Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
-1 Peter 4:8
Of the many things that are important to me, my faith is certainly at the top. Some people question the role of religious, spiritual, or faithful people when it comes to women's rights advocacy. Today I was grateful for the panel on Spiritual Empowerment for Women and Girls. The most compelling woman on the panel was a woman from Rawanda named Rosi. She told stories of surviving the Rawandian Genocide-- losing her kind-hearted brothers and fathers, hiding in bushes from killers with her mother, and surviving sexual and physical violence. The story was completely devastating and as Rosi told her story through tears, she never failed to mention that is was her faith and prayer that carried her through this tragic journey. Rosi said that in moments when she even wanted to give up on her on life, it was her faith in God that let her know there would be a bright future ahead of her and that she was actually very blessed. At the end of the panel, we were each given a flag from the nations of the world. Together, we prayed for them and were instructed to continue our prayers for these countries. Mine was Burkina Faso. I thanked God for this event.
I had to look up a map of Burkina Faso, and its flag: red band on top, green on bottom, with central yellow star. Also learned that the country name means "land of honorable men". Hmmmm! Thanks for inspiring my geography lesson for the day.
ReplyDeleteInspiring words, Sarah!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great point. I think sometimes religious and spiritual institutions are seen as holding women back, but at CSW you can certainly see how involved many of these organizations are in empowering women globally. I'm so happy that you were able to find a space that was nurturing to you both as an activist and a spiritual person. Let's chat about some of the people you met at that event? Did it lead to any great conversations? Thanks for sharing ;)
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