To Fellow Skeptic,
No one disagrees that the crusades were inspired by the Christians. And that the atheistic communists have been the most barbaric butchers of the modern civilized times.
Yet, we must take into account the fact that when Muslims conquered Jerusalem in 637/38 – the Jewish temples and Christian Churches were razed to the ground and widespread looting and pillaging was unleashed. The Patriarch Sophronius of Jerusalem (634-638), who was the patriarch of Jerusalem described the Muslim invaders as “godless barbarians” who “burnt churches, destroyed monasteries, profaned the Crosses and blasphemed against Christ and the church.” The following year, thousands died of famine resulting from the destruction and pillage by the Muslim conquerors of Jerusalem. [Ibn Warraq, Why I am not a Muslim, p. 219]
Tha fact is the before Muslims attacked Israel, there was no prominent incidence of religious troubles between the Jews and Christians. But Muslim changed that forever. The invading Muslims destroyed the main Jewish temple (Solomon Temple) and Omar laid, in its place, the foundation of the prestigious al-Aqsa mosque with his own hands. He declared a decree that Jews and Christians could practice religion only in the confines of their churches and homes. No new churches would be built, no conversion should be made, crosses should not be exhibited in their churches and no public display of their faith should be made. These rather benevolent treatments were accorded to the Jews and Christians under the privileged term of the Dhimmis (Zimmis) as accorded to the people of the Book in the Koran. Yet, repression and discrimination, attacks on pilgrims, raid and ransacking of the monasteries and the destruction of the places of worship of the non-Muslims continued.
Yet, outcry of attacking Jerusalem to recapture the so-called Christian holyland started only when Muslim persecution of Christians in Palestine became unbearable. Especially after the locking of the patrairch in the main Christian Church and setting the church on fire created defeaning outcry for action in Europe and appeal from Christians in Palestine. Yet, here's what Muslims were doing to non-Muslim citizens around the time Europe launched Crusades:
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10th century
In 924, the Church and convent of Mary in Damascus was plundered and burned and other churches destroyed. Further destruction occurred in Ramleh, Ascalon, Tinnis, and Egypt during the invasion of Asad ud Din Shirkuh. In the capture and sacking of Thessalonica in 903 CE, 22,000 Christian captives were divided amongst the Arab chieftains or sold into slavery.
There were massacres of the Spanish Christians in and around Seville. Al-Hakim biamr Illah gave orders that the Churches of his dominions should be destroyed. A Muslim historian records that over 30,000 churches built by the Greeks in Egypt, Syria and elsewhere were destroyed, their contents seized and sold in the markets and lands confiscated. [Tritton AS, The Caliphs and their non-Muslim Subjects. London, 1970, p. 54].
In Iran, the Zoroastrians faced frequent forced conversion, pressure to do so and persecution which lead to riots in Shiraz in 979. To escape persecution, they immigrated to India and live there even today as a respected community.
11th century
Six thousand Jews were massacred in Fez of Morocco in 1033. Hundreds of Jews were killed between 1010 and 1013 near Cordoba and other parts of Muslim Spain and an entire Jewish community of 4000 in Grenada was annihilated in 1066. Fatimid caliph Hakim’s jealous persecution of non-Muslims and Church demolition resulted in the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in 1009. He also banned the pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Both events acted as the major causes that ignited the Crusades.
In Kairoun (Tunisia), the Jews were persecuted and sent to exile in 1016, who later returned, only to be expelled again. In Tunis, they were forced to convert or leave. During subsequent decades, there were fierce anti-Jewish persecutions throughout Tunisia.
In 1064, the Seljuk Sultan, Alp Arslan, devastated Georgia and Armenia. Those, whom he did not take captive, were executed. [Ibn Warraq, pp. 218-238]
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And may I ask you Mr. Skeptic, if Christian attack Mecca, destroy the Kaba and build church there and force the Muslims to convert, how will Muslims (there or elsewhere) react when they become powerful enough to recapture Mecca and the Kaba. Just give me an straight answer: how Muslims would react even today and 100 years later, forget about the Christian reaction in the barbarian middle ages?
Yet, Muslims have destroyed the holiest places of all the major religions of today, namely Christians/Jews (Palestine/Israel), Hindus and Biddhists (India) and have replaced them with mosques many often.
Look forwards to your comments.
~ MA Khan
Editor,
Islam-watch.org