Convoluted Cavaliers

 

Convoluted Cavaliers
Thursday, November 27, 2025 by Brave Knight Writers

Sadly, during a recent gathering, the use of the ‘knight’ as our symbol of loyalty and faith morphed into something offensive. In the text, Life and Ministry of the Messiah by Ray Vander Laan and the accompanying film, strong denunciations of Christian knights and European castles in the Holy land slapped us. The chapter on ‘Misguided Faith’ turned into a justification for current Islamic atrocities while skewing motives for the Europeans during the time of the Crusades.

Responsible historians need to be fair, balanced, and thorough; otherwise, the audience will walk away. The Christian world came under pressure and threat from Islamists for hundreds of years prior to the Crusades. Historians can point to positive and negative aspects of both Christian and Islamic empires, but which do you identify with?

James 1: 26—If anyone thinks he is religious without controlling his tongue, his religion is useless and he deceives himself.

Regarding our event, we acknowledge no direct references to us took place, but we sensed a passive aggression of sorts. In my eyes, my testimony of coming to Christ reflected against “the most shameful period of Christianity.” As if there isn’t enough drama in the world, why must we invent new or dredge infractions from the past? We didn’t sense anger from anyone but firm rejection. We felt alone in a room full of people.

The veil lifted, God shocked us with a room filled with untruth. To be in a Christian setting and to hear people who you share time with speak in half-truths and make glaring accusations without reference to legitimate sources left us astounded. What we witnessed was Christian deconstruction where followers chose to embrace aspects of a non-Christian religion over their own based on a distaste of Christian history. Had Europe fallen to Islam, where would the great Christian reformers have been? History isn’t what you might have wanted, but it is where you build better and it is where reality sits. I likened it to quarterbacking 10,000 Mondays after the game.

The abused spouse syndrome:

When an abused spouse accepts responsibility for the abuse, the cycle of abuse continues. Truth breaks the cycle, and sometimes it requires walking away. Christians like to tout, “We are all broken”. Healed wounds leave scars and phantom pains. Brave Knight Writers confess to broken lives lived in the darkness of lies, secrets, silent deceptions, and manipulation. Take heed, when surrounded by others’ lies, you may indulge in lies just to get by. You even lie to yourself, you tell white lies, you go silent, and doubt the history you lived. Stepping into the light of truth brings freedom along with a fear of the dark. Even a brief shadow of the darkness of perpetrated and sustained lies sends chills through you. The hint of darkness causes you to run toward the bright lights of truth. Stepping into the light, we find the slightest hint of untruth raises a red flag, even a lie of omission. See Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave.

What triggered our run from a lie:

The text and film also condemned the knights of the Crusades, their motivations, and their leadership. The word ‘knight’ used in scorn and referenced to the Crusades offered nothing but emotional manipulation. In the film which accompanies ‘Life and Ministry of the Messiah’ the producers, actor, and our presenter neglected to include the accurate history leading to the Crusades. Instead, the presentation termed it an imperialistic and political intrusion by Europeans into the Holy land. The accusation foments guilt in people well over a thousand years after the event.

The presentation did not detail the Islamic empire created by invasions and migrations into the Iberian Peninsula three hundred years before the Crusades, or Islamic incursions into France, Sicily, Italy, and the constant border skirmishes between the Byzantines and Arab states. The Atlas of the Crusades is just one source from which to see the extent of Islamic incursions into Christendom, which decimated two-thirds of the Christian world at the time. 

Al-Furusiyya, the Islamic equivalent of European knighthood, indulged in ugly deeds. Yet, we agree it is impossible to defend unjust acts of the European Crusaders by pointing out those of Islamists. The accurate history of Islam includes slavery, prejudices, butchery, torture, and colonialism as much as those accusations again Christianity. God frowns on all these deeds. In Bible stories time and again empires rise, then fail. None finds permanent glory; all glory belongs to God. The presenters at our gathering appeared to be Islamic apologists, which shocked us. There is no need for anyone to apologize for events not occurring in their own time.

Had Europeans not responded in kind, many think there wouldn’t be any Christianity today. One must always present the accurate history and driving forces behind events to know the truth. The trade routes to the east fell to the Islamic Empire, which engulfed the entire Mediterranean. Islam made its mark, and Christ was nowhere to be found; decline was imminent. 

We all need to spend our time seeking forgiveness for our own deeds. We have German friends; we would never want or accept an apology for their grandfathers’ sins and mistakes.

Truth exists only in the entirety of a story; omission is untruth.

