Lee's Lines

We do know that the issues between the Muslim world and Western civilization go back a long time--over 1,200 years. We also know that there are still ancient wounds that continue to fester. We know the issues are tangled almost beyond comprehension and involve the political, economic, religious, and historical dimensions. So in this issue of Glimpses, we add a little bit of background perspective that is largely buried and forgotten. We remind you of the so-called "Children's Crusade," and what led up to it. We hasten to add there is no specific lesson that we are trying to expound here. But we trust you will find much here to reflect upon.

It Goes Way Back
In October, 732, an invading army thundered across the heartland of Christian Europe. Behind their leader, Abd-er-Rahman, two hundred thousand plundering Moors, Persians, Berbers and Copts swept into Christendom unchecked, their appetite for the delicious spoils of bountiful lands luring them ever northward. They swarmed across the Church's domain like the locusts of Egypt, resolved that the Cross would bend to Islam.

To the north another storm was gathering and its thunder rolled ominously through the nervous French countryside. At the head of an opposing army roared Charles the Hammer, King of the Franks. The hard-eyed Christian soldiers did not know it then, but the future of a civilization would be determined in the battle to follow.

For hour upon hour the champions of two worlds collided. In the end, Abd-er-Rahman lay dead and his vanquished cavalry routed. The lands of modern France, Germany, and Italy had been saved. Islam still controlled Spain, however, as well as all that had been Christian in North Africa and the Middle East. The sons of Mohammed retreated, only to prepare another invasion.

The World’s All-Time Best Seller
One of the writers of the Bible said, “Of making many books there is no end” (Ecclesiastes 12:12). An infinitesimally small number of books published rise up above their day and age and are considered worth preserving. Some become recognized as classics. But even among the classics the Bible stands out as incomparable. The Bible is the most circulated book in the history of the world. It’s been this way since the innovation of the Gutenberg press in the 1450’s, when the Bible in Latin was the first large book to be printed by moveable type. Ever since, year after year, more copies of the Bible have been printed and circulated than any other book. Last year over 60 million complete Bibles, over 90 million New Testaments, and over 1 1ž2 billion Scripture sections were published in over 2,000 languages. The press runs keep growing every year.

Candle in the Dark.is the story of William Carey who sailed in 1793 to India with a reluctant wife and four children to bring the message of Jesus. There he encountered so much hardship it is amazing he did not abandon his mission and go home. But he stayed for over 40 years. He oversaw more translations of the Bible than had been done in all previous Christian history combined. Life was never easy for Carey. But he simply refused to quit, even when a devastating fire destroyed years of his literary work. His legacy has inspired countless others from his own day to the present. He is revered as the "Friend of India" and "Father of Modern Missions."

Islam did not capture all of Europe and wipe out Christianity is owing in part to the Franks' Mayor of the Palace, Charles Martel, his sturdy Merovingian knights and a courageous infantry. On this day, October 10, 732* Charles met the Islamic invaders between Poiters and Tours in a battle that lasted either two days (Arab sources) or seven (French sources). The Muslims were mounted and their cavalry employed an innovation--the stirrup. The Franks were on foot. Yet the Franks stood like a wall and the Muslims withdrew defeated. Their leader, Abd-ar-Rahman was killed. In their rout, the Arabs suffered heavy losses of men. Europe would remain Christian territory.