Jihad vs Crusades

There are a bit of similarities but I will copy and paste my college paper.

Similarities and differences between Islamic and Christian extremism
“The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed.” Sarah Vowell. Religion by its very nature is something to fight and possibly die for in its defense as you are fighting for your God and thus your afterlife. Differences in religious beliefs have been the catalyst for wars and conflicts since before the beginning of written human history. The old adage “Religion is responsible for more wars than another cause”, can be argued by historians and other scholars, they both agree that religion in the wrong hand can cause man to do horrific things. While religion can be a tool for “evil” actions or plans, I want to establish that no one thing can that was created by man or deity can be inherently good or evil and that the individual man or women that shape the actions of other are solely responsible for the actions of the organization not the organization itself. Islamic extremism and fundamentalism have been closely associated with the rise of Islamic terrorism in the late 20th century and continuing to present. Names like Abu Bakir Al Baghdadi, Osama Bin Laden, and Mullah Mohammed Omar are household names when it comes to religious extremism and terrorism and terrorism to accomplish their goals. Conversely, lesser known individuals such as Pope Urban II, Godfrey of Bouillon, and Count Emicho of Leininge who utilized many peasant or lower class European Christian’s religious beliefs as a facade to consolidate Catholic power in the middle east.
The first crusade was initially started by Pope Urban II officially to fight against the Seljuk Turks at the behest of the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I Comnenus. However, it was an attempt to bring the Byzantine Church back into the Roman Catholic Church, retaking Jerusalem and restoring Christendom to the Middle East, thus limiting or completely removing Islamic influence from the Holy Land (James "Christians and the First Crusade"). Pope Urban II used religious fervor and exploited the fringes and poor of Europe by offering Indulgences. “The crusades were presented as penitential acts of devotion and powerful inducements for the atonement of all worldly sins” (James "Christians and the First Crusade"). While the Catholic Church’s more secular goals are known through modern historical accounts, lesser know individuals such as the aforementioned Godfrey of Bouillon who “had vowed that he would not set out for the Crusade until he had avenged the crucifixion by spilling the blood of the Jews, declaring that he could not tolerate that even one man calling himself a Jew should continue to live” ("Christian-Jewish Relations: The Crusades"). This sentiment was used aginist both the Jewish and Muslim communities that were located in areas that were captured by Crusader forces. When Crusader forces took Jerusalem the Jewish community living in Jerusalem was massacred and the survivors were sold into slavery. While officially the Church did not endorse the killing of Jews. The Catholic Church was responsible for creating a religious fury that caused individuals supporting the Catholic Church to seek revenge against individuals who were not Christian.
To the western world Islam and extremism are almost synonymous with each other and also words like terrorism or jihad are often used to describe this religion. As stated individuals like Abu Bakir Al Baghdadi, Osama Bin Laden, and Mullah Mohammed Omar are individuals who are well known to use Islamic extremism to wage war against the western world. However, just like how the Catholic Church the first crusade modern Muslim extremist use the guarantee of heaven to recruit their fighters for Jihad. The term “Jihad draws its theological justification directly from the Qur'an. In Arabic, the word jihad translates as "striving" or "expenditure of effort;" jihad may even seem inconsequential and unimportant, given the word only appears in the Qur'an four times” (Levine "Conflicts of Ideology in Christian and Muslim Holy War"). Based on the fact that Jihad in the Qur’an exist but is not emphasized, means that individuals have molded a non-specific term like Jihad to fit their agenda. Unlike the Catholic Church’s recruitment practices during the crusades, modern Muslim extremist have the abilities to use the internet to spread its messages, plan operations, and recruit using social media. While the Catholic Church’s goals were regionally aligned to the recapture of the Jerusalem.

Excellent post SFC (Join to see).

Thank You for making the community more informed about the matters in today's arguments.

SSG Matthew Rowe has assisted in informing us even more as to when the change of view took place.