for God; and they have cast him away, and now demand that you do likewise. Curiously, though, there is a tolerance for Islam amongst the Left. Why do you suppose that is?
Isaiah 1
A Sinful Nation
1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzzi’ah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezeki’ah, kings of Judah.
2 ¶ Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken; I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
3 The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.
4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.
5 ¶ Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.
6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
7 Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.
8 And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.
9 Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.
The Crusades Are the Justification for Islam’s Hatred of the West
We are told again and again by the “progressive” pacifists that the Muslims have a right to be angry with us; and that if we would just say we’re sorry they would love us and stop blowing things up. So they talk themselves into believing all variety of platitudes surrounding their so-called superior thought process and utterly ignore the truth. Where did this falderal begin? One of the great lies told concerning Christianity is that the Crusades are the justification for Islam’s hatred of the West. This is a myth of titanic proportions, and when tossed about as truth, it is harmful. Like many things that our modern-day academe would have us believe, things are not always what they seem. One needs to look more closely at the larger picture …
False Assumptions Surrounding the Crusades
It is claimed the Crusaders established colonial outposts in the Middle East. But there is no evidence to support that claim. The states created by the Crusaders lasted a short 2oo years. Politically correct thought would also have you believe the Crusades were an early example of the West’s Imperial aggression–that the Crusaders were there to plunder gold and riches; that the Crusaders were there to convert Muslims to Christianity by force; and that this is why Muslims distrust the West. In fact, this a very complicated period politically and militarily–filled with all variety of twists and turns.
In the Beginning
The history of the land of Israel can be traced from the first appearance of the name “Israel” in the historic record. An Egyptian inscription that dates about 1,200 BC. It refers to a people located in the northern part of the central highlands between the Mediterranean and the Jordan valley, and south of Mount Carmel. This area was known as the Levant. The region has been overrun countless times by numerous empires, yet has always remained the center of mankind’s religious universe.
The following map-in-time-line illustrates this history:
Time-line map of Israel through history
Two kingdoms occupied the highland region: the kingdom of Israel to the north, and later to emerge, the kingdom of Judah in the south: Israel was destroyed circa 722 BC, and Judah in 586 BC. After 332 BC, the Jews had become a separate community based in Jerusalem. For a short period in the 2nd Century BC, the Jews succeeded in creating an independent kingdom covering much of the biblical “Land of Israel”; however, by the end of the 1st century BC this was made part of the Roman Empire. A series of revolts against the Romans followed; thus, leading to the forced redistribution of much of the Jewish population.
It was not until the 19th century, and the inspiration of the nationalist Jewish Zionist movement, that large-scale migration began–the return of large numbers of Jews to Israel. This movement eventually led to the establishment of modern-day Israel in 1948–largely within the borders of the biblical “Land of Israel.”
The father of Islam … Muhammad was not born until 570 AD. Christianity and the Jewish faiths are well founded by this time. Discontent with life, Muhammad retreated to a cave in the surrounding mountains for reflection and meditation. According to Islamic belief, it was at age 40, in the month of Ramadan, he received his first revelation from God. Three years after this event Muhammad started preaching these revelations publicly and Islam was born. After his death, his revelations were assembled; and we know those writings as the Qur’an (or Koran).
With his death in 632 AD, a disagreement broke out over who would succeed Muhammad as leader of the Muslim community. Umar ibn al-Khattab, a popular colleague of Muhammad, nominated Abu Bakr, who was Muhammad’s close friend. Abu Bakr was made the first Caliph. After Bakr died in 634 AD, he was succeeded by Umar who was assassinated ten years later. Then Umar was followed by Uthman ibn al-Affan ,who was elected, but was facing opposition until he too was killed in 656 AD. Ali ibn Abi Talib then assumed control fighting opposition in the First Civil War. The first caliphs are known as al-khulaf (“Rightly Guided Caliphs”). Under their rule, the territory under Muslim control expanded deep into Persian and Byzantine territories; eventually founding the Umayyad dynasty–with its capital in Damascus.
Age of the Caliphs
The Roman Empire split early in the 4th Century. Constantinople became the capital of the East Roman Empire–known as the Byzantine Empire. It is in the early Seventh Century that Islam began to expand. In 638 AD, the Byzantine Empire lost the Levant to the Arab Islamic Empire. This marks the beginning of the centuries long Muslim aggression and persecution of Christians and Jews. It is a common contention today the Crusader’s sack of Jerusalem in 1099 AD is to blame for the hostilities between Islam and the West. In truth, the 500 years preceding that date were anything but a peaceful coexistence amongst the area’s pluralistic inhabitants. The Crusades were not an unprovoked act of violence by Western Europe against Islam.
