Paul Moses: The Saint and the Sultan: The Crusades, Islam, and Francis of Assisi’s Mission of Peace

Abstract

This book by Pulitzer Prize-winning New York journalist Paul Moses retells the story of a meeting that took place in the summer of 1219 during the Fifth Crusade (1213-21) between Saint Francis of Assisi - one of the best-loved saints of Catholic Christianity - and the Ayyubid Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil (r. 1218-38) in the Egyptian city of Damietta at the mouth of the Nile. In a dangerous and daring move by crossing enemy lines to advocate peace, St Francis and Malik al-Kamil shared a brief dialogue about war, peace and faith in the One God. The conversation inspired St Francis to return home with a bold challenge to his fellow Christians: to live peacefully with the Muslims despite the war between their religious leaders and to stop warfare of any kind.