The story of
Immaculée Ilibagiza is nothing short of remarkable. During the 1994
Rwandan genocide, Immaculée and six other women hid in a tiny bathroom
in the house of a Protestant minister as rival tribesmen searched to
kill them. They hid under unimaginable conditions for three months
as the threat of a gruesome death lurked outside.
How did Immaculée survive such a brutal ordeal? Through the power of
prayer. She tells us in her
amazing book
Left To Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust:
During my waking hours I was in constant communication with God,
praying and meditating for 15 to 20 hours every day. I even dreamed
of Jesus and the Virgin Mary during the few hours I slept. (page
107)
Yet when
60 Minutes profiled Ms. Ilibagiza's story last night (Sun.,
7/1/07), no mention at all was made of her persistent prayer, even
though this is absolutely a central component
throughout
her amazing story. Her prayers seemed to result in miracles during
her confinement. (Read the book. I have, and it's unbelievable.)
Ms. Ilibagiza was raised as a devout Catholic, and since her freedom, she has toured the
world conveying her amazing message of the power of God and prayer. For
example, in May, she told a crowd of 50,000 people at
The
Rosary Bowl (at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA) of how she repeatedly
prayed the rosary for strength and protection (here/here/here).
Several attendees were moved to tears by her story. (I was there.)
Why did 60 Minutes fail to include this message of God and
prayer in her eyebrow-raising story? Anyone?
+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Also, although the genocide took place in 1994, Bob Simon did not
devote a single syllable to the highly criticized inaction of the
Clinton administration. After leaving office, the former president
admitted that "he did not fully appreciate the depth and the speed with
which [Rwandans] were being engulfed by this unimaginable terror." (See
this,
this,
this,
this.)
A viewer left a comment on the 60 Minutes web site which many
must have been thinking:
Great segment on Rwanda. I noticed no mention was directed at
President Clinton for not acting to help Rwanda. Can you imagine how
many times this would of been mentioned had a Republican been in
office at the time?
Posted by label1877 at 09:54 PM : Jul 01, 2007
Certainly a fair question.