June 3 2025 - St. Charles Lwanga and companions - Courage of the Ugandan Martyrs

 To many of us the name of the Ugandan Martyr Charles Lwanga is unfamiliar.  But, he is well-known and revered in much of tropical Africa as a patron saint of young people. 

Uganda only began to be evangelized in the early to mid-1800s by the Society of Missionaries of Africa, known as the White Fathers because of the white cassock they wore. The earliest converts were soon preaching the Gospel in places inaccessible to the White Fathers. Charles Lwanga one of the early converts, was a servant in the royal court of the Ugandan king, King Mwanga, who ruled in the south eastern part of the country. 

Mwanga was a violent ruler and a pedophile who forced himself on the young boys and young men who served him. Many of the boys converted to Christianity and began refusing the advances of the King. This made the King suspicious, believing that if his subjects continued to convert, he would eventually lose his throne to the Christians.

So, he gathered up the Christian, and demanded that they renounce Christ. When they refused he had them killed. King Mwanga thought that killing Christians would break our resolve. But the faith was strengthened. 

Charles Lwanga was installed as director of the king’s boy-servants, but little did the King know that Charles, inspired by those already martyred, had been baptized. Charles preached the Gospel within the king’s court and continued to make more converts. Realizing how the faith had continued to spread, the king arrested Charles and the other Christians and sentenced them to death. This time, he wanted their death to be excruciating in an attempt to warn others against converting. Charles and his companions were marched two days, starved and beaten, then stripped, bound, and burnt to death on the 3rd day of June, 1886.

As he burned, St. Charles preached to his killers, saying, “It is as if you have thrown water on me. Please repent, and be a Christian like me.”

Charles’ death shook the country, and instead of throwing other Christians into panic, in inspired many unconverted Ugandans to become Christian. 

The martyrs remind us of our calling to witness to Christ even in the face of the hatred of the world. Some will continue to hate us, but others will convert, like Charles himself. Today, Catholics make up about 37% of the population of Uganda: 17 million Catholics who can trace their faith back to the courageous witness of the St. Charles Lwanga and his martyred companions.

Their witness certainly challenges us to consider how we use our time, whether or not we have been shirking our responsibility to witness to Christ, whether we have fearfully sealed our lips when we were meant to speak, if we have hidden in the comfort of our homes, when we were meant to be in the world preaching, or at least supporting the evangelizing mission with our prayers and talents.

May St. Charles Lwanga and his martyred companions pray for us and teach us how to live our Christian vocation well and with Courage for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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 Trusting in the God who strengthens his people to witness to Christ, let us bring our petitions before the Lord.

For the Church throughout the world—that, inspired by the courage of the martyrs, she may proclaim the Gospel with clarity and charity even when it is costly.

For missionaries and catechists, especially in places where the faith is newly planted or faces opposition—that the Spirit will confirm them in hope and draw many hearts to Christ through their witness. Let us pray to the Lord.

For young people and all entrusted to the care of mentors and educators—that, under the patronage of Saint Charles Lwanga, they may grow in purity, integrity, and a joyful readiness to follow Christ. Let us pray to the Lord.

For children, adolescents, and vulnerable adults suffering exploitation, abuse, or trafficking—that God deliver them from harm, heal their wounds, and convert the hearts of those who abuse power. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our parish—that we reject complacency, use our gifts for evangelization, and support missionary efforts through prayer, sacrifice, and action. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the sick, the poor, the imprisoned, and those weighed down by fear or sorrow—that Christ, who walked the road of suffering, may raise them up with healing and hope. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our departed brothers and sisters—especially those who died for their fidelity to Christ—may they rejoice forever in the company of the martyrs before God’s throne. Let us pray to the Lord.

God of all nations, You kindled an unshakable faith in Saint Charles Lwanga and his companions. Hear the prayers of Your people, and grant that we, like them, may bear fearless witness to Your Son, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. 

June 03 2022 - St. Charles Lwanga - Love of Chastity

 o many of us, the name of the Ugandan Martyr St. Charles Lwanga is unfamiliar.  But, he is well-known and revered in much of tropical Africa and is honored throughout the universal Church as a patron saint of young people and chastity. 

