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The annual Ugandan celebration of Martyrs Day has become one of the largest Catholic gatherings in the world. The 2024 iteration of this Catholic solemnity, which is also an official public holiday, drew enormous crowds of pilgrims to the Basilica of the Uganda Martyrs in Namugongo, where organizers estimated attendance was as high as 4 million.
According to Vatican News, pilgrims arrived in Uganda from all over the African continent and some even made the trip from Europe, the Americas, and Australia.
In a previous May report, Vatican News followed the progress of a group of 820 pilgrims traveling from the Lira Diocese in northern Uganda. The group began the pilgrimage on May 18 in order to make it for the June 3 festivities.
The day’s Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Archbishop Raphael p’Mony Wokorach, of the Gulu Archdiocese. In his homily, he spoke on the theme of the day, which was sourced from the Book of Joshua: "But as for me and my household, we shall serve the Lord.”
The archbishop cautioned the faithful against idolatry, nodding to the example of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions.
In 1886, St. Charles Lwanga and a group of pages from the royal court of King Mwanga II of Buganda were sentenced to death for refusing to renounce their Christian faith. The sentence was carried out by means of burning on June 3, 1886, at a site very near where the basilica now stands.
Alongside St. Charles were executed 22 Catholic and 23 Anglican converts, whose example has spurred devotions in Sub-Saharan Africa for decades.
Archbishop Wokorach encouraged the pilgrims to emulate the legacy of the Uganda Martyrs by living the faith, regardless of dangers. He tasked the nation’s leaders and policymakers to stand firm on the principles of their faith just as the martyrs did and urged them to reject corruption. In addition, he called on all Christians to embrace the sacrament of matrimony in order to strengthen the family.
