Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust

April 7, 1994, marked the beginning of the deadly Rwandan genocide. 4 months later, on July 15th was the day that signified the end of the tragic event. As the world's superpowers turned their backs, close to 1 million ethnic Tutsis, Twas, and sympathizing Hutus were slaughtered by Hutu government-backed militia--the Interahamwe, who hunted and brutally hacked them with machetes while hiding in homes, churches, and in the for​est.

"Left to Tell" is told by Immaculee llibagiza of her horrific experiences of the genocide and how faith became front and center throughout her plight. Immaculee, born a Tutsi, was raised in a small village, where both Tutsis and Hutus lived in harmony. Her parents were well known and respected in the community. No such ethnic differences ever existed to Immaculee. That was until April 7th when the president's plane was inexplicably shot down, igniting the fuel that would begin the killing of thousands of ethnic Tutsis.

The core setting takes place in a small, tightly, confined bathroom in the home of a Hutu pastor. This bathroom is what would become a sanctuary for these women. Immaculee is sent to the pastor's home by her father, knowing that he would take her in. For 3 months, Immaculee and 6 other women were kept hidden inside the pastor's bathroom, sheltered from the atrocities surrounding them and surviving on meager scraps of leftover food and a whole lot of prayer. It is prayer, faith, and forgiveness that are the themes of the book.

The Interhamwe's search through the home created an intense environment for Immaculee and the other women. But, a hopeful and spiritual Immaculee, using the rosary given by her father, prayed fervently to the Lord in what ultimately gave her sanity, serenity, and strength. In the end, Immaculee was saved when she made it to safety at the French army base and eventually the RPF base in Kigali. Hearing the tragic news of her parents' death along with two brothers, left Immaculee devastated; she is indeed the only one "Left to Tell." Faith enabled Immaculee to forgive. With forgiveness, she moved on, started a family, and continues to give public speeches about the tragic event, keeping alive the legacy of the Rwandan genocide.

20 years have passed since the slaughtering occurred. Numerous books have since been published on genocide. Testimonies such as "Left to Tell" questions our moral obligations to humanity and world peace. The responsibility lies in each of us; strengths in numbers against genocide sends a strong message to political leaders. Leaders will act based on those pressures from the countless individuals, who are looking to put an end to atrocities. For example, an era in U.S history I can reference from is the Vietnam war. Regular, ordinary people stood as a united front together protesting to end the war. People from all over the country stood for a common cause. I believe the same method could be applied to issues like this. Genocide can be something that existed in the past and that has no place in the present or future.

Immaculee Ilibagiza’s Left to Tell tells her story of survival and of her relentless faith in God during the Rwandan genocide in 1994. She survives by hiding in a tiny hidden bathroom with seven other women and young girls at a local pastor’s house for 91 days. The only concealment she has from being found out is a bookshelf that covers the bathroom door. During this time of terror, Immaculee finds peace, comfort, and hope of God’s boundless love. Immaculee believes that she will survive the genocide because of her faith in God, and begins to start planning for her future.

In the beginning of the book, Immaculee came from a loving family with father, mother, and three brothers. Her parents raised them up without the knowledge of the discrimination of the different races. They believed that everyone in Rwanda were equal and that everyone was their brother and sister. However in fourth grade, Immaculee realizes the racial conflicts between the Tutsis and the Hutus, when her teacher called rolled by their races, and Immaculee didn’t know which race she was. She also found out that she was having a tough time getting into high school and college because she was a Tutsi.

However, Immaculee experienced bloodshed, violence, and hatred when in her freshman year in college she came home for Easter vacation. There the genocide of Rwanda had begun. The Hutu army wanted to exterminate the Tutsis. Because Immaculee’s father was in a position of power and authority, he tried to make peace with the Hutus, but didn’t succeed. Hundreds of Tutsis came to Immaculee's yard for protection of the genocide. However, even though Immaculee's father and the Tutsis tried to defend themselves against the Hutus, they knew that they would not succeed.

