St. Francis of Assisi and the Conversion of the Muslims

by Frank M. Rega S.F.O.

Caution: For those of you who live in a PC La-La land where San Francesco is the world's 1st Hippie Eco-freak pacifist the following may cause an awaking to the truth!!!!!

I am about to do something I rarely do, review a book that I have barely broken open, let alone completely read. However, in this case I think I can do a fair & accurate job of it. Why? You'll see.

I have had a deep love for my paisan San Francesco since I saw the movie Brother Sun, Sister Moon while I was in high school. Later when I came to DBQ I went to the local Catholic book store & picked up a couple of books about St. Francis. 1 was The Little Flowers of St. Francis (Image Books back when they published orthodox Catholic books.). & I got to know the real St. Francis. However, as time when on I began to notice that there was a change in how The Poverello was being presented. He was no longer the strong, faith-filled, evangelist out to preach the gospel to everyone one & everything, stigmatist. He had become a peace loving "hippie" who became more & more New Agey as time when on. Instead of someone who saw the glory of God reflected in creation, more & more he became someone who saw nature as God. What stigma? Poverty, what poverty? This was esp reflected in the no longer so poor lifestyle of the Franciscan Nuns here in DBQ, who also became the biggest false St. Francis promoters in the area. The real San Francesco would be ashamed of them (As an aside, there are many followers of The poverello who have remained true. Those at EWTN & Fr. Groeschel's order he helped start are just a couple examples.)

Now, let me give a bit of background about how I came across this book. I 1st discovered it when I was checking out Tan Books website. I saw the title, St. Francis of Assisi and the Conversion of the Muslims; With Concise Biography of the Saint, & it grabbed my attention. It was being put out by Tan so I felt it would be historically accurate. Then I saw the author, Frank Rega & my assurance it would definitely be a good & accurate book increased. Why? I had read another of his books that Tan publishes, Padre Pio & America which was excellent & I also recommend. Next, I saw it came with a recommendation by Fr. Angelus M. Shaughnessy, O.F.M. Cap.. Home run, I knew I had to get it.

I had another book that TAN had on sale for an excellent price, so I decided to order this book also since I hadn't seen it at the 2 Catholic bookstores I shop in the DBQ area. It came last week & I started to flip through it & do a little scanning of its contents. But even before I did that I saw 1 more thing that was another confirmation I would love this book. It had a recomendation by Robert Spencer (Jihad Watch), an expert on the truth about Islam.

As I was going through the preface I came across the following by Mr. Rega: "Unlike certain fashionable attempts to demythologize Catholic Saints & figures, I have not endeavored to remove the halo from St. Francis! To reduce this Saint to a glorified social worker, a nature lover, or 'the first hippie' is a great disservice to his true heritage." (emphasis mine) He went on & on, not only using the same words I use to describe how San Francesco is misrepresented, but giving a short descrition of the saint I knew & loved. You could almost hear the angels singing the Halleluiah Chorus! as I read what he wrote.

Since then I have made my way through the 1st 2 chapters. & so far it has lived up to my every expectation. (I have about 3 different books I am currently juggling during my time for spiritual reading, Papa Benedetto's Jesus of Nazareth & Sr. Faustina's Diary are the other 2. Plus occasional bits from a couple others.) I knew that I would have to write a glowing review when I finished it.

So why am I no longer waiting? It is because of a post I came across on another blog, Lair of the Catholic Cavemen. That post, "It Is Just That Christians Invade The Land You Inhabit, For You Blaspheme The Name Of Christ And Alienate Everyone You Can From His Worship.", talked about the book & shared part of an interview Frank Riga did about the book for LifeSite News. At that point I knew I couldn't wait but had to throw in my 2 cents worth & share some of that interview myself.

St. Francis of Assisi: Not a Birkenstock-Clad Hippie But a Converter of Muslims

By Michael Baggot

The relationship between Muslims and Christians received added attention this past Easter when Pope Benedict XVI publicly baptized Magdi Allam, the most prominent Muslim journalist in Italy. Allam knew that publicly renouncing his Islamic faith would bring attempts on his life from angered Muslims, but expressed conviction that his newfound faith would sustain him through any difficulties.

. . . . . .

Pope Benedict XVI's action in St. Peter's on Easter Vigil shows that the Catholic Church's increased emphasis over the last decades on dialogue and mutual understanding between Christians and Muslims does not exclude efforts to bring Muslims to faith in Jesus Christ.

In December, Catholic author Frank M. Rega released Francis of Assisi and the Conversion of the Muslims; With Concise Biography of the Saint, a book that has received much praise for its biographical portrait of the renowned saint and its highly pertinent focus on St. Francis's relationship with Muslims of the time.

