Jun 3 – Memorial for St. Charles Lwanga & companions, martyrs
One of 22 Ugandan martyrs, St. Charles Lwanga is the patron of youth and Catholic action in most of tropical Africa. He protected his fellow pages aged 13 to 30 from the homosexual demands of the Bagandan ruler, Mwanga, and encouraged and instructed them in the Catholic faith during their imprisonment for refusing the ruler’s demands.
For his own unwillingness to submit to the immoral acts and his efforts to safeguard the faith of his friends, Charles was burned to death at in 1886, by Mwanga’s order. When Pope Paul VI canonized these 22 martyrs in 1964, he referred to the Anglican pages martyred for the same reason.
– http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1403
2 Mac 7:1-2,9-14
Mt 5:1-12
Ours is the better choice…
Martyrdom seems to be out of fashion in today’s world. We do not hear about it being reported in the news and sometimes, people do ask if the case for martyrdom for the Christian faith has come to an end. Today’s feast reminds us that belief in Jesus often requires the individual to give up the positions of power and authority which the world values and tempts us with.
St Charles Lwanga worked in the royal court of the King at that time. In his time working in the courts, I’d like to believe that he saw much infighting and intrigue, not different from the ones that we see in dramas or perhaps in our offices. St Charles Lwanga was martyred for his faith, and his death might have been seen as a victory for the king at that time. However, we must remember that the death of a person for his faith often inspires others to follow his example because they want to find out why a path of pain and torture was chosen, when one could have chosen a path of pleasure. The same question will be asked from us when we are put in positions of decision. The world today is indeed very demanding — the manifestation of Artificial Intelligence will make us have to take a decision on the value of labour in today’s workplaces.
There are news of retrenchments across the world, and there will be some of us who are wondering how to respond to these changes. I do not profess to have the answers but I do ask that you offer up in prayers the people who are making the decisions needed in the workplace. Sometimes, each one of us is put into a position of title and privilege precisely for us to demonstrate the way that a Christian should make a decision. St Charles Lwanga used his position as the Catholic head of pages to protect the Christian pages under his charges from the homosexual advances of the king. ~ https://dacb.org/histories/uganda-history-christianity/
Similarly, I pray that when each one of us who is placed in a position of authority, we will be able to make a decision that is in line with what Jesus wants us to do. And if, in so doing, we end up having to pay the price of losing our professional standing, career and advancement, may we unite together with St Charles Lwanga to whom the following words are attributed to: “A Christian who gives his life for God is not afraid of fire, for the soul lives forever.”
(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
Prayer: St Charles Lwanga and companions, pray for us.
Thanksgiving: We give thanks for all who die for Jesus so that they show us what it means to be a Christian.
OXYGEN 
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