Early in the Eighth Century, Christian Pilgrims were being harassed, taxed, crucified and executed. Later, the display of the cross would be banned in Jerusalem. Then it was forbidden to instruct others in Christian beliefs–including their own children. In 772 AD, it was required that Jews and Christians take a mark on their hands. Conversions from Islam to Christianity were not well tolerated. In 789 AD, the Muslims behead a monk who had converted from Islam–then plundered the Bethlehem monastery of Saint Theodosius and murdered more monks. Early in the Ninth Century, conditions are so bleak that large numbers of Christians and Jews are fleeing to Constantinople. More destruction and persecution occurred in 923 AD. In 937 AD, the Muslims went on a Palm Sunday riot in Jerusalem and destroyed the Church of the Calvary and the Church of the Resurrection.
Why Were the Crusades Called For?
The violence and attacks continued … In 1095 AD, Byzantine Emperor Alexius I sent his ambassadors to see Pope Urban and request assistance against the Muslim aggressors who were threatening to overrun them. His request was granted. Provisions were made for the First Crusade. This was a major undertaking–assembling the gear and horses and supplies required to march all the way to Jerusalem, and then wage war upon their arrival. The journey itself would prove to be more challenging than battle.
There were numerous crusades; however, historians are referencing a series of seven military campaigns waged by Western Europeans against the Muslims in the Holy Land when using the title “The Crusades.” They were arduous, violent and bloody. It was common then to have a scorched earth policy when one went about the business of sacking an entire city, and there were numerous atrocities committed by both warring parties. I think people today do themselves a disservice by applying their own biased perspective and standards of civility to a culture 900 years previous. I do not offer an excuse for either side here; I am simply pointing out the common take-no-prisoners strategy of the time. The sack of Jerusalem was heinous in light of the moral principles for which the Crusaders stood, but this was a common military tactic at that time.
* * *
What were the Crusades, and were they justified?
(The above is a Vatican perspective)
The First Crusade (1098–1099 AD) proved to be the most successful by capturing Jerusalem and establishing several states in the Middle East. This would be followed by six more–often disastrous efforts. A back and forth series of battles with the notorious likes of Saladin and other Islamic warriors ensued. While this is going on, there is some conflict and disunity between the Muslims. Alas, the Muslims outlast the efforts of the Crusaders and their advancements were lost. Antioch, the first city the Crusaders took control of, would fall in 1268 AD. The Crusader Kingdom lasted until 1291 AD, when the Muslims conquered Acre, and successfully destroyed the Crusader army.
Just as the Crusader cities were falling, an offer of help came from the Mongol Persian ruler Arghun, an ally of the great Kublai Kahn–who sent an emissary to Europe in 1287 AD. The Mongols had been in conflict with the Muslims for a long time. Hulagu Khan, Kublai khan’s brother, had laid waste to the Abbasid Caliphate in 1258 AD. Two years later the Mongols took control of Damascus. Arghun wanted to motivate the European Christian kings to reclaim the Holy Land from the Muslims once and for all; although he was a Buddhist, his best friend was a Cathlicos ( leader) of the Nestorian Church–a Christian sect which had broken ties with the great Church of the Empire in 431 AD, and his vizier was a Jew. He seemed to hold all religions in high regard, except Islam. Despite his efforts, and the European’s enthusiasm, Arghun’s emissary, Rabban Sauma, was unable to obtain a solid commitment. Arghun would make a second attempt, but died before the emissary’s return.
The Europeans continued to call for Crusades. But they found themselves mired in domestic affairs and were unable to make a consolidate their efforts. Soon they were they were fighting Muslims for their homelands, not marching off to Jerusalem. The Crusaders were pushed further back and lost Nicopolis, a city on the Danube, in 1395 AD. Europe now lay totally exposed before the advancing Muslims.
