Show 3165. God's Battalions. The Case for the Crusades By Rodney Stark This audiobook selection consists of the Introduction and chapter 1. This sample serves as an introduction to this fine book. Purchase the book. Available on Audible. Highly recommended by ACU. Publisher's Summary- In God's Battalions, award-winning author Rodney Stark takes on the long-held view that the Crusades were the first round of European colonialism, conducted for land, loot, and converts by barbarian Christians who victimized the cultivated Muslims. To the contrary, Stark argues that the Crusades were the first military response to unwarranted Muslim terrorist aggression. Stark reviews the history of the seven major Crusades from 1095 to 1291, demonstrating that the Crusades were precipitated by Islamic provocations, centuries of bloody attempts to colonize the West, and sudden attacks on Christian pilgrims and holy places. Although the Crusades were initiated by a plea from the pope, Stark argues that this had nothing to do with any elaborate design of the Christian world to convert all Muslims to Christianity by force of arms. Given current tensions in the Middle East and terrorist attacks around the world, Stark's views are a thought-provoking contribution to our understanding and are sure to spark debate. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A Must Watch- A Dynamic Battle Map of Muslim Invasions and the Crusades. https://youtu.be/c7y2LRcf4kc   How many times Muslims invaded Europe vs. Europeans invaded Muslim countries? https://youtu.be/c7y2LRcf4kc Historical facts and Comparisons: How many times Muslims invaded Europe vs. Europeans invaded Muslim countries. Islamics Launched their Crusades in 630 A.D. Western Crusades started in 1095 A.D. to Stop Muslim Invasion. Crusades were a defensive action against the forcible expansion of Islam into territories that had been part of Christendom for centuries. The Crusades were started by the Muslims in the year 630 A.D. when Muhammad invaded and conquered Mecca. Later on, Muslims invaded Syria, Iraq, Jerusalem, Iran, Egypt, Africa, Spain, Italy, France, etc. The Western Crusades started around 1095 to try to stop the Islamic aggressive invasions. Islamic Crusades continued even after the Western Crusade. Islam has killed about 270 million people: 120 million Africans*, 60 million Christians, 80 million Hindus, 10 million Buddhists, etc. http://factreal.wordpress.com/2010/02...   For a number of ACU shows on this topic type in ‘Crusades’ in the search bar on our podcast site.   -----------------------------------------------------------------------  HELP ACU SPREAD THE WORD! Please send to friends, post on Facebook, twitter, etc… Over 3,000 commercial free archived shows are available on our podcast site here.     Ways to subscribe to the American Conservative University Podcast Click here to subscribe via iTunes Click here to subscribe via RSS You can also subscribe via Stitcher You can also subscribe via SoundCloud If you like this episode head on over to iTunes and kindly leave us a rating, a review and subscribe! People find us through our good reviews.   FEEDBACK + PROMOTION You can ask your questions, make comments, submit ideas for shows and lots more. Let your voice be heard. Download our FREE iOS App. Download our FREE Android App. Email us at americanconservativeuniversity@americanconservativeuniversity.com