 During the presentation, we received no injuries, thanks to God’s breastplate of righteousness and shield of faith. Yet, we cannot tolerate historical selections to promote current agendas. Jesus Christ said, love your enemy, and Brave Knight Writers prays for those lost to untruths. We think Christ is the Way, found through individual choice without coercion or manipulation.

Forgiveness, a basic tenet of Christianity, should focus on real time and the living. The acts of people long past exist in the spiritual realm and are between them and God. Accepting guilt for the past goes against the spirit of forgiveness. Self-loathing is a tool of Satan. Remember, our fight lies in the spiritual realm, not in the flesh. Our response must address acts of abuse with strength and restraint, never cowering. Ephesians 6 tells us to stand. It said the same thing during the era of the Crusades, initiated after centuries of Islamic dominance through slaughter and slavery in once-Christian lands.

Our blog is for those willing to do their own research and not accept what Brave Knight Writers or anyone else puts forth; only Scripture offers the last word. Stimulate thought and embrace only the Word as final. The presentation skewed and tainted an important story; it left us filled with suspicions and doubts about the message. We returned home to refresh our memories through research and prayer. We knew better than to respond to the presentation at the forum. Numerous sources of accurate history are available to all, so seek it out.

Brave Knight Writers’ guiding principle:

1 John 4:8—The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Love is based in truth and light; love should always be the litmus test for actions. If an action isn’t out of love, God will never condone it. Violent acts can never be justified by cherry-picking past events. No one can force you to be considerate of, or love anyone or anything, even Jesus. Brave Knight Writers supports a nation whose government protects individual choice and religious practice. As Christians, we strive to set an example glorifying Jesus Christ, God, and the Holy Spirit as the way, and the only way, but we realize this is our individual choice and respect the choice of others. The prophet Mohammed ordered Islamists to lie if it suits their agenda, to demand Christians and Jews convert to their religion or face heavy taxation, even death.

Brave Knight Writers’ view of forgiveness:

Deuteronomy 32: 35
Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay. In time their foot will slip, for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly.

If you accept the proposition that current deeds are justified based on injustices of the past, you open yourself to grievous acts of revenge in real time. To condone the actions of one individual released upon another can also apply to groups or cultures. Isn’t it wrong for an individual to attack another based on what a grandfather did to another’s great-uncle? Do you condone such a deed and offer sympathy to the recent attacker? There can be no justification for acts of violence based on the past. One should never use past actions to justify anything in real time, as it contradicts forgiveness. We must remember the past to prevent repetition, but never to justify actions. The past viewed in the entirety and in context provides truth. When we look back, we risk turning into a pillar of salt.

A brief reflection on more recent history:

If you know me, you know me as a pacifist, dating back to the Vietnam War, but we support anyone who served in the US military. My opposition to violence stands until a confrontation where violence becomes survival and a last resort. Never did I view killing Vietnamese farmers as leading the way to victory. I always saw the peasants of Vietnam as people with shared desires to grow rice, own a water buffalo, and make babies. When people study the entire history of Vietnam, they will find the violence that ravaged their country was unjust. In my travels to bring fresh water wells to the people of Rwanda, I studied the genocide ravished on their country. My motorcycle tour of Germany caused me to wonder how the Holocaust occurred in such a beautiful place. During a mission trip to Guatemala, shock struck me as I learned of the wholesale butchery of indigenous peoples in the 1960s and 70s. This I offer as a glimpse into our hearts.

Ephesians 6:12 - For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.

My testimony:

 A brave knight is the most impactful part of my testimony; that is why we call ourselves Brave Knight Writers. I lived through an event where God’s answered prayers surpassed medical explanation. A dying five-year-old’s toy knight burned in my soul. My son declared that the bravest of all knights was with us.

My young son lay in a coma for several months after surgical removal of a tumor at the base of his skull. I, along with nurses, provided daily care to maintain his joint mobility and administered stimulation baths hoping to facilitate his recovery. I read to him and maintained verbal engagement. “Brain death occurred,” the physicians said. “Stop further intervention.” Against their reasoning, love and need drove me to seek a last goodbye and express my affection for him so I did not desist. During this time, I alternated between praying for his return and expressing frustration about the situation. My son emerged from his coma, much to the surprise of the attending medical staff. Soon, he came home. God blessed us with an opportunity to say our goodbyes over the ensuing months prior to his passing. 

During that period, I reflected on courage and faith. The image of the toy knight became more than just a child’s plaything—it symbolized steadfastness, loyalty, truth, and hope in the face of overwhelming adversity. Through my son’s struggle, I saw the true essence of what it means to be a ‘knight’ in the spiritual sense: a champion of love, resilience, and unwavering belief. Our knight wore the full armor of God.