Again, fate twisted and the Christians were once more aided by the Mongols. These were not the Pagan variety from the century previous; these were Muslim Mongols. Tamerlane, who conquered central Asia, was most likely a member of the Naqshbandi Sufi sect of Islam. Please note that today it is said that the Sufi are peaceful and tolerant, yet their history is filled with jihad. Tamerlane was a direct decedent of Genghis Khan, and had been began attacking the Muslim held Middle East–inflicting devastating losses on the Ottoman and Mamuk jihadists, who were forced to cull their efforts in Western Europe. Apparently Tamerlane seemed little interested in Europe, as his efforts and attention soon turned to China. Tamerlane’s destruction had left the western Muslims too weak to pursue the Christian Europeans … but only for brief time.
In 1453 AD, Constantinople would fall after weeks of resistance to an overwhelming Muslim army. The Turks attacked Belgrade in 1456. Then they were turned back in attempt to assault Rome. In 1672, they would defeat the Poles and capture large areas of the Ukraine–before losing their gains a scant decade later. They suffered another defeat by the Polish king Jan III Sobieski when they attacked Vienna in 1683.
The Crusaders had failed to emancipate the Levant and the Muslims remained to squabble over it amongst themselves. The Jewish people remained scattered across the globe in little pockets within dozens of countries; but they remained faithful and retained their culture and traditions across the centuries. They would even endure the genocidal Nazi Holocaust before, and during, World War Two.
Amin Al-Husseini waged a life-long campaign of inciting hate between Jews and Muslims during British control of the Palestinian region. In 1933, Arab Nazi political groups began to appear across the Middle East. One group known as “Young Egypt,” led by Abdul Gamal Nasser (future Egyptian President), was none other than the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood as well. Young Egypt’s political slogan was: “One Folk, One Party, One Leader.” It is a direct translation from German of a Nazi slogan. Another was the Social Nationalist Party in Syria, who was led by Anton Saada XV–known as the Syrian Fuhrer.
The Birth of Modern Israel
Then, following the Second World War, there were numerous Jewish refugees displaced from Europe. They sought to return to their homeland from which they had been exiled centuries previous. From 1917 to 1948, the area was under British rule. The Balfour Declaration in 1917 said that Britain would encourage the establishment of an Israeli state, while preserving the rights of the Arab peoples already there. This would prove to be an impossible promise to keep. Led by David Ben-Gurion, the Israelis began to form the architecture of a government.
* * *
Israel – Birth Of A Nation (History Channel 1996)
The British government grew weary of the diplomatic wrangling and sought the influence of the United Nations, who divided the area into two states: one for the Jews, and one for the Palestinians. But Jerusalem would be under international control–a condition that was considered unacceptable to both Jews and the Palestinians.
In all of history there is only one nation that was ever destroyed and then re-established and that is the nation of Israel … At midnight, on the 14th of May, 1948, David Ben-Gurion announced that the state of Israel would come into existence. Within hours, five Arab states began attacking the Jews. Led by King Abdulla of Trans-Jordan (the Arab Legion), Egypt, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq began their assault. Once again, suspicion would curse the Islamic effort. King Abdulla sought a super Arab state, but was distrusted by his allies–who, although well-armed, were poorly trained and led.
After a month of fighting, a four week cease fire was arranged via the UN. This only served to allow time for both sides to rearm. The Israelis got an edge with a large delivery of arms from Czechoslovakia–including heavy guns and aircraft. It would be enough to turn the tide. The Jews secured Tel Aviv and the road to Jerusalem.
Israel has been under siege ever since. They are said to be an “occupying force” that has displaced the Palestinians and that the Jews and the Christians corrupted the religion of Islam to create their own. Yet, there never was a nation called “Palestine” and the Jewish and Christian faiths preceded the existence of Islam! The Muslims will never admit that Israel has the right to self governance and to exist as an independent state.
65 years later … the conflict continues. The Palestinians still refuse to accept the Israeli state and swear to its destruction. They freely admit they are not willing to compromise; and that was proven when President Clinton offered Yasser Arafat everything he asked for and Arafat still turned Clinton down! They do not want peace … they want to see Israel destroyed and every last Jew driven into the sea. They also seek the destruction of America–who they believe is the “Great Satan” and Israel’s (“Little Satan”) enabler.
Why Should You Care?
Historical illiteracy is one of Western culture’s greatest weaknesses. Ignorance of history is a weapon to be used against you. Islam’s contention that the Crusades were unprovoked is propagandist. It is a tactic they are using against us. They want to bring their prepackaged way of life (Sharia) here. And then have it validated and instituted within our own law–forcing it upon the rest of us with increasing amplitude. So why should you care that the progressive Left thinks it is okay to cozy up with Islam and let them have Sharia?
