Muslim faith was threatening Christianity

The church benefited a lot from the crusades. The church controlled most of the Mediterranean. It is believed that the church influenced the crusades because the Muslim faith was threatening Christianity. Being the second largest monotheistic religion at the time, the church most likely saw the Muslim faith to be threatening. The first crusade was invoked by Pope Urban II (1042-1099 A.D.) after the Council of Piacenza and the Council of Clermont. The council of Piacenza was a council where church laws and other clerical business was resolved, but most importantly the issue with Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus was presented to the council. Pope Urban II then created the Council of Clermont to discuss the matters further. Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus became an ally of the church when Urban II lifted his excommunication and ties between the east and west were somewhat friendly. Alexius I Comnenus asked the church for military support from the Seljuk Turks. The Seljuk Turks were a dynasty of Muslims that controlled most of the Middle East in the Abbasid Dynasty.

The Crusades were made possible by the overwhelming influence that the church had over its followers. Those of the Church either followed higher officials or used the Crusades for their own manipulation. The influence also made many consider and even commit themselves to the crusade because they believed their soul’s salvation to be far more important than their mortal life. “The people were more concerned for the health of their souls than the honor of their earthly existence.”(13) One thing you don’t see is any of the clergy go against the pope’s decision, which exemplifies the church’s power at this time.

Alfred J. Andrea. "Encyclopedia of the Crusades". Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2003

Corliss K. Slack. "Historical Dictionary of the Crusades". Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, 2003