Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa

Saint

Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa
Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa and his companions
Martyr
Bornc. 1861
Toro, Uganda
HometownKyarwehikyo
Died3 June 1886
Namugongo, Uganda
Cause of deathBurnt alive
Venerated inCatholic Church
Beatified1920, Rome, Kingdom of Italy by Pope Benedict XV
Canonized18 October 1964, Rome, Vatican City by Pope Paul VI
Major shrineBasilica Church of the Uganda Martyrs, Namugongo and also Katoosa martyrs shrine in Kyenjonjo District
Feast3 June
PatronageFarmers, herdsmen and hunters

Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa, also known as Adolofu Mukasa Ludigo (c. 1861 – June 3, 1886), Adolf Mukasa Ludigo was a Ugandan Catholic martyr killed for his faith.[1]

Life

Ludigo-Mkasa was a Munyoro from Misenyi Village in Myeri Katoosa Catholic parish in Kyenjonjo district.[2][3][4] He was a son of late Bamwesekesa (father) and Kajoote Kahinju(mother).[5][6][7]

At a young age, he was abducted by Baganda raiders in around 1850 together with his mother Kajoote in Kyarwehikyo a few kilometres from the Katoosa Rocks and became a companion of Charles Lwanga at court.[8][5][7] Ludigo-Mkasa was put in charge of the Kabaka’s gardens. His name was changed from Tibeyalirwa to Ludigo the Kabaka's palace after he studied christianity.[5]

Protestant missionaries began arriving in Buganda in 1877, followed two years later by the Catholic Missionaries of Africa. King Muteesa I welcomed the missionaries and played off the Catholics, Anglicans, and the Moslem traders, seeming to favor first one, then another, for political gain. The court was at Nabulagala, with a Catholic mission nearby at Kasubi. It was there that Ludigo-Mkasa began to take religious instruction around 1881.[9]

Young King Mwanga II succeeded to the throne in 1884 at the age of about sixteen. He came to see the Christians as a threat, partly due to German incursions on the coast, and because the Christians encouraged the pages in his court to resist his advances.[10]

Adolphus received his baptism on November 17, 1885.[11] King Mwanga demanded that Christian converts abandon their new faith and executed many Anglicans and Catholics who did not. Adolphus was one of many Christians put to death by the king between 1885 and 1887. He was burnt alive on the 3rd of June 1886 in Namugongo[12] at the age of about twenty-five. His day of martyrdom, June 3, is remembered as the feast day of the Uganda Martyrs.[13]

Family and relatives

Ludigo has relatives who include; Evangeline Kabaruli who was born on 04 September 1919 (a niece from his paternal uncle).[7]

References

  1. ^ "Govt to promote faith-based tourism in Mbarara". Monitor. 2023-04-24. Retrieved 2024-01-29.
  2. ^ "Pilgrims flock to Katoosa Martyrs shrine in Kyenjojo". Bukedde. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  3. ^ "Pilgrims flock to Katoosa Martyrs shrine in Kyenjojo". New Vision. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  4. ^ "Pilgrims celebrate Martyrs' Day at Katoosa shrine". New Vision. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  5. ^ a b c "Know Uganda: The making and history of Katoosa Martyrs Villa". Monitor. 2021-01-05. Retrieved 2024-01-29.
  6. ^ "Thousands arrive in Kyenjojo for annual St Adolf Ludigo pilgrimage". Monitor. 2023-01-25. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  7. ^ a b c "Fort Portal: Home of St Adolf Ludigo". Monitor. 2022-05-29. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  8. ^ Mubiru, Charles Lwanga (2012). The Uganda Martyrs and the Need for Appropriate Role Models in Adolescents' Moral Formation: As Seen from the Traditional African Education. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 131. ISBN 978-3-643-90142-2.
  9. ^ "Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa", Munyonyo Martyrs' Shrine
  10. ^ French, Bob. "The Uganda Martyrs", The Word Among Us, August 2015
  11. ^ "The Holy Martyrs of Uganda", Pontifical Missionary Societies
  12. ^ Holweck, Frederick George. A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints, B. Herder, 1924, p. 18
  13. ^ "St. Adolphus Ludigo-Mkasa", Uganda Martyrs Shrine, Namugongo