Evangelization of Uganda only began in the mid-1800s by the Society of Missionaries of Africa (known as the White Fathers because of the white cassock they wore). At that time Uganda had a very vicious, lustful king named Mwanga who forced himself on the young boys and young men of his court.  Charles Lwanga, who had become a Catechist for the Christian community, encouraged the young boys to preserve their chastity. For opposing the King’s lusts, Charles was arrested and burned to death on June 3.

St. Charles Lwanga’s witness reminds us that chastity is part of God’s plan for all people, but the culture is not always receptive to that message. Especially as “National Pride Month” is celebrated by many in our land, Christ’s call to chastity needs to joyfully resound in his Church.

Chastity involves self-mastery, self-control, self-knowledge, developing the virtue of temperance, and learning to rely on God’s grace in times of temptation. Chastity brings freedom from our baser, fallen, and disordered impulses, and the joy of bringing one’s life more under the dominion of the Holy Spirit. Chastity is largely a personal journey, though Christian parents certainly have a pivotal role in protecting the innocence of their children from the perversions of the culture. Indeed, the Church has a role in promoting chastity in the larger culture. 

The proliferation of pornography, the confused gender ideologies which are pushed in public schools and in the media, the cultural-acceptance of sex before marriage, are certainly signs that we have a lot of work to do in this area. 

In the Gospel for today’s feast of St. Charles we heard the Lord’s beatitudes, in which he proclaims, “blessed are the pure of heart.” The “pure of heart,” according to the Catechism, “refers to those who have attuned their intellects and wills to the demands of God’s holiness, chiefly in three areas: charity; chastity or sexual rectitude; love of truth and orthodoxy of faith."

Through the intercession of St. Charles Lwanga and his martyred companions, may we seek that purity of intellect and will, that chastity, and the love of the truth that St. Charles lived and died for, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the witness, sufferings, and death of the  martyrs may bring about rebirth of Christianity and civilization, in those places where faith and morals have diminished.

Through the intercession of St. Charles Lwanga, patron of youth, may our young people be protected from the perversion of our culture and be infused with virtue.

That religious indifference in our country and around the world may be transformed to radical commitment to the Gospel of Christ.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for those who have fought and died for our freedom, and…

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.

June 03 2020 - St. Charles Lwanga and Companions - Courage to preserve chastity

To many of us the name of the Ugandan Martyr Charles Lwanga is unfamiliar.  But, he is well-known and revered in much of tropical Africa as a patron saint of young people. Personally, I’ve grown increasingly devoted to this Courageous Saint over the past few years.

Uganda only began to be evangelized in the early to mid-1800s by the Society of Missionaries of Africa, known as the White Fathers because of the white cassock they wore. The earliest converts were soon preaching the Gospel in places inaccessible to the White Fathers. Charles Lwanga was among the early converts, and was a servant in the royal court of the Ugandan king, King Mwanga, who ruled in the south eastern part of the country.

Mwanga was a violent ruler and a pedophile who forced himself on the young boys and young men who served as his pages.  Following the violent death of the leader of the small Christian community within the court, Charles Lwanga took the leadership of offering Christian instruction within the community. When King Mwanga tried to force himself on these young men, Charles tried to serve as their protector, encouraged the young boys to preserve their chastity. For refusing the advances of the King, they were arrested and burned to death on June 3 by royal decree.

Charles and the 22 Ugandan martyrs are such valuable witnesses in a time where young people are increasingly at risk of falling to the perversions in our culture, and for all those who seek to practice Christian chastity in this over-sexualized age.

In that powerful reading from 2 Maccabees we hear of the unshakeable faith of the righteous young men. In the face of death, death by a king, they placed their trust and hope in God and in eternal life that can come only from Him: “It is my choice to die at the hands of men with the God-given hope of being restored to life by him”

In the face of temptation, and when faced with threats from the world to compromise the Gospel, may we take courage in our hope of eternal life, that those who remain faithful to God in this life, will receive the great reward of glory in eternity, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the witness, sufferings, and death of the  martyrs may bring about rebirth of Christianity and civilization, in those places where faith and morals have diminished.

Through the intercession of St. Charles Lwanga, patron of youth, may our young people be protected from the perversion of our culture and be infused with virtue.

