Glimpses #32: They Sent Children to War! Child Crusades
Format: 2-page bulletin insert
Our Price: $2.00 per pack (each pack contains 25 copies). Back issues are available only in packs of 25 copies.
Product Description: The whole improbable series of events began in 1212 when a twelve year old shepherd boy, Stephen of Cloyes, brought a letter to King Philip of France saying it was from Christ. Stephen said that in the letter Christ told him to organize a crusade to march on Jerusalem. King Philip told the boy to go home to his father. Earlier attempts by the knights of Europe to reclaim the land of Jesus from the Moslems had not been successful. What could a boy of twelve hope to do? Stephen, however, announced that Christ had promised the sea would dry up and they would march over the Mediterranean dry shod as Moses had at the Red Sea.
Stephen's zeal and persuasiveness caused children from all over France to flock to his cause. Why parents allowed their children to go is a mystery—possibly they were influenced by Pope Innocent III's tacit approval of the Crusade; possibly the fathers were themselves away at war in the east; possibly the parents too were mesmerized by Stephen. By June, 1212, 300,000 young people met at Vendoma, France to begin their journey to Jerusalem. They had no maps or supplies, only a blind faith. Even some adults and priests followed the children, believing their simplicity and innocence had a power of its own. Many believed the children would be able to conquer the Holy Land because of Christ's statement that to enter the kingdom of heaven one must become like a little child.
- Did you know?
- Prayer Journal
Ship Weight: .36 lb each
To calculate shipping and handling costs, click here.
