Roman Catholics and The Crusades

                                                         Saint Bernard pictured above
 In a post from last week, I discussed some of the major views Protestants had towards The Medieval Crusades. Today, I will touch briefly on how Roman Catholics understood this subject.
 First of all, The Crusades were usually called upon by the Catholic Church, so it's no surprise that Roman Catholics historically supported the Crusades. In fact, Roman Catholics almost universally supported The Crusades even centuries after the Middle Ages.
 There was some criticism towards events that occurred during The Crusades. Pope Innocent III did not approve of the Fourth Crusade's Sack of Constantinople is one such example. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux was proclaimed ''as the greatest preacher of the gospel,'' by Martin Luther. Saint Bernard preached against killings of Jews during the Second Crusade, and later Saint Francis of Assisi was against the immorality of Crusaders in Egypt. That said, Pope Innocent III, Saint Francis of Assisi, and Saint Bernard all supported The Crusades.
 All Crusaders were Latin Christians { Medieval Christians did not use the term Roman Catholic}.
 During the Reformation era, the Saracens tried to invade Southern Europe but were stopped at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.  This victory has often been attributed to the help of the Virgin Mary. Today, many Roman Catholics are unaware of the origins of ''Our Lady of the Rosary.'' In reality, this came from The Battle of Lepanto, which gave the Crusaders a great victory over the Saracens.  Roman Catholics historically called it ''Our Lady of Victory'' though. 
 Though The Crusades are the subject of heat in the modern world and continue to face backlash by the hatred promoted by White Supremacist, The Crusades were actually supported largely by both Roman Catholics and Protestants.

                                         Saint Bernard drinking milk from Mary's breast.



Further Sources: Encyclopedia of the Crusades by Alfred J. Andrea.