Photo: Saint Charles is the one in the center on the top row.
He and nineteen of these boys were martyred eight months after this photo was
taken. Public Domain.
Featured image above: Philipp Jakob, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
June 3: Saints Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs—Memorial
1860–1886
Patron Saints of African youth, converts, and torture victims
Canonized by Pope Paul VI on October 18, 1964
Liturgical Color: Red
Version: Full – Short
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Quote:
This is the place where Christ’s light shone on your land with a particular splendor. This
was the place of darkness, Namugongo, where Christ’s light shone bright in the great
fire which consumed Saint Charles Lwanga and his companions. May the light of that
holocaust never cease to shine in Africa! The heroic sacrifice of the Martyrs helped to
draw Uganda and all of Africa to Christ, the true light which enlightens all men (Cf.
John 1: 9). Men and women of every race, language, people and nation (Cf. Rev. 5: 9)
have answered Christ’s call, have followed him and have become members of his
Church, like the crowds which come on pilgrimage, year after year, to Namugongo.
Today, the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Saint Peter, has also come on pilgrimage
to the Shrine of the Holy Uganda Martyrs. Following in the footsteps of Pope Paul VI,
who raised these sons of your land to the glory of the altars and later was the first
Pope to visit Africa, I too wish to plant a special kiss of peace on this holy ground.
~Pope John Paul II
Reflection: Every year, millions of pilgrims from Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda,
Uganda, Nigeria, and other African nations gather at the Namugongo Martyrs’
Shrine in Uganda for what has become one of the largest annual gatherings of
Catholics in the world. The celebration is held at the site of the martyrdom of Saint
Charles Lwanga and his twenty-one young companions on June 3 each year, the day
that most of the boys were killed.
In 1879, the White Fathers, a French Roman Catholic society of apostolic life
founded in 1868, arrived at the court of King Mutesa I of Buganda, modern-day
Uganda, and received permission to establish a mission to teach the Catholic faith.
At that time, Catholics, Protestants, and Muslims were all seeking converts in the
Kingdom of Buganda. This was not popular among the native pagan priests.
However, King Mutesa, who had eighty-seven wives and ninety-eight children, was
tolerant of all three faiths. When King Mutesa died in 1884, one of his sons from his
tenth wife, Mwanga II, took up the throne at the age of sixteen. Though initially
tolerant, Mwanga eventually became convinced that the Christians were a threat to
his throne and his sexually perverted way of life.
It was common practice for the kings of Buganda to have many young boys in their
court, known as “pages,” to carry out the daily duties of the king’s household.
Among the expectations that King Mwanga had of these young boys, some as young
as thirteen, was consent to his sexual advances. When some of the boys refused to
consent on the grounds that they were Christian and the king’s requests were
immoral, the king became infuriated and feared that Christians would overtake his
kingdom and become a threat to his throne.
On October 29, 1885, Anglican bishop James Harrington and some of his
companions were murdered by King Mwanga after being accused of plotting
against the kingdom. After their martyrdom, twenty-five-year-old Joseph Mukasa
Balikuddembe, the head of the king’s household, rebuked the king for his actions.
Joseph was a Catholic catechist responsible for teaching many of the boys in the
king’s court the Catholic faith. On November 5, 1885, the king beheaded Joseph and
had his Catholic followers arrested. He then appointed the catechumen Charles
Lwanga as head of his household. Charles knew he might be next, so he sought and
received baptism by the White Fathers that same day, along with many of the boys
he had been catechizing.
On May 25, 1886, King Mwanga murdered two more Christian members of his
court. Catechist Charles Lwanga, fearing for the eternal salvation of the boys who
were still catechumens, baptized the rest of the boys himself. Later that day, the
king called all the members of his household together and ordered them all to
renounce the Christian faith or face torture and death. Charles courageously
professed his faith in Christ, and many of the boys did so with him. The outraged
king ordered their execution to take place at Namugongo, the traditional site for
public executions.
Namugongo was a two-day journey on foot. As the boys traveled under the cruel
direction of the executioners, many of them were beaten as they walked, bound
together with ropes. Three boys were killed along the way, one being slain by his
own father for refusing to renounce the faith. After reaching the site of execution
on May 27, the boys waited seven days as the preparations were made. During that
time, they were starved, beaten, and bound hand and foot, awaiting their death.
Charles was cruelly and painfully killed first. His executioners lit only a small fire
under his feet so he would suffer longer. It is reported that Charles said to his
executioners, “You’re burning me, but it’s like water you’re pouring to wash me.
Please repent and become a Christian like me.” As the flames consumed him, just
before he died, Charles cried out in imitation of our Lord, “My God! My God!” Soon
after, the rest of the boys were tortured and killed in the same manner. They died
praying aloud the Lord’s Prayer. In all, twenty-two young men and boys were
martyred and later declared saints in the Roman Catholic Church. Additionally,
twenty-three Anglicans were martyred with them.
At the time of their martyrdoms, twenty-six-year-old Charles Lwanga and his young
companions never could have imagined that one day, at the place of their
execution, millions of people would gather every year to honor them and to seek
their intercession. King Mwanga initially thought he could stamp out Christianity
by killing one Christian. That only inspired others to convert. After Mwanga killed
dozens more, the flames that burned them turned into flames of faith that inspired
countless others. Uganda and many other African countries are Christian countries
today, thanks in large part to the witness of faith given by these young men and
boys. Romans 8:28 says, “We know that all things work for good for those who love
God, who are called according to his purpose.“ In the case of the Ugandan Martyrs,
their deaths worked for the good. Their burning flesh became a sweet odor that
covered that pagan nation, drawing many to faith in Christ.
As we honor these heroic young martyrs, call to mind the truth that God can use
every evil and suffering you endure for good when you unite them to the sufferings
of Christ. Allow these martyrs, and the aftermath of their deaths, to inspire you and
to convince you that all things do work for the good when we love God and
embrace His holy will.
Prayer: Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions, the flame of faith burned in your
hearts, while the flames of your executioners consumed your earthly bodies. The
witness you gave through your martyrdoms became the spark that ignited faith in
Christ in all of Uganda and across Africa. Please pray for me, that I will have the faith
that you had so that God can take each suffering and cross I endure and transform it
into good. Saint Charles and Companions, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.
