God, Prayer (and More) Absent From '60 Minutes' Rwanda Story

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?

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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.