In face of this notorious history of Europe during the long course of
the Middle Ages it is now usual for Catholic apologists to plead that
the blood of the barbarian still flowed in the veins of the Christian
nations and men were not yet prepared to listen to the message of peace.
This plea cannot for a moment be admitted in extenuation of the Church's
guilt. The clergy had themselves no conception of the criminality of
war, and did not rise above the moral level of their age. Here and there
a saint or a prelate raised a feeble voice against the violence of men,
but we do not estimate an institution by the words of an occasional
member, especially if they are at variance with the official conduct and
the general sentiment. On the other hand, to boast that the clergy at
times enforced a temporary cessation of fighting (the "Truce of God")
only increases our appreciation of their guilt. The men who enforced
that Truce gave proof at once of their power and of their perception of
the un-Christian nature of warfare. But they were unwilling to condemn
outright a machinery which they might employ at any moment in defence or
advancement of their own interests.
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