In order to protect his family, Immaculee's father sent Immaculee, her two brothers, (one of her brother was in college out of the country) and her brother’s Hutu friend, who was staying with them for the holidays, to stay with a local Hutu pastor. When they got there, the pastor was left with a difficult choice. He could only protect women. He sent her brothers and her brother’s friend out of the house and told them to seek asylum elsewhere. Her parents, two brothers and brother’s friend would later be killed by the Hutus. Immaculee and seven other women and young girls hid in a bathroom with only a shower stall and toilet, and there was no place for a sink because of the small size. There they stayed, while many times the Hutus would come into the house looking for them, and they were afraid. Sometimes it was so risky that the pastor could not even bring food and water, and many times they were starving and dehydrated. They couldn’t move a muscle.

During this time of fear and terror, Immaculee clutched to God. She was a Roman Catholic, and would pray the rosary. Sometimes she asked the pastor to bring a bible. Her prayers gave her peace. She then contemplated God’s word, and decided to forgive the Hutus for the genocide. She also started to plan for her future by trying to learn English from an English dictionary her pastor gave her.

Overall, I felt this book to be an important book about faith and the love of God. It is through her hope and God’s infinite love that she found peace in a troubled time. It was her faith in God that helped her survive the Holocaust. The novel is thought-provoking and teaches us to forgive even people who have done us wrong. I encourage you to read this book for it will be a hopeful message of God’s love, and that where there is darkness, there is also hope.

Simply, this was one of the most incredible and humbling books I have ever read.

As told by Immaculee Ilibagiza, "Left to Tell" relates how her parents and brothers were among one million victims of genocidal annihilation in 1994 Rwanda. The subtitle, "Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust," may benefit from some clarification. Immaculee was raised in a pious and ardently Catholic family. Though her family was not free of faults, her father's faith inspired and strengthened his neighbors: "If the government plans to kill us, all we can do is pray. Let us use the time we have to repent. Let us pray for God to forgive our sins. If we are to die, let us die with our hearts clean." Before Immaculee herself "discovered" God in the midst of her suffering, she was clearly an exceptionally devout young person. Through the deepening of her relationship with God, she was able to overcome unspeakable adversity.

In the face of abandonment and absolute betrayal by lifelong friends, Immaculee's temptation to despair seems to have been incredibly rare. Early in the book, she does relate how she and a schoolmate - should their school be set upon by extremists - made a pact to "escape" through suicide. Yet, virtually every other page of this book is a testament to her foregoing despair and ever more deeply experiencing God's love. To paraphrase the 23rd Psalm, she knew that God was walking with her in the valley of death, and she could see His providence in what others might attribute to incredible coincidence. She relates truly miraculous experiences of having looked evil in the eye and watching evil slither away.

Faced with the murder of members of her immediate family (to say nothing of her grandparents and others!), Immaculee's faith (and that of her murdered family) allowed her to trust God: "God had shown me that my family was in a place beyond suffering." "I may have lost everything, but I'd kept my faith, and it made me strong. It also comforted me and let me know that life still had a purpose."

Immaculee offers a call to the incredible liberation which comes from forgiveness: "God's message extends beyond borders: Anyone in the world can learn to forgive those who have injured them, however great or small that injury may be."

excellent book

It typically takes me a few weeks to finish a book, but I really couldn't put this book down once I picked it up. I read at night sometimes before going to sleep, but this book kept me up until past 2am 3 nights in a row (I finished on the 3rd night). I really knew very little about the Rwanda genocide, other than watching Hotel Rwanda a couple years back, but after reading this book, I feel like I not only learned so much history but it also really put some things in perspective about being thankful for what I have and forgiveness. This is definitely a book that everyone should put on their reading list. And be prepared to shed some tears.

What a tragic event that took place in Rwanda...I wasn't even aware of the atrocities there...and it wasn't that long ago.

Again the caste system was what caused all the trouble...people thinking they are better than someone else and thinking they must kill them.

My favorite line from the book is: I envision, I dream, I pray, and I have what I want.

It is a wonderful book to realize that prayer does work.

It is depressing, but the uplifting religious aspect keeps you reading.