Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2023

Publisher

University of Chicago Press

Source Publication

Speculum

Source ISSN

2040-8072

Abstract

In 1219 Francis of Assisi left the army of the Fifth Crusade with whom he had traveled to Egypt to preach the Christian faith before the Sultan Malik al-Kamil. This well-known encounter has long been remembered as a model for interreligious understanding and coexistence. For example, Pope Francis described it as an example of ecumenical outreach when marking its eighth centenary. Medievalists also have tended to approach this event as representing the intended model for peaceful evangelization within Francis’s order. From this perspective, the many Franciscan friars who preached crusading or collected tithes to support campaigns, who served as inquisitors or advocated violence against the Jews, as well as those who promoted military action to retake the Holy Land, were evidence for how the Franciscan Order had moved away from his founding ideals. Paolo Evangelisti’s important new book challenges scholars to move beyond the ecumenical myth of the famous encounter and reassess how medieval Franciscans thought about their evangelical roles. The result is a rewarding study that deserves attention.

Comments

Published version. Speculum, Vol. 98, No. 1 (2023): 243-244. DOI. © 2023 University of Chicago Press. Used with permission.

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