LEFT TO TELL

A STORY OF TORTURE, MURDER, AND GENOCIDE ALL CONQUERED BY FORGIVENESS

I have just finished a remarkable book. It is called Left To Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza. She is a survivor of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994. Over one million of her Tutsi tribe were murdered by Hutus in a three month killing spree. Her mother, father and two of her brothers were executed by people of their own village. Neighbors and friends were their executioners.

Immaculee survived by the kindness of a Hutu protestant pastor. He hid her and 7 other women in a four foot by three foot bathroom for 91 days. There was no room to move. They could only communicate by sign language. They could only flush the toilet when someone flushed the other toilet in the house. No one else in the house knew they were there.

They lived in constant fear. The house was searched by Hutu killing gangs several times. They knew little of what was happening outside, they had no knowledge if any of their family had survived.

Immaculee’s body was trapped in this horrible cell but her mind and her heart were not imprisoned. She found that the only relief from the bitterness and hatred she felt was in prayer. In the midst of terrible suffering, she lifted her soul to God in constant prayer. She prayed to Mary constantly. Somedays she prayed her rosary 14 hours a day. She recognized that despair and discouragement and hatred were tools of Satan. Mary heard her prayers and lifted her petitions to the throne of her Son. He heard and answered her prayers in remarkable ways and transformed her heart from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh.

After more than ninety days, she was able to leave. She found out that her parents and brothers had been executed by local killing squads. She visited their grave and their destroyed home. She even met the man who had led the killers and who had been searching for her. She had heard his voice when she was locked in the bathroom. Think of how you would feel meeting the man who killed your parents, brothers, friends and neighbors. Through the supernatural power of Mary’s intercession, Immaculee was able to forgive.

Please read this book and when you are done examine your conscience. Who are those people who have truly hurt you? Have you forgiven them? Have you looked into your heart and realized how much God has forgiven you? All the insults and offenses we have heaped upon Him and yet His mercy is always available to us. If this young woman can heal her heart by forgiving those who murdered her family, caused her unimaginable suffering and murdered one million of her countrymen, who are we to refuse Christ’s call to forgiveness.

Father, forgive me my sins, failings, cruelties, insults and betrayals exactly to the extent that I forgive those who have done these things to me or my family.

Originally posted at Friends of Fighting Irish Thomas http://www.fightingirishthomas.org/
reposted with permission.