Ep. #42 – The Crusades! with Steve Weidenkopf
Summary
Steve Weidenkopf provides an excellent overview of the crusades. Did Christians force Muslims to convert under penalty of death? How can the Church explain the injustices committed in the name of religion during the crusades? Did the children’s crusade send boys into bloody battles? Weidenkopf answers these questions and more in our interview.
Guest Bio
Steve Weidenkopf is a Lecturer in Church History at the Christendom College Graduate School of Christendom College in Alexandria, Virginia. He has given numerous presentations and seminars on Church History, marriage and family life, human sexuality, and theology throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Steve is a member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East – an international academic group dedicated to the field of crusading history and is also a Knight of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Show Outline
In the first segment, Weidenkopf explains his background and how he became interested in Catholic history. We discuss the content and structure of his new book Timeless: A History of the Catholic Church.
In the next segment, Weidenkopf provides the historical context of the crusades. He explains why injustices committed are not a mark against the integrity of the Catholic Church.
In the final segment, Weidenkopf explains the so-called “Children’s crusade” and why the real history is more nuanced than many people think. He concludes by providing several resources where we can learn more about the Crusades.
Resources Mentioned
Timeless: A History of the Catholic Church by Steve Weidenkopf
Related Episodes
Ep. #41 – A Great Apostasy? with Dr. Beaumont
CORE #08 – He Founded the Catholic Church (part 1)
CORE #09 – He Founded the Catholic Church (part 2)
Glad you and Steve got together! BTW – Pelikan was a Lutheran who converted to Orthodoxy near the end of his life.
Thanks, Doug, for introducing us and for this information. I found Pelikan’s history to be extremely dense and un-readable in college. Maybe I’d be more interested now. Thanks again.