You should care because their hatred for you is very real. Their efforts are very real, and very destructive to your well being and your family’s future. You should care because the ultimate goal of Islam is world domination. Has anyone ever heard of the Islamic Society for the Handicapped? What about the Islamic Women’s Council? These things don’t exist in their society. Charity and compassion have little to do with their motivations. There is no fruit on the tree. Fundamental writings in the Koran dictate the destruction of the infidel and encourage any manner of deception in order to get the job done. No kuffar (nonbeliever) is innocent.
Curiously though, there is a tolerance for Islam amongst the left. Why do you suppose that is ?
Michael Coren Interviews Robert Spencer: Did Mohammed Exist?
You are not guilty of anything in terms of Islamo-phobia, but the left would guilt-trip you into believing that because you are an American you are somehow criminally oppressing other peoples around the world. This is nonsense. We have every right to fear and question the motives of a peoples who claim to be peaceful, but whose written scripture calls for our destruction. If you had any idea of what Muslims think of Christians and Jews, you would no longer have any guilty feelings.
The assumption that Islam was a “religion of peace” was a major blunder of the Bush Administration and Tony Blair’s Parliament. The Muslim Brotherhood was able to seduce the likes of Grover Norquist; thus, dulling the edge of the “war on terror” by creating the illusion radical Islam was separate from the moderate views of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR). This crippled our foreign policy efforts and military strategies in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Now, we have a Muslim-sympathetic administration in the White House, and the Islamic influence and propaganda is running rampant. We have radical zealot judge-isaltors giving legitimacy to Islamic Sharia Law; and you can see the results in places like Dearborn Michigan.
Islam–because it is theocratic–is convenient for the Left. We don’t rule the United States of America with passages from the Bible. We govern it with laws written by men who we hope have our best interests in mind and are God-fearing. Sadly, that is often not the case. It is my honest opinion that Islam is a theocratic cult, not a religion–that Muhammad was the false prophet that Jesus warned us about. Indeed there is even some studies that suggest that Muhammad may have only existed in legend. Whatever the truth may be in that regard, I have serious doubts about ulterior motives of a theocracy that revels in the beheading of those whose only crime is that of being an infidel.
“My kingdom is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight.”
– Jesus Christ
versus
“I have been ordered [by Allah] to fight against the people until they testify that none has the right to be worshiped but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.”
– Muhammad
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Former President Jimmy Carter, author – Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid
The convenience of Islam to the Left is quite simple: the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Because Islam is a theocracy, it mirrors Marxism in that the end-results of all efforts are for the benefit of the state–the state is the God. The individual is nonexistent and irrelevant. The media is complicit in this Marxian tack that Obama has led us blindly down; and they will continue to shill for him until and beyond his eventual political demise. There is nothing around us the MSM will not try to use against us. It is difficult to be knowledgeable about all things, but it is important to keep up on the latest news. That said … we can never trust the main-stream media; there is an ulterior motive behind every report they give–a hidden agenda.
“Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him.”
– Muhammad
versus
“And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town.”
– Jesus Christ
Historical illiteracy allows the progressive propagandists to blame Western cultures for Islamic distrust and hatred. These important lessons of history and heritage must be remembered and taught. You won’t find any of this history being taught in schools today. The progressive unions have done well to indoctrinate almost two generations of entitlementarians–teaching them to depend on others, despise their own heritage, and to blame others for problems they could solve themselves.
The Future Is Now
Isaiah 2
The LORD’s Universal Reign of Peace
1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 ¶ And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: Joel 3.10 nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
This is the last Crusade … Right here and right now! You are living history and you have the opportunity to participate in it and to choose your own destiny. Will we be destroyed or will we defend our liberty, our heritage and our Flag? I believe in a universe of free will. There is something bigger than ourselves that we are stewards of, that we must preserve at all cost and that something is Liberty!
Isaiah 4
1 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.
Jerusalem’s Glorious Future
2 ¶ In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.
3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:
4 when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.
5 And the LORD will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defense.
6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.
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Note:
I have no personal animosity to Muslims. I am simply questioning the declarations and decrees of the Koran. I seek to enlighten those, like myself, who are curious as to what the real motivations are behind a religion who claims to be superior to all others.
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Update: This was originally posted at TRP on the 28th of April, 2012. The video, “Israel – Birth of a Nation – Sir Martin Gilbert” is no longer posted at YouTube. I have replaced it with “