Remains of the Uganda Martyrs to return home

After 60 years of the canonisation of its 22 martyrs, the Catholic Church in Uganda plans to bring home some of the remains of Uganda Martyrs that are housed across the world.

The relics include the saints’ body parts and items they used.

The 22 martyrs embraced Christianity and were persecuted for their faith in the late 19th century.
 
The martyrs were killed on the orders of Kabaka Mwanga II of Buganda Kingdom and the day is celebrated as a national holiday every June 3.

Preparations for the event, which will be animated by Nebbi Catholic Diocese, were launched at Rubaga Cathedral in Kampala on April 25. Jinja Diocese led the 2023 celebrations. The holy mass was animated by Bishop Charles Martin Wamika the bishop of Jinja diocese on the April 3, 2023

Speaking at the event, Raphael p’Mony Wakorach, the Archbishop-elect of Gulu Metropolitan Archdiocese, said: “The Uganda Martyrs are the first black people to be canonised by the Catholic Church in modern times. The return of these relics is a cause for celebration, as they are sons of our soil.”

The Church said the martyrs’ relics and their return from abroad is a poignant symbol of their devotion and ultimate sacrifice to the Catholic faith.

Reports indicate that more than Shs10 billion will be required to fund this operation.
 
Upon their return, the relics will be publicly exhibited at the Uganda Martyrs University, Lubaga campus, Kampala. The exhibition period, also dubbed the canonisation month, will run from October 18 for two weeks.
 
Uganda Martyrs University Nkozi, which will also mark its 30 years of existence, is at the forefront of organising the event.

The university, named in honour of the martyrs, is also spearheading the efforts to collect the relics from various locations across the world, including from Rome in Italy, London in the United Kingdom, and Paris in France.

The Church said the exhibition will serve as an opportunity for believers and the wider community to honour the martyrs’ legacy and reflect on their profound significance in the history of Christianity in Uganda.

The Archbishop of Kampala, Paul Ssemogerere said: “The exhibition will serve as an opportunity for believers and the wider community to learn from the martyrs’ examples of faith and courage.”
 
Once the exhibition ends, the relics will be returned to their storage facilities abroad, in what the Church says is a measure to preserve their sanctity and historical value.
 
Among the relics to be showcased are the remains of the jawbone of St Charles Lwanga, and a cross that is crafted from a Mvule tree on which St Matia Mulumba was martyred, along with the chains used to bind some of the martyrs.

Dr David Ngendo Tsimba, an academic at the Uganda Martyrs University, said preserving and conserving the relics were in line with serving the catholic altars worldwide.
 
“The relics are serving all the altars across the globe, so their preservation and conservation is of more importance than their location of domicile,” he said.
 
According to Fr Anthony Musuubire, the chief archivist of Kampala Archdiocese, negotiations for the permanent housing of the relics in the archdiocesan museum is underway. However, the museum must first attain the necessary standards for their preservation.
 
“It’s possible to negotiate with the keepers of these relics to have them returned permanently in our museum, which is under renovation to reach the standard that can keep such relics,” Fr Musuubire said.
 
About the Martyrs
Forty five young men: 22 Roman Catholics and 23 Anglicans, now known as the Uganda Martyrs were executed in Kampala on the orders of Kabaka Mwanga between 1885 and 1887.

There were two others: young catechists killed in Paimol near Kalongo in Northern Uganda on October 18, 1918.

They too had refused to renounce the new reIigion of which they were the catechists. The Comboni Missionaries had arrived from Italy in Northern Uganda in 1911 and announced there the Good News of Christ.

Pope Paul VI recognised and canonised the young christians on October 18 1964 as Holy Martyrs because they poured out their blood for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Munyonyo Martyrs’ Shrine is the starting point of the last journey of young Christians for their execution in Namugongo on June 3, 1886.  

Having been sentenced to death in Munyonyo on May 26, the condemned then began their own walk to “Calvary” – a two day journey to Namugongo, which they reached on May 27.

Some had already been killed in Munyonyo, others were killed along the way, but the majority were burnt alive in Namugongo on June 3.

Alongside Mount Sinai in Egypt, the Uganda Martyrs Shrine Namugongo, dedicated to the 22 Martyrs of Uganda, is one of the largest sacred Christian pilgrimage sites in Africa. 

The shrine is located in Kira Municipality, Wakiso District, in Central Uganda, approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 miles), by road, northeast of Kampala City.

Source: Kampala Archdiocese

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