...and world peace!

Last night, I had the beautiful opportunity to hear a living saint tell her story.

Immaculee Ilibagiza is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide that killed one million people in 1994. Her bestselling book, Left To Tell, tells the story of how she survived, hiding in a bathroom with seven other women for 91 days. At one point during that time, the home she hid in was thoroughly searched. As they searched, she prayed to God for a sign, that if He were really there, the men would not find them. The last room the men went to check was the bathroom. They touched the doorknob, but instead of opening the door, they said to the man of the house, "We trust you," and they left. If that's not a sign, I don't know what is!

Immaculee prayed the rosary for 12 to 13 hours every day. She began to truly pray the prayers from her heart. What was most difficult for her to say was the Our Father. She did not see the Father as the Father of the enemy. But as she continued to pray, she heard God say to her repeatedly, "They are my children too." Slowly, she accepted that, but still, she could not pray with her heart the words, "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." Sitting in that bathroom, hungry, weak, and afraid, she thought it impossible to forgive. She tried to leave out those words of the prayer, but soon heard God saying to her, "My Son gave you those words, not man." So she prayed to God that if it were possible to forgive the enemy, to forgive the men who were out there killing her family and her people, who might show up at any time to kill her, He would have to show her how. Finally one day, while meditating on the fifth Sorrowful Mystery, she spoke of how she imagined herself with Jesus, embracing Him on the cross, weeping for Him, letting His blood wash her clean, and she heard, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Naturally, she found herself saying, "How can you? How can you forgive these people as they kill you?" And the answer is there in His final breath, "They know not what they do." Immaculee spoke of her desire to hold on to hate and anger. But God touched her heart, and she allowed His Mercy to wash her clean, to pour through her, so that she could forgive the men who killed her family.

Seriously? Amazing. She now travels around the world, speaking on peace, love, and forgiveness. As Christians, it is our vocation to love! It is often so difficult in this modern world to actually live that love, but she is living, breathing proof that it is possible. With God, anything is possible! It was truly inspiring to see the peace and the freedom she found in forgiveness emanating from her very presence. How much we can learn from her example, by forgiving those who have hurt us in the past, be it family members, ex boyfriends, old friends. Her story shares with us the key to world peace: love and forgiveness! Wouldn't it be beautiful if we, as a nation, could forgive the terrorist attacks of 9/11? If we could forgive the Holocaust? If we could forgive abortionists? If we could forgive murderers and rapists? It is important for us to remember that it is all about love! Immaculee spoke of planting seeds, that we never know what beautiful fruit God will grow from our tiny little seeds of faith. Already she has touched millions of lives with her story! Let us be little sowers of seeds of love!

Oh, there is so much I could say about her! You can be sure I'll mention her in the future, but for now, you can find more information on Immaculee and her story by visiting her website http://www.immaculee.com/, reading her book (which I plan to do over Easter break), and becoming a fan on Facebook! Of course, the best way to learn about her is to follow her example in love and forgiveness!