Photos: Pope Francis Honours 43 Christians Burnt Alive In Uganda For Refusing To Renounce Their Faith

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Photos: Pope Francis Honours 43 Christians Burnt Alive In Uganda For Refusing To Renounce Their Faith

Up to two million people today turned out to see Pope Francis honour Ugandan Christian martyrs who were tortured and burned alive by a tyrant king.

Twenty-three Anglican and Twenty-Two Catholic martyrs were executed a century ago on the orders of King Mwanga II, of Buganda Kingdom in central Uganda. Their deaths between 1885 and 1887 were punishment for refusing to renounce their faith or submit to the ruler's alleged sexual advances.

During this morning's Mass, a somber Francis urged Catholics to follow in the Christians' missionary zeal and spread the faith at home and abroad.


He told them to take care of 'the elderly, the poor, the widowed and the abandoned' - and also prayed at shrines dedicated to the 45 martyrs.

He was watched by attendees including Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, the president of South Sudan and the descendant of Mwanga.

During the Holy Mass for the Martyrs of Uganda, Francis first prayed at the gruesome sanctuary dedicated to the Anglicans in Namugongo, outside of Kampala, where most of the martyrs were killed. He knelt before part of the same tree where the men were tortured before being burned alive.


He then prayed at the Catholic shrine and celebrated Mass in their honor to mark the 50th anniversary of the Catholics' canonization.