Building on forgiveness

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

By Patrick Dolan

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-“One of the first things they ask at the airport is if you have any plastic bags,” Paul Vogelheim said, remembering his first visit to Rwanda. There is a ban on plastic bags in the country and any found are confiscated. “Taking a stance about plastic bags is somewhat symbolic of a country that’s trying to make this huge leap, but still dealing with tragedies,” Vogelheim said.

Rwanda is still recovering from the 1994 genocide where a small group of the Hutu population killed more than 800,000 Tutsi people in fewer than 100 days. Vogelheim said that Rwanda remains a land of contrasts. There are rural villagers farming the rich soil and there is the capital city with skyscrapers and a booming high-tech industry. On the surface, Rwanda has come a long way.

Vogelheim and several others from Jackson are traveling to Rwanda Monday for a three-week trip where they will connect with a priest working to heal the people in his country. The group has raised money through Jackson Lunch club, one of the three Jackson branches of Rotary international, and several other local charities and is going to help in setting the groundwork for a healing center, called the Center for the Secret of Peace, following the teachings of Father Ubald Rugirangoga.

Ubald, a Tutsi, fled during the genocide in 1994. He returned five months later to discover that 80 members of his family, and 45,000 members of his parish were murdered. Since then, Ubald has been promoting emotional progress among his people using a unique tool: forgiveness. The main purpose behind the center is to bring Hutu and Tutsi together where they can share their stories and work toward forgiveness, which Ubald believes is the only way to truly heal.

“Here [in the US] we have our own anxieties over different issues,” Vogelheim said, “But it isn’t to the level of having a family member killed in a terrible way.” In a country roughly the size of Connecticut with 10 million people, the Hutu and Tutsi have no choice but to live side-by-side.

The center will serve as a community-healing sanctuary. The land will house an outdoor amphitheatre, a chapel, a retreat facility, and homes for retired priests. In addition, the group of Jacksonites will work with Ubald to train other priests in how to hear stories and facilitate forgiveness.  Trauma therapist Katsey Long is also going, along with Matt and Sandy Ostick, Faye Campbell, and a few others from outside Jackson, including a videographer and another trauma therapist from Canada.

For information on contributing to the Center for the Secret of Peace, contact the Community Foundation of Jackson, 739 1026.

photo by PAUL VOGELHEIM
Fathers Ubald and Evariste on the land acquired for the Secret of Peace in Cyangugu, Rwanda.

PERMALINK:
Building on forgiveness | Planet JH News Article: General News

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