Reconciliation

As you probably know, in 1994 Rwanda endured a genocidal massacre, where in the course of 100 days, a million people were killed in gruesome murders. You may not know that Rwanda has since made some great strides forward both socially and economically, resulting in their acceptance into the Commonwealth of former British colonies this week, only 15 years since those terrible days.

What has made this possible? Many things, but one of the most important has been a huge movement of reconciliation.

But I can't explain this nearly as well as someone who lived through both the terror and the hope. I listened to this podcast on my way to work and almost had to stop driving. It's that powerful. It's from a church, Mars Hill, but it's not about preaching and trying to convert you, it's about the incredible power of forgiveness.

Love Your Enemies - Rob Bell And Cyprian Nkiriyumwami

I'm tempted to add some quotes from a favorite book of mine, Why Forgive, by Johann Christoph Arnold, but I think the words from Mr Nkiriyumwami are enough to stand on their own.

Pat