The Ugandan Martyrs

posted 6/3/20

Today is the feast day of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, 22 young Ugandan men who were put to death for the faith in 1886.  While doing some research on these young saints, I came across a video that Bishop Robert Barron did on the Ugandan Martyrs and it’s much better than anything I could come up with.  So, I’ve included it below along with a photo of St. Charles Lwanga and the others who died with him for the faith.  The one thing I will say about the story of the Ugandan Martyrs is that it reveals the power of faithful Christian witness in the face of worldly pressure to capitulate. Christ Jesus changed the lives of these men so much that they were willing to accept a violent death rather than deny Him. What did they discover in Christ? What did they find so compelling? Why do our own efforts at spreading the Faith seem so uninspired and uninspiring? There’s an ancient saying that Bishop Barron refers to in his video: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” They are the ones who remind us what authentic renewal in the Church requires in every age.