The mysticism of Biblical days seems often dismissed or forgotten.  You know, transfigurations, prophecy, angel appearances, holy directives in dreams and of course, direct appearances from saints, the Virgin Mary and others.  It simply never made sense to me that these events would occur only in one period of time and then forever stop.  So, when stories of supernatural spiritual phenomena occur, I like exploring them, which lead me to The Boy Who Met Jesus.

Author Immaculee Ilibagiza is perhaps best known for her book, Left to Tell, the story of her survival from the Rwandan holocaust.  But in The Boy Who Met Jesus – Segatashya of Kibeho, she writes about her lifelong spiritual quest to meet an illiterate peasant boy from a remote region of Rwanda who purportedly met Jesus Christ under a shade tree in 1982.  The story combines not only the facts of the phenomena but the equally interesting journey of pursuing a personal an in this case, spiritual, quest.

As a young girl in Rwanda, Immaculee heard the story of Segatashya and his visits from both Jesus and Mary, and their various messages to prepare ourselves for the end of days.  She longed to go see the boy and hear him talk publicly about his experiences, but her father told her she was too young and would not take her.  As time passed, her fascination with Segatashya persisted.

Then, years later in 1992, as a college student at the National University of Rwanda, she learned by chance that Segatashya worked on campus at the university chapel and library as a handyman.  No longer the shepard boy, Segatashya was a man, humble in every respect, who talked with Immaculee about his experiences, and fulfilled her quest.

Sadly, less than two years later Rwanda was in ruins and Segatashya was killed in the violence.

Her story is both sweet and strong, punctuated by deep faith and a decade of longing to see a man touched by God for herself.  It also includes fascinating outtakes of questions Segatashya posed to both Jesus and Mary, and their responses.  A sample:

Q:  Why will the religions fight when they’re all working for you?

Jesus’ Answer:  It is because in all religions, there are too many who claim to believe in God’s love but do not truly believe.  War will come because too many say they love, but they have no love in their hearts for God or man.

Her story is both sweet and strong, punctuated by deep faith and a longing to see a man touched by God for herself.

The book is available for purchase at www.hayhouse.com, www.immaculee.biz, www.barnesandnoble.com and www.amazon.com.  More information on Immaculee Ilibagiza n is available on her website at www.immaculee.com.

This is another book review in my partnership with Hay House. I was not financially compensated for this post. I received the book from Hay House for review purposes. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.

Related articles

• Left To Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust by Immaculee Ilibagiza (thetorchslguide.com)