Saints LightThe Crusades and the Inquisition: What Really Happened?
The Crusades and the Inquisition had real causes and smaller numbers than the myths, but they included real crimes, and the Church has repented of using violence for the faith.
What this lesson teaches
- The Crusades began in 1095 as a response to real conquests, but crusaders committed grave crimes.
- The Spanish Inquisition was largely royal and executed an estimated 3,000 to 5,000 people over centuries.
- Most witch trials were secular, and Galileo was confined, not tortured; the Church later admitted the error.
- In 2000 the Church publicly asked forgiveness for violence used in the service of the faith.
Catechism paragraphs this lesson cites
- CCC 827
- CCC 2104-2109
- CCC 2309
CCC means the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Saints Light teaches it in its own words and never quotes it. Look up any paragraph in a printed copy or at vatican.va. See every lesson by paragraph in the Catechism index.
Scripture read in this lesson: Matthew 26:52; Matthew 5:44.
A sample question from this lesson
What prompted Pope Urban II to call the First Crusade in 1095?
- A plan to force all Muslims in Spain to convert
- An appeal for help from the Byzantine emperor after Turkish conquests
- A desire to conquer Rome from the emperor
- A dispute with the Orthodox over the Creed
Show the answer
An appeal for help from the Byzantine emperor after Turkish conquests. Urban II answered the Byzantine emperor's appeal after the Seljuk Turks overran Asia Minor and pilgrims were endangered.
The lesson in the app has three questions, each with an explanation.
Words to know
- Crusade
- A military expedition called by a pope, mostly between 1095 and 1291, chiefly to recover or defend the Holy Land.
- Inquisition
- Church or Church-backed tribunals that investigated heresy; the Spanish Inquisition (1478) was largely under royal control.
More terms in the Catholic glossary. More passages in the Scripture index.
Read the full lesson in the app
"The Crusades and the Inquisition: What Really Happened?" is lesson 8 of Two Thousand Years in Twelve Lessons. In Saints Light you get the whole teaching, the Scripture quoted in full, all three questions and a step to live it this week.
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