COLUMBUS, OHIO (ELCA) -- Immaculee Ilibagiza, a survivor of
the 1994 Rwandan genocide, told an audience of nearly 1,800
people at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA)
Global Mission Event (GME) that "kindness should come first in
our lives." Ilibagiza was a keynote speaker for the event held
this summer at The Ohio State University here. The 2007 GME
theme was "A New Heaven and a New Earth."
The 1994 Rwandan genocide began after the death of the
country's Hutu president. About 1 million ethnic Tutsis were
killed. Ilibagiza spent 91 days in hiding with seven other women
in a Hutu pastor's bathroom, during which time she discovered God
and taught herself English. She is the author of "Left to Tell:
Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust," a first-hand
account of her struggle to survive the genocide.
"I wrote this book for my children, who will never know
their grandparents. I want them to know that this is who we are
and where we have come from," Ilibagiza told the ELCA News
Service. In 1998, she immigrated to the United States, began
working for the United Nations in New York, and is currently a
member of the U.N. Development Program. Since her book was
published in early 2006, Ilibagiza has been on a national
speaking tour because "God left me to tell," she said.
"There's nothing on the other side without hope. Just be
brave enough to have hope and believe in God. My prayer is that
people can learn forgiveness and a respect for history. The only
hatred I'll allow is hatred of the atrocities that took place in
my home," said Ilibagiza.
The GME, an intergenerational event, featured 80 workshops
focusing on a variety of topics including HIV and AIDS,
sustainable living and global warming. Other keynote speakers
included astronomer Grace Wolf-Chase, Adler Planetarium and
Astronomy Museum, Chicago; theologian and author Vitor Westhelle,
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC); and Priscilla
Singh, executive secretary, Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Women
in Church and Society. The event concluded with a service of
Holy Communion with the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding
bishop and president of the LWF, who preached on a number of
topics including the war in Iraq, the conflicts in Israel and
Darfur, immigration, water privatization and the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina. LWF is a communion representing 66 million
Lutherans around the world.
"A new heaven and a new earth, and a new hope may mean that
we have to agitate the system, that we say 'no' to the double
standard and that we work tirelessly for a time when pain will be
no more and everything will be new. We must reject violence that
begets violence," said Hanson.
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Information about the 2007 GME is found at
http://www.ELCA.org/gme on the ELCA Web site.
A video news release about the 2007 GME is available at
http://www.ELCA.org/news/video.html on the ELCA Web site.
* Lauren A. Lamb is a senior public relations and speech
communication major at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.
This summer she was an intern with the ELCA News Service.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news
ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
