On Atrocities and Faith

If you're looking for my regular, light-hearted fare, then you'd better stop reading.

After reading this on CNN.com, I'm not in the mood to laugh.

It's Eve Ensler's account of the atrocities occurring to women, girls--baby girls even--in the Congo.

This is not new news. For years now, I have read Ms. Ensler's accounts of her visits to the Congo and the women and girls she has met. I've written about it before. Yet, the stories keep coming and coming. I keep hoping I will see an article posted with a headline such as: "All Women in Congo are Now Safe! Someone Came To Their Rescue!" But no. Just year, after year, of gruesome stories. If something like this began occurring in, say, the state of Oregon, someone would take notice and do something. I bet even France would send in their troops. When a horrible crime occurs in this country to ONE person, the media gets hold of it, and most of the time, people are up in arms about it. But Congo is much too far away for most people to care.

I'll probably go for a walk today with my daughter and see nothing but blue skies and other people out for walks, jogging, running errands, working. To imagine seeing the horrors Ms. Ensler describes on my own street...is impossible. But imagine a girl growing up in Congo. What has she seen? And why has no one tried to make her world better? Is there a difference between her and my daughter? Only geography.

At times like this, I get angry with governments, Western civilization, myself, and God. Of all beings who could put a stop to this, surely He can, am I right? I mean really! I think if I were God, I certainly wouldn't allow a six month old baby girl be tortured. So why would He? (Does He even deserve the capital "H" I'm giving Him, anyway?) I don't know. Maybe He thinks that because this is a man-made problem, it should have a man-made answer. He didn't swoop down and stop the Holocaust now, did He? Maybe He is hoping our goodness will prevail, we will wake up, and prevent genocide from happening once and for all. I mean, how many times must history repeat itself people!--He's probably thinking.

In the end, I can't help but feel He cries with us too, when crap like this happens. That His heart breaks a million times more than mine even, when he sees men doing these things to women and girls. That He too wonders what the heck we're all doing here, standing by idly, as other innocent humans suffer terribly. What good are they? He might wonder about us.

At least that's what I'd like to think. That there's more good in the world than bad. However, for the women and girls of Congo, THEIR worlds have more bad than good in them. And honestly, for any of us who care an ounce about this situation, we have to do something to correct that.

For more info on this problem and what we can do, visit VDay.org.