I’d like to recommend to you a news story, from the Associated Press – written by Rukmini Callimachi, from Senegal. It’s hard to read, because of the inhumanity involved, but it’s worth it. The story is about a seven-year-old boy who was beaten to a pulp by his Islamic teacher. The boy’s father, a very poor man, had the temerity to file charges. And his village turned against him, including his own father (which is to say, the boy’s grandfather). It took great courage for this man to file the charges and defend his son – we in our Western societies can hardly imagine. Indeed, the action of the father was majestic. His name – Moussa Biteye – ought to be etched in annals somewhere.
The story is here. It is an ugly story, about an ugly society – but the paternal compassion demonstrated is magnificent.