In defense of our worldview:

First, let’s clarify our use of the word ‘knight’. The word refers to the full armor of God as in Ephesians 6:10-18. Many misconstrue the word ‘knight’ to refer to the Crusades, including the barbarous acts some crusaders indulged in. We see our knight as a loyal, faithful servant of Christendom. In this world and era of word sensitivity and cancellation, many take an emotional leap to cancel.

At Brave Knight Writers, we do not encourage the use of violence to spread the word of Jesus Christ. Nor do we invoke the use of the word knight to offend those who suffered at the hands of Christian Crusaders or Islamic Crusaders a thousand years ago. Using the word knight offends? Should we cancel the word?

We suggest reading sources such as Britanica, or other books on Islamic history or books on the Islamic Empire prior to the Crusades. You can find the timeline for the Islamic Empire at https://www.worldhistory.org/. We also recommend for research, God’s Battalions: the case for the crusades by Rodney Stark or The Crusades by Jonathan Riley. Raymond Ibrahim has published several books, all well researched, from primary sources. In our research of late, we’ve discovered that more recent and rigorous research has rendered the Van der Laan film, as well as other sources, misguided at best. See the Alpha Path on YouTube, The Crusades Were Right. The Lie You’ve Been Told.

Why the attempt by print and media outlets to present a half-truth? Isn’t that what Satan does?

Second, let’s remember what Jesus told his disciples in Luke 22:36-37. Then he said to them, “But now, whoever has a money-bag should take it, and also a traveling bag. And whoever doesn’t have a sword should sell his robe and buy one. For I tell you, what is written must be fulfilled in me. And he was counted among the lawless. Yes, what is written about me is coming to its fulfillment.”

In verse 38—(the disciples) “Lord,” they said, “look, here are two swords.” “That is enough!” he told them. This suggests the use of a real sword to defend yourself. In scripture we come to know the sword as the word of God. Keep in  mind—omissions and lies dull the sword.

Are two swords significant? One represents a spiritual sword and the other a sword of the world.

Raymond Ibrahim has a newly-released book about this subject. Timely in the face of Islamic agression.

The Two Swords of Christ: Five Centuries of War between Islam and the Warrior Monks of Christendom

 Ephesians 6:17

 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—which is the word of God.

So, let’s not accuse Brave Knight Writers of violence in form or matter, nor with intentions to offend anyone. Our sword is the Word, and you will find it in Brave Knight writings. We keep our swords polished as best we can in this mucky world where truths and open discussion are twisted and buried under accusations of Christian Nationalism. A world in which the slaughter of Christians by Islamists is misconstrued by legacy media to be something else.

Third, C.S. Lewis said, “Since it is so likely that (children) will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage. Otherwise, you are making their destiny not brighter but darker.” Note: C.S. Lewis was at one time a non-believer who became a Catholic, yet offered wise Biblical insights. We will not cancel him because of accusations made about him, out of the context of his times.

Last, my coming to Christ didn’t occur with Aunt Susie taking me to Bible study at age nine. My experience occurred through an encounter with God. It occurred during a time of need and prayer. I love the image of a brave knight, a love that stands against cancel culture. Selective events from history, polished to fit a current agenda and then applied to modern times, prove invalid against the love in my heart. Our mission at Brave Knight Writers is to carry the sword of the Spirit, the word of God as written in Scripture. We neither add or subtract from the message found in the Bible. We embrace love, loyalty, truth and in no way incite others to bring harm to anyone.

In Summary:

We at Brave Knight Writers love Christ, our savior. We pray others find the way. We refute teachers who use Christ to gain popularity. Brave Knight Writers asks you to speak the entire truth through rigorous research. Human endeavors and desires mar Christianity and history; therefore, few receive acceptance in the historical record. Brave Knight Writers will go forth disassociated from organizations using Christianity as a lead-in to a belief structure guided by mortal agendas. We are nondenominational. Brave Knight Writers seek truth, without omissions.

Genesis 2:16 -17 And the Lord God commanded the man, “you are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will surely die.”

We must never forget the snake in the garden.

Genesis 3:1

Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”

The snake takes many forms in his temptations. One of his tactics is to place doubt in our minds. Omission of the complete story raises doubts and leads us to accept fruits with emotional appeal. Be intentional; know the trees from which you pluck your fruit.

Psalm 144: 1— Blessed be the LORD, my rock who trains my hands for battle and my fingers for warfare.