That religious indifference in our country and around the world may be transformed to radical commitment to the Gospel of Christ.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for those who have fought and died for our freedom, and for The Smigovsky & Kermes Family, for whom this mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.

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FIRST READING          2 Maccabees 7:1-2,9-14
It happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested
and tortured with whips and scourges by the king,
to force them to eat pork in violation of God's law.
One of the brothers, speaking for the others, said:
"What do you expect to achieve by questioning us?
We are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors."
At the point of death he said:
"You accursed fiend, you are depriving us of this present life,
but the King of the world will raise us up to live again forever.
It is for his laws that we are dying."
After him, the third suffered their cruel sport.
He put out his tongue at once when told to do so,
and bravely held out his hands, as he spoke these noble words:
"It was from Heaven that I received these;
for the sake of God's laws I disdain them;
from him I hope to receive them again."
Even the king and his attendants marveled at the young man's courage,
because he regarded his sufferings as nothing.
After he had died,
they tortured and maltreated the fourth brother in the same way.
When he was near death, he said,
"It is my choice to die at the hands of men
with the God-given hope of being restored to life by him;
but for you, there will be no resurrection to life."


RESPONSORIAL PSALM           124:2-3, 4-5, 7b-8
Anima nostra sicut passer erepta est de laqueo venantium.

R./ (7) Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Had not the Lord been with us–
When men rose up against us,
    then would they have swallowed us alive,
When their fury was inflamed against us.
R./ Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Then would the waters have overwhelmed us;
The torrent would have swept over us;
    over us then would have swept
    the raging waters.
R./ Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.
Broken was the snare,
    and we were freed.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth.
R./ Our soul has been rescued like a bird from the fowler’s snare.


ALLELUIA          Matt 5:3
Beati pauperes spiritu, quoniam ipsorum est regnum caelorum.
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.


GOSPEL          Matthew 5:1-12a
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain,
and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him.
He began to teach them, saying:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven."

6th Week of Easter 2018 - Monday - Called to Testify

In many of the stories of the saints, the holy ones are brought before judges, governors, kings, even emperors, to give testimony for their Christians faith.

In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus taught how on His account, his disciples would be “brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.”

I think of the Apostles being brought before the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, or the first martyrs of Rome, saints like Felicity and Perpetua and Agatha, I think of that wonderful scene from the Man for All Seasons, of St. Thomas More standing before the English tribunal or the Ugandan St. Charles Lwanga and his companions refusing the perverted desires of the Ugandan King.

 Where are we to get such courage, such eloquence of word and deed?

As we near the end of the Easter season and the Great Feast of Pentecost, our readings speak of the Advocate, the Paraclete, who comes to the aid of Christians in testifying to Jesus.

In the Greco-Roman courtroom, your paraclete or advocate was the one who stood at your side and gave you help and assistance as your court case was tried.  Your advocate gave you counsel, pleaded your case, and interceded on their behalf, to teach them what they most know, to give them the words the must speak, when called upon to testify.

I think this is why some Christians back-off from or are hesitant to form a vibrant relationship with the Holy Spirit. We sense the Holy Spirit wants to impel us out of our comfort zones to witness to Christ. And that’s terrifying. So we “fall-away” from forming that deep powerful relationship with the Advocate.

But, Christians are to be witnesses to Jesus Christ in the courtroom of this world. Many will form their judgments about the truth of Christianity based on our testimony. And if they find us cowering in fear of witnessing to our faith, why should they convert? If we don't show conviction for Christ, why should they?

May we grow in our trust in the aid of the Holy Spirit, who helps us to be faithful to our vocation to boldly witness to Christ for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all bishops, priests, catechists, and parents may be faithful in preaching and teaching the saving Gospel of Christ.

For those who do not believe in God and for those who have fallen away from the Church.

For an increase in the gifts of the Holy Spirit among all Christians, and for all who are persecuted for the faith.

For the sick, the suffering, those in nursing homes, hospitals, and hospice care, for the underemployed and unemployed, for the imprisoned, those with addictions, for those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, that the Spirit of Consolation may comfort them.

For the deceased members of our families, friends and parish, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for all those who fought and died for our freedom.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.