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False. The Catholic Church has never had an army. They never deliberately murdered lot people. That is not to deny that some people who were Christians (before the Reformation) acted horrifically supposedly to stop so-called heresies. And, while this did happen, it was no where near the numbers that I think some folks here are claiming.

In medieval days there were lots of noblemen who had big estates and titles. Throughout the last 2000 years, various religious beliefs cropped up, and these noblemen, who were part of what was then the ‘universal Christian church’ would feel threatened by these new ideas. Politics and religion were one and the same. So, what I am saying is that often these atrocities were carried out by mercenaries who were under the orders of the noblemen. Unfortunately in many instances the church became complicit.

As to the numbers, by far the most oppressed group were the Jews. For two thousand years, they have been the population which has been targeted by other groups, first by Christians and Muslims, then by communists and fascists, and now by intellectual atheists and Muslims again.

Once the reformation came about the political powers were diminished, and although priests were hunted down and murdered by Oliver Cromwell, and Huegenots were oppressed in France, there was noting on the scale of earlier centuries.

But religious oppression of Catholic priests was going on during the reign of Napoleon, the early years of Bismarck’s 2nd German Reich, the Spanish Civil War in the 1930’s (atheistic Communists were murdering nuns and priests in Spain), and the Nazis murdering about 1500 priests.

Unfortunately mankind has not learned much. Which brings me back to the dopey President. He has not learned anything at all.