More than 120 gathered at the St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Shrine in Fort Washington to hear the harrowing story of Immaculée Ilibagiza, a survivor of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, whose 2006 book, “Left To Tell,” has sold more than two million copies in numerous languages.

The Rwandan genocide, triggered by President Juvénal Habyarimana’s assassination on April 6, 1994, saw extremist Hutus systematically kill approximately 800,000-1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus over 100 days using machetes and clubs, fueled by decades of ethnic tensions, colonial legacies, economic hardship, political instability, and hate propaganda.

During the genocide, Ilibagiza sheltered in the 12-square-foot bathroom of a Hutu family friend, along with seven other women, for three months. Ilibagiza’s parents were killed during the genocide. Only one of her siblings survived, as he was out of the country at the time.

Ilibagiza spoke for 80 minutes without a break or so much as a sip of water and clutched a rosary throughout. At two points during her talk, light from the setting sun illuminated the interior of the shrine.

Ilibagiza talked about the transformation she experienced in that tiny bathroom. “I never thought we have such a big inner world. Actually, the world inside is so much bigger inside than outside,” she said, as she was forced to find escape in her inner world.

She also learned the meaning of forgiveness. “There was a time when I couldn’t say ‘forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us,’ in the Lord’s Prayer. I could not forgive those people that were doing this [the genocide] to us. Then one day, I felt a tap on my shoulder, and someone said, ‘Say the full prayer. Say all the words.’” Eventually, Ilibagiza would meet the man who killed her parents, and tell him that she forgave him, quoting Luke 23:34: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’”

Ilibagiza exhorted the audience to pray the Rosary daily – something she learned to do while sheltering – and to participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation at least once every two weeks.

She introduced the audience to the apparitions of Our Lady of Kibeho, a series of appearances by the Blessed Virgin in Rwanda in 1981 and 1982, calling for the conversion of the nation. Ilibagiza encouraged women and couples seeking to have children to pray to our Lady of Kibeho and ask for her blessing.

The speaker did not take questions at the end of her talk but interacted with audience members while signing copies of her book.

Julia Attaway, executive Director of the St. Frances Cabrini Shrine, explained why she invited Ilibagiza to speak.

“We’re in a jubilee year of hope. And because this is a Jubilee site, and it seemed that people have a minimal understanding of hope. They get stuck in the temporal hope of just whatever little thing they want so that they can be comfortable. And what she talks about and the things that she went through recalibrate what we can understand about how God can act in our lives to bring hope that is eternal,” she said.