Life is Sacred

I've been following the events in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as closely as possible.  Sadly, in America that is hard to do unless you speak French, or one of the local African languages whereby you can look up news on the internet.  Finding accurate reports is difficult.

The M23 Rebels, run by the Rwandan Government as outlined in the United Nations Group of Experts Report linked here has overrun the DRC city of Goma and continues to loot and pillage the land and people of the DRC.  The reports vary as to what is actually happening on the ground.  No matter what news is coming out, I'm sure of the fact that it is not good.  (NOTE:  I have had trouble getting the link to the Group of Experts Report to load on my computer.  Sometimes I have had to wait up to 2 minutes for the report to load).

Though Rwanda, and Rwanda's President Paul Kagame strongly deny ties to M23 or ANY wrongdoing, evidence is not in their favor.  Published in 2010, the Mapping Report of Human Rights Violations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1993-2003 also implicate Rwanda and Kagame of horrible offenses - again, offenses Kagame denies.

President Kagame has a history of "being the victim."  He (or rather, his people) were the victim of the Rwandan Genocide of 1994.  Yes, it is true that more Tutsis (his tribe) were killed, but there is compelling evidence that it was Kagame that sparked the Genocide by shooting down the president's plane so he could come in as "Rebel Hero" and "save Rwanda."

President Kagame has made it a crime to discuss one's tribal heritage.  All are Rwandan - there are no longer Hutus or Tutsis.  At the outset, that may sound good, but history cannot be erased.  Heritage cannot be erased.  We must always live with our past - both the good and bad parts.  I am an American, but I will always have Swedish, Italian, and Irish heritage.  I recognize the good things my ancestors have brought to this nation, and I also recognize the bad.  Kagame does not allow for that.  He allowed for no true healing after the genocide.  His "healing" was one by force.  His is a pot of boiling water ready to explode.

Paul Kagame has made it a crime to state that Hutus were victims of the Genocide.  No one denies that Tutsis were the main victims.  No one wants to take away their right to mourn and grieve.  But, shouldn't the survivors of killed Hutus be allowed that same right?

Today, however, I read a Twitter "tweet" about the DRC and M23.  The person asked, why M23 cannot see that they are dealing with fellow humans? I was disturbed by this question.  Not because it was asked, but because this person asked the correct question!

Why can't M23 see that they are dealing with fellow humans?  Why can't Paul Kagame see that he is dealing with fellow humans?

All life is sacred.  God breathed life into every living being.  Yet, people like Kagame and his M23 thugs treat people as objects.  And what do they get out of it? They get temporary wealth, temporary power, temporary fame.  But sooner or later a more powerful force will rise up, and they will be the objects.  If that doesn't happen, I would hate to be them on Judgment Day!

Paul Kagame doesn't see the people of DRC or even in his own Rwanda as sacred lives.  He sees them as  stepping stones.  He has essentially placed himself as God.  That is not a wise decision.  God will not be mocked.  

M23 does not see life as sacred. They act as Gods. Whatever their goal is, they do it to their own peril.

What Kagame and M23 don't realize is that THEIR lives are also sacred, and by violating this God ordained fact - by taking the lives of others, they are "cheapening" their own lives.  They are essentially saying the value of their own life is of nothing without the power, the money, the riches, the fame.

Through their Rape and Pillage, they are living at the level of animals.  They are not living the life that God intends for all humans - to live humbly before God.  

As we pray for the DRC, we should also pray for M23 and Kagame.  Yes, that's hard - praying for one's enemy is always hard.  But, we must realize that Christ himself commanded us to do so. Pray that Kagame's heart and the hearts of the M23 Militia Members be softened that they recognize their own humanity and live as God intended for them to live.