Clinging to the Rosary
The Power of PrayerAs we enter the final months of the Church’s Year of Hope, we turn to Immaculée Ilibagiza—a woman whose faith and trust in God transformed unimaginable suffering into a radiant testimony of hope. And in this Month of the Rosary, her story shines even brighter, for it was the Rosary that became her lifeline, her strength, and her constant companion through 91 days of terror.
Ilibagiza, author of Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust, was born and raised in a devout Catholic family in Rwanda. She grew up surrounded by love, laughter, and prayer. Her parents, both teachers, made faith the center of their home.
“Every day, together we would say our Catholic prayers,” she recalled, as she talked to nearly 200 people at a retreat in Charles Town last summer. “We loved to be together. We knew we were loved.”
She urged the group attending the Eastern Panhandle retreat, “Be grateful for the people who love you. Be thankful for our priests, because our parishes would not exist without their service and sacrifice. Let your actions reflect your gratitude.”
Her words, gentle and sincere, echoed through the social hall at St. James the Greater Parish. There, amid quiet reverence, she shared how her life changed forever in April 1994, when the Rwandan genocide erupted.
Home from college for Easter break, she was forced into hiding—crammed with seven other women in a 3-by-4-foot bathroom. For 91 days, they lived in silence, unable to speak, move freely, or even flush the toilet except at carefully timed moments that coincided with the other bathroom in the house. Outside, more than 800,000 people were being slaughtered.
In that darkness, Immaculée clung to a gift from her father—his Rosary. He gave it to her as he rushed her into hiding at the home of a pastor.
She prayed would end up praying the Rosary twenty-seven times a day, meditating on the life of Christ and allowing the mysteries to still her fear and anger.
“When the voices of despair tried to stop me,” she said softly, “I called out, ‘Jesus, help me get back on track.’ You can too. Focus on God. Know that He through the meditative prayer of the Rosary makes miracles happen.”
After the 91 days, when she emerged from hiding, weighing less than 70 pounds, she learned that all of her family had been killed except for one brother who was studying abroad.
She was overwhelmed with sadness at the loss of her family, relatives, and so many neighbors and friends. However, she refused to be consumed by hatred. She chose forgiveness.
“God left me to tell His story,” she said. “A story of His goodness.”
Her powerful memoir, Left to Tell, is more than a record of tragedy—it is a hymn of faith. Through it, Immaculée reminds us that even in the darkest hours, the Rosary leads us back to the light.
At her two-day event in Charles Town, participants prayed the Rosary together, attended Mass, and shared stories of hope, healing, and love.
Immaculée’s witness invites us to pick up our Rosaries anew—to trust that in every trial, Mary leads us to Jesus, and that prayer truly can transform hearts, families, and our world.
For more about her ministry and book, visit http://www.immaculee.com
If you are interested in organizing a retreat at your parish/vicariate with Ilibagiza contact Joyce Bibey at the Chancery [email protected].