In the wake of Osama bin Laden's attack on him on March 19, Pope Benedict XVI took the bold step of baptizing a high-profile convert from Islam at the Easter Vigil. Held on Holy Saturday evening, the Easter Vigil has traditionally been the service at which converts to Catholicism receive the Sacraments of Initiation.

Magdi Allam, an Egyptian-born journalist for Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper, has long been critical of Islam, which he has characterized as "physiologically violent." While he was brought up a Muslim, Allam has not practiced Islam in years and is married to a Catholic. He took the name of "Christiano" at his baptism.

The Holy Father baptized seven converts at the Easter Vigil, but Allam's conversion has been seen as a powerful reassertion of the Catholic Church's commitment to upholding religious freedom, a point confirmed by the director of the Holy See Press Office, Fr. Federico Lombardi, S.J.:

For the Catholic Church, anyone who asks to receive Baptism--following a profound individual exploration, a free choice and adequate preparation--has the right to receive it.

Reaction among Muslims has been largely negative, with some suggesting that Allam was never a Muslim at all, but a Coptic Christian (a sect of Christianity native to Egypt). They are likely correct to interpret Pope Benedict's action as a very public signal that Muslims who are considering conversion to Christianity should not be afraid to do so. Allam has received many death threats simply for criticizing Islam in the past, and the death threats have increased since his conversion.

With the Holy Father preparing to make his first apostolic voyage to the United States in April, some members of the About.com Catholicism Forum are concerned that his baptism of Allam will place Pope Benedict at risk, particularly in light of the earlier veiled threat by Osama bin Laden.

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