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Anonymous
Posted August 16, 2005
Another failed war against Islam
I read 1453 immediately after I finished reading 1421, a novel that documents the discovery of America by Chinese sailors. 1453 is a wonderful and timely work that comes out at a time when the world is again faced with another period of religious zealotry fomented by the descendants of Puritans and Hester Prynne of Scarlet Letter fame. No matter how many wannabe world conquerors we have endured in history, there is always another ready in the wings. I think the most damning part of the book is reserved for the Catholic Church and its fixation on Papal infallibility and authority. The two arrogant quotes from Popes Nicolas 1 and Gregory VII are amazing. Had the Catholic Church sent more troops to Constantinople on time, the result of the battle would have been different, and Mehmet would not have carried the day. Jesus would be shocked at the arrogance of the popes who sometimes believe they are God. Now I understand the deep seated dislike of Muslims for Christians and Christians for Muslims much better. I would rather love all men as Jesus said to do.
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Anonymous
Posted August 7, 2005
Interesting Story of Significant World Event
I enjoyed reading this book. With an interest in christian and middle eastern topics, the title and topic intrigued me. While the story telling is good, and the writing style is good, the details tend to get repeated in various chapters and this makes the reading a little boring at times, but the sense of impending tragedy for an ancient city and the level of detail of the battles and how the rivals ConstantineXI and Mehmet managed and inspired their troops was imformative. The information on the unfortunate rivalries and disputes between the Catholics and Orthodox and Venetians and Genoans and the Muslims was very educational and has some relevance to today's concerns. Overall it was a good read for someone with an interest in historical events.
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