Oh, I knew about the Crusades in general terms, but a travel story in today's Times give grisly detail that makes you wonder how the Pope at the time ("Innocent,III", believe it or not) could be classified as a church leader. Read:
In Béziers, at the northern edge of resistance, over 15,000 men, women and children — the entire population of the town as well as hordes of hapless refugees — were butchered. (The crusader monk Armond Amaury famously told his troops, when asked whom to spare, “Kill them all, God will know his own."
A monk? Makes the whole sexual abuse story pale by comparison.
Read the entire story here.
The U.S. Marines (and others) have that as their (unofficial) motto.
ReplyDeleteWhat else is new?
Oh well... no news like old news.
Say... did you hear about that ship that sank?
What was it called?
The Titanic?
And besides, is that not true? That God can sort them out even amidst our own mistakes and failures?
The Cathars first killed Pierre de Castelnau, a Dominican priest sent to them to reason with them.
Notes on history reflect that Arnaud Amalric, the Abbot of Citeaux, is credited with making that statement. However, upon further examination, it was revealed that he detailed in a letter to Innocent III that, "While discussions were still going on with the barons about the release of those in the city who were deemed to be Catholics, the servants and other persons of low rank and unarmed attacked the city without waiting for orders from their leaders. To our amazement, crying "to arms, to arms!", within the space of two or three hours they crossed the ditches and the walls and Béziers was taken."
From that perspective - his written testimony - again, it seems as if they were attacked, and proved to be a superior defensive force.
And then, who could blame one in the heat of the battle, for making a battlefield decision?
And Tim, were you ever told, or have you ever heard it said, that during your tour of duty in Viet Nam, that any of your Army biddies were told anything remotely similar? Doubtless, you have.
Yeah... that's what I wanna' know. How do you differentiate between the NVA and the South Vietnamese?
Are their eyes just a little more slanted? Is their hair a bit darker? Their skin more yellow? How DOES one tell?