Revisits a little-known encounter between al-Malik al-Kamil, a powerful 13th century Muslim ruler, and a pre-sainthood Francis of Assisi on a battlefield during the Crusades.

I didn’t expect the Sultan and the Saint to move me in such a way that I now want to study this topic in more detail and I want to follow St. Francis’s advice.

But St. Francis did make an impression on the Sultan. Moved by his friendship with the friar, Al-Kamil showed mercy to the invaders when their army was surrounded and starving and allowed them to return to Europe. His reign lasted another 20 years, during which time he treated his Christian subjects fairly.

Great message and useful in using history to understand modern issues. I actually found the concepts useful when teaching US History.