After the Vatican II Revolution, St Francis' image
had been gravely distorted by liberal revisionist writers who have conveniently
created a false notion of him as a passive "PETA" pantheists who just
happened to be Catholic. Traditional Catholic historians have refuted such
silly notions of falsely portraying Saint Francis of Assisi as some kind of
left-wing, peace maker! This most courageous saint, was a devout , Catholic who
loved the truth and sought to boldly bring Jesus to everyone-- even those who
were blinded by heresy.
One of the most trying periods of this holy saint's
life occurred when he tried to convert a Mohammedan Imam and his pagan tribal
enterouge. The modernists, in their calculated attempts to wipe away any
affiliation of "Christian conversion" directed against non-Catholics,
have conveniently ommitted this most heroic triumph of the 12th century ain't.
So as not to "offend" the sensitivities of the Mohammedans!
The famous meeting begins when Francis accompanies
the crusaders to Damietta, Egypt with the goal of having a private audience
with Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil who was the Islamic ruler of Egypt.
Prior to the battle of Damietta, Francis received a
prophetic vision that the crusaders would lose the battle. He hesitatingly
revealed his vision which was dismissed. The battle went forward, and the
crusaders lost.
The crusaders losses were many. As one chronicler
wrote--John the Baptist gained many companions that day due to the great many
beheadings. "This horror befell about fifty horsemen, of the Knights
Templar, thirty of the Germans, and over twenty Hospitallers."
Remarkably it was the loss at Damietta that gave St
Francis the opportunity to finally meet the Sultan face to face in an attempt
to convert him to the Christian faith.
St Francis sought permission to enter the camp of
the Sultan from the Papal Legate who was hesitant to grant permission since al
Kamil had reportedly stated that "anyone who brought him the head of a
Christian should be awarded with Byzantine gold pieces". Eventually when
confronted with the insistence and persistence of St Francis, the Papal legate
allowed Francis and one companion, Brother Illuminato, to go into the Muslim
camp.
Early documents all agree that upon entering the
camp Francis and Illuminato were treated very roughly. One account states that
they were insulted and beaten yet showed no fear even when threatened with
torture and death. They kept repeating to their captors the word for
"SULTAN" and were eventually dragged before him.
St Francis and Illuminato informed the Sultan that
they were messengers sent from God. An early writing purports to contain the
essence of their first words to the Sultan:
"If you do not wish to believe
we will commend your soul to God because we declare that if you die while
holding to your law you will be lost; God will not accept your soul. For this
reason we have come to you. They added that they would demonstrate the truth of
Christianity to al-Kamil and his imams.
Surprisingly the Sultan was captivated by the
sincerity of the men's concern for his eternal salvation. Al-kamil willingly
listened to St Francis and permitted them great liberty in their preaching.
The Sultan told his imams that beheading Francis and
Illuminato would be an unjust recompense for their efforts, since they had
arrived with the praiseworthy intention of seeking his personal salvation. He
said to Francis: "I am going to go counter to what my religious advisors
demand and will not cut off your heads...you have risked your own lives in
order to save my soul."
The Franciscans were the guests of the Sultan for
many days. During that time the Sultan made certain that the men's wounds were
taken care of. St. Francis was one of the most charismatic and
remarkable saints that the Church has ever seen. There is a question as to
whether the Sultan had a deathbed conversion to the faith as a result of his
encounter with Francis.
One historian wrote that: al-Kamil before dismissing
the friar, privately asked him to pray that God would reveal to me the law and
the faith that is more pleasing to Him. Illuminato remarked that the Sultan,
after hearing Francis fervently preach the Gospel, always had the Christian
faith imprinted on his heart."
According to the Little Flower of St Francis which
is a widely read historical account of the first friars lives, Francis
prophesied that the Sultan would have a deathbed conversion. After Francis' death
he appeared to two friars and instructed them to find the Sultan and teach him
the faith.
It is also reported in the Little Flower that the Sultan instructed
his sentinels to watch for two friars in the ports. When the friars were found
the Sultan received them with great joy. "The friars after instructing
al-Kamil in the faith, administered the Sacrament of Baptism to the dying
Sultan and 'his soul was saved through the merits of St Francis'".
This fascinating account is truly inspiring.
Especially when the zeal of Islam has been rekindled and so many are ready to
violently confront the West once again. St Francis did not seek
"dialogue" with the Sultan in order to minimize or diminish the differences that existed between the Catholic and the Muslim faith. Instead he
boldly proclaimed the truths of Christianity. There is a naiveté on the part of
so many liberals today who feel that we can simply dialogue until we find
similarities between Catholicism and Islam.
If we equate our religion with theirs, it only leads
to confusion and contempt. As demonstrated by St Francis's approach, Muslims
are far more respectful and willing to listen to a person who acknowledges the
great division that separates the two religions than to a person who says that
all the religions are the same; that we all believe the same things; we all
have the same faith.
Although Francis was not on a formal mission of
peace, converting the Muslims was his attempt to bring about peace. According
to one scholar, Christopher Maier, "Francis like the crusaders wanted to
liberate the holy places of Palestine from Muslim rule. What was different was
his strategy...He wanted their total submission to the Catholic faith."
If only there were even a few zealous Traditional
Catholic missionaries who were willing to risk martyrdom by preaching Christ to
the Muslims as boldly as Saint Francis did--the face of the world could change.
"He who will have lost his life for My sake
shall save it for eternal life." (Luke 9:24; Matthew 25:46). "Do not
fear those who kill the body" (Matthew 10:28), "and after that have
no more that they can do." (Luke 12:4)
Presented by Malachy Mary Igwilo, on the feast of St. Placid and his companions, 5th October, 2016
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