In a chapel in Burundi in 1993, as she watched 72 of her friends, family and colleagues hanged, Marguerite Barankitse told God she no longer believed she was love.<\/p>\n
“How could God create those murderers?” she remembered asking through her tears.<\/p>\n
As mass killings and ethnic violence ravaged her home country after the coup, Barankitse fled with her 25 children, both Hutu and Tutsi, to the safest place she could think of \u2013 a Catholic church.<\/p>\n
But his faith was challenged.<\/p>\n
“I felt broken,” she told EWTN News. “After witnessing continuous massacres and the deaths of my friends and family, I lost my voice and spirit.”<\/p>\n
\u201c(I) told God that I no longer believed that was love because I could not understand how he could have created so much hatred and murderers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Then, he heard the voice of a little girl \u2013 one of the first children he had saved.<\/p>\n
“We’re still in life,” said younger Chloe. “We are here.”<\/p>\n
\u201cIn this moment, I remembered and I saw that God is love,\u201d Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
He prayed for the strength to “go and shine in His glory.”<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew God had not given up on me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
This was not the only moment that shook Barankitse’s faith to the core. She would see more violence and death in the years to come. But this would become a defining moment for him.<\/p>\n
Beginning with the 25 children he saved, Barankitse went on to rescue and foster thousands of children, eventually formally creating an organization called Mason Shalom.<\/p>\n
Mason Shalom did not just meet the practical needs of children such as shelter, education and health care. Barankitse wanted to teach them to love and forgive beyond ethnic barriers.<\/p>\n
It was the children who came up with the name.<\/p>\n
“We came up with the name ‘Shalom’ because my children heard on the radio that Shalom means peace and that’s our dream,” he said.<\/p>\n
Marguerite Barankitse with children at the \u00c9cole Sainte Anne de Kigali program in Rwanda in 2023. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mason Shalom<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cFrom the beginning, Mason Shalom was more than a shelter \u2013 it was a community where every child could live, regardless of ethnicity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Barankitse had witnessed the ravages of hate firsthand, and she wanted to break the cycle.<\/p>\n
He said, “Hatred destroys not only its victims but also those who bear it.”<\/p>\n
He said, “It is not entire ethnic groups that hate each other; it is individuals who choose to hate.” “I refuse to make that choice.”<\/p>\n
“I asked myself, what can I do to raise kids that will break this cycle?” Barankitse continued. “My answer was to raise children with compassion, forgiveness and love.”<\/p>\n
“My strategy has always been to love, because love is creative and transformative,” he said. \u201cThrough this love, I choose to respond to violence with compassion, protection and reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n
“Love made me an inventor, and I sought to build a community steeped in compassion.”<\/p>\n
Barankitsa said, “Forgiveness, as taught by the Church, is radical \u2013 it asks us to break the cycle of retribution and hatred, even if it feels justified.”<\/p>\n
He said, “Love is not just a feeling; it is a force that builds the future from the debris of war.”<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I know I can never give up because the children I help always give me the strength and courage to stand tall, their resilience inspires me every day,\u201d Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
wandering in war zones<\/h2>\n
Barankitse would travel through war zones to rescue orphans \u2013 even those others did not deem worth saving.<\/p>\n
“As the brutal violence and killings continued, I fought to protect these children,” she said. \u201cMore and more children kept finding shelter with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
“I went straight to the war zone and pulled children out from the piles of bodies because these children deserve a chance to live, to be treated with dignity, and to make peace,” she said.<\/p>\n
Barankitse fought for those whom others did not deem worth saving.<\/p>\n
“One day, I met a mother who had been killed in a grenade attack with her 4-month-old baby tied on her back,” she recalled. “The child was seriously injured and people asked me to give him up, but I knew I couldn’t give up.”<\/p>\n
“I decided to protect him and find medical help for him,” Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
Despite the injuries, the 4-month-old baby will survive.<\/p>\n
“I’m proud to say that he survived and has grown up to be a successful young man,” Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
Baranktise still remembers another tragic moment when she had to struggle to get medical help for a child who was injured with a deep cut on his neck.<\/p>\n