. . . . . .

In line with its reporting on major cultural issues, LifeSiteNews interviewed Frank M. Rega about his new book and his perspective about the lessons St. Francis has for the world and Catholic-Muslim relations.

LifeSiteNews: Could you summarize the history of the Fifth Crusade?

Frank Rega: . . . . . Your first question is very appropriate since it is important to set the stage for this historic encounter.

The Fifth Crusade was first called for by Pope Innocent III in 1215 at the Lateran Council. Innocent personally knew Francis and had approved his Rule in 1209 when Francis and his first followers went to Rome to seek Papal acceptance for his new Order. The crusade got underway in 1217 under Pope Honorius III. It lasted for four years, and was lost by the crusaders.

The goal was to first take Egypt before attempting to reach the Holy Land. In 1219 Francis was present in Egypt at the city of Damietta on the Nile, with some of his friars. That port city was eventually captured by the crusaders and held for over a year. But it was returned to the Muslims in 1221 after a crusader march on Cairo failed miserably, and the Christians gave up the crusade.

It was during a period of truce during the battle over Damietta in September 1219 that Francis preached to the Muslims, crossing over to the Muslim camp with Brother Illuminato, who was probably the interpreter.

Frank Rega: Francis understood that the Fifth Crusade was part of an ongoing just war in response to Muslim invasions of Christian lands, which included many attacks against Italian city-states all along the peninsula over the course of centuries. For example, in the year 846, Rome itself was sacked by 11,000 Muslims, who desecrated the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul.

Further, the crusade was called for by the Holy Father, and it is well-known that Francis had perfect loyalty to the Catholic Church, and showed devout respect for priests and all the hierarchy. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, he felt the crusade was justified on spiritual grounds. As mentioned in the book, Francis told the Sultan "It is just that Christians invade the land you inhabit, for you blaspheme the name of Christ and alienate everyone you can from His worship."

. . . . . .

Here we have an image of St. Francis that is utterly opposed to the statues of a docile friar surrounded by birds and other animals - St. Francis beaten and in chains! He was fully prepared for martyrdom. Upon meeting the saint, al-Malik asked him if he was a messenger from the crusaders. Francis replied that he was indeed a messenger, but a messenger from God. He then proceeded to give witness to his love for Jesus, and said that he wished to save the souls of the Sultan and his men.

. . . . . .

(T)he Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a document last December reminding Catholics that ecumenical efforts should not cause us to neglect the gospel mandate to seek the conversion of others to Christ. This must be accomplished without coercion, but rather by a dialog of conversion. This is what Francis did in his conversations with the Sultan. The problem arises with a certain philosophy of ecumenism that seeks some type of indefinite mutual coexistence of differing religions, or worse yet, that would strive for a for "pan-religion" by the merging of religious traditions. This approach is a denial that the Catholic Religion is the one true faith founded by Jesus Christ.

. . . . . .

(St. Francis's) goal was to carry to the unbelievers the very presence of Christ, and the essence of God's love, mercy, forgiveness and salvation.

This brings up a second point, the necessity to be strong in the basics of our Faith. One cannot relate as a Catholic to another religion while being hesitant, for example, about the truth of Christ's Resurrection from the dead on Easter.

Finally, Francis shows us that we must keep it simple. Simplicity was one of the hallmarks of his personality and of his approach to Christianity. Spiritual strength flows from the simple understanding and belief that Jesus is God, that he founded a Church to transmit the grace of salvation in His Name, and that Church is the Roman Catholic Church.

This book is 1 that I know won't make it up to Mt. St. Francis here in DBQ. It would shed way to much light on how they are presenting a false picture of St. Francis & his spirituality. Nor will it sit well with the PC crowd for all the obvious reasons. & for those who turn a blindside to the truth about radical Islam it may cause agita & WORSE.

In Conclusion: I want to thank Frank Riga for bringing back the truth about my beloved Poverello. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It is an easy read while being accurate, well researched & documented. The book is divided into 3 sections. Each section can stand alone, but together give the whole story. The 2nd part focuses on the encounter of San Francesco & the Sultan of Egypt during the 5th Crusade (something that the PC fake followers of him would like to get rid of.) the 1st part covers his early life, conversion & start of the 1st & 2nd orders. The last part covers his life after his return to Italia up to his death. There is a final section in which Mr. Rega looks at how much St. Francis' efforts with the Sultan did or didn't suceed.

I am looking forward to the delight that I know the rest of this book will be to read.

This book is not only 1 that every true lover of San Francesco should have, it is a book that makes an excellent gift for birthdays, Christmas, graduations etc. Yes, even a wedding gift.

Again I say "MILLE GRAZIE!!!!!!" to Frank Rega.