One person who has found healing through the programme is Mary, whose name has been changed. During the genocide Mary, a widow, was present when her six children and her pregnant sister were killed. She saw the killers cut open her sister’s womb and she saw the baby, still alive. 

After the genocide, the killers were put in prison. But then an amnesty was given and the man who had cut her sister’s womb open was released. In prison he had become a Christian. He came to see Mary to say that ‘he regretted so much what he had done’ and to ask her forgiveness. But even though she was a Christian, she couldn’t bring herself to forgive him.

Five years later, Mary attended a trauma healing course. “I learned that forgiving is for our benefit. Forgiving doesn’t mean the fault was not deep, and I learned that Christians must forgive. I ended the training with a wish to be able to forgive this man,” Mary says. In time, Mary met the man again. She asked him many questions, such as: Why did he do what he did? What did he expect to come from his terrible act? Eventually, she found she was able to forgive him.

“I have forgiven him from the depths of my heart. Nowadays he is a fellow Christian. I do not have any more conflicts or misunderstandings with him. We have told our journey to the Church and through that we have helped others,” says Mary.