She went to the airport to take him to a hospital that could treat him \u2014 but other passengers “were refusing to let me get on the plane because of his condition,” she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were scared,\u201d Barankitse said. “I said, ‘No, you have no mercy. You have to help me.'”<\/p>\n
“Finally, they listened to me and put a curtain between me and the child and the other passengers and allowed me to board the plane,” Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
The little girl was saved. Now he is married and has two children of his own.<\/p>\n
“Sometimes love means standing strong for those who need help,” Barankitse said. \u201cNothing can stop love, and this is my way of staying strong against violence and hatred today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barankitse suffered another “deep spiritual crisis” after another wave of murders in 1996, in which he witnessed the death of one of his best friends.<\/p>\n
“I spent a month in prayer and came back humbled, realizing I was just a small instrument in God’s hands,” she said. “That’s why I keep praying to God to give me enough strength to continue my work.”<\/p>\n
He said, “Faith doesn’t protect you from suffering; it walks with you.”<\/p>\n
“My strength comes from my faith and the children themselves,” Barankitse said.<\/p>\n
“Even as a child, I was troubled by violence and dreamed of becoming a teacher to change the world by teaching children compassion and love,” she said. “Throughout my childhood, my mother taught me that God is love, and when we are created, He gives us strength.”<\/p>\n
faith amidst violence<\/h2>\n
Despite being driven out of her home nation in 2015 due to threats of violence, Barankitse has continued her work, and relies on her faith to motivate her.<\/p>\n
She left Burundi for Rwanda, where she created Oasis of Peace, which served more than 70,000 Burundian refugees.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy faith taught me that we are made in love and that God gives us enough strength \u2013 \u2018Don’t be afraid, I will be with you until the end of the world,’\u201d Barankitse said. “This is where I found my smile and happiness even in the darkest moments.”<\/p>\n
Barankitse’s work is based on his Catholic faith.<\/p>\n
Barankitse said, “Being a Christian is not just about going to church and praying; it is about restoring the dignity of every human being.”<\/p>\n
“You can give someone food or clothes, but if they have no dignity, they have nothing,” Barankitse said. \u201cBy showing my love for those around me, I want to give respect back to everyone \u2013 deciding to see the humanity in everyone, even the people who have hurt you the most.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"cloudy](\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/ewtn\/image\/upload\/c_fill,w_3840,h_2560,g_auto\/f_auto\/q_80\/v1\/ewtn-news\/en\/Marguerite_Barankitse_Human_Rights_and_Humanitarian_Forum_in_Los_Angeles_CA._2025._Photo_credit_Aurora_Humanitarian_Initiative__1_apxfqz.jpg?_a=BAVMn6E70\"\/)
<\/p>\nMarguerite Barankitse at the Human Rights and Humanitarian Forum in Los Angeles 2025 Credit: Aurora Humanitarian Initiative<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
“This is how I create a future where no child has to suffer the way my family and friends have,” she said. “Hate will never have the last word. Not as long as we practice love.”<\/p>\n
“Catholic teaching tells us that every person is made in the image of God and is deserving of reverence and love,” he said. \u201cThis belief is the foundation of all I do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Oasis of Peace provides counseling for victims of torture and rape, as well as education, vocational training and micro-financing “so that families can rebuild their lives with dignity,” Barankitse said. <\/p>\n
Oasis of Peace also provides education to children. recently launched Ecole Sainte-Anne de Kigali<\/a> According to Barankitse, the initiative helps “bring together children from disadvantaged and more privileged backgrounds in a shared space of learning, development and respect”.<\/p>\n “When I see a child orphaned by violence, I see a child of God. When I meet a woman who survived rape, I see a person of infinite value,” Barankitse said. “I believe in celebrating differences because it reminds us how uniquely we are all created. We all deserve to feel love, compassion, and respect.”<\/p>\n Barankitse continues her work every day, expanding Oasis of Peace, and speaking internationally about her story and the needs of the people she helps.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day is full and purposeful,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n “My hope is to continue sharing my story and the stories of Mason Shalom, inspiring others by showing them the power of love. My days are spent listening, organizing, and dreaming with the people I serve.”<\/p>\n
![\"cloudy](\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/ewtn\/image\/upload\/c_fill,w_3840,h_5757,g_auto\/f_auto\/q_80\/v1\/ewtn-news\/en\/Marguerite_Barankitse_at_the_2025_Aurora_Prize_Ceremony_in_Ellis_Island_New_York._November_6_2025._Photo_credit_Aurora_Humanitarian_Initiative_1_sbmg9u.jpg?_a=BAVMn6E70\"\/)
<\/p>\n