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Below, please fnd the ull text o Pope Francisprepared homily or the Holy Mass at the Sanctuary othe Ugandan Martyrs at amugongo!Homily of His Holiness Pope FrancisMass at the Uganda Martyrs Shrine,NamugongoSaturday, 28 Novemer 2!"#

You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit hascome upon you; and you shall be my witnesses inJerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end

of the earth (Acts 1!"#

$rom the a%e of the Apostles to our own day& a %reatcloud of witnesses has been raised up to proclaimJesus and show forth the power of the Holy Spirit#'oday& we recall with %ratitude the sacrice of the)%anda martyrs& whose witness of love for *hrist andhis *hurch has truly %one to the end of the earth#+e remember also the An%lican martyrs whose deathsfor *hrist testify to the ecumenism of blood# All thesewitnesses nurtured the %ift of the Holy Spirit in theirlives and freely %ave testimony of their faith in Jesus*hrist& even at the cost of their lives& many at such ayoun% a%e#

+e too have received the %ift of the Spirit& to ma,e ussons and dau%hters of -od& but also so that we maybear witness to Jesus and ma,e him everywhere,nown and loved# +e received the Spirit when wewere reborn in .aptism& and we were stren%thened byhis %ifts at our *onrmation# /very day we are called

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to deepen the Holy Spirit0s presence in our life& to faninto ame the %ift of his divine love so that we maybe a source of wisdom and stren%th to others#

'he %ift of the Holy Spirit is a %ift which is meant to beshared# 2t unites us to one another as believers andlivin% members of *hrist0s mystical .ody# +e do notreceive the %ift of the Spirit for ourselves alone& but tobuild up one another in faith& hope and love# 2 thin, ofSaints Joseph 3,asa and *harles 4wan%a& who afterbein% catechi5ed by others& wanted to pass on the %ift

they had received# 'hey did this in dan%erous times#6ot only were their lives threatened but so too werethe lives of the youn%er boys under their care#.ecause they had tended to their faith and deepenedtheir love of -od& they were fearless in brin%in% *hristto others& even at the cost of their lives# 'heir faithbecame witness; today& venerated as martyrs& theire7ample continues to inspire people throu%hout the

world# 'hey continue to proclaim Jesus *hrist and thepower of his *ross#

2f& li,e the martyrs& we daily fan into ame the %ift ofthe Spirit who dwells in our hearts& then we will surelybecome the missionary disciples which *hrist calls usto be# 'o our families and friends certainly& but also to

those whom we do not ,now& especially those whomi%ht be unfriendly& even hostile& to us# 'his opennessto others be%ins rst in the family& in our homeswhere charity and for%iveness are learned& and themercy and love of -od made ,nown in our parents0

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love# 2t nds e7pression too in our care for the elderlyand the poor& the widowed and the orphaned#

Just as the mother and seven sons from the Second.oo, of 3accabees encoura%ed one another in theirmoment of %reat trial (819:# 91

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Here too the )%anda martyrs show us the way# 'heirfaith sou%ht the %ood of all people& includin% the very>in% who condemned them for their *hristian beliefs#'heir response was to meet hatred with love& and thusto radiate the splendour of the -ospel# 'hey did notsimply tell the >in% what the -ospel does not allow&but showed throu%h their lives what sayin% yes toJesus really means# 2t means mercy and purity ofheart& bein% mee, and poor in spirit& and thirstin% forri%hteousness in the hope of an eternal reward#

'he witness of the martyrs shows to all who haveheard their story& then and now& that the worldlypleasures and earthly power do not brin% lastin% ?oy orpeace# @ather& delity to -od& honesty and inte%rity oflife& and %enuine concern for the %ood of others brin%us that peace which the world cannot %ive# 'his doesnot diminish our concern for this world& as if we onlyloo, to the life to come# 2nstead& it %ives purpose to

our lives in this world& and helps us to reach out tothose in need& to cooperate with others for thecommon %ood& and to build a more ?ust society whichpromotes human di%nity& defends -od0s %ift of life andprotects the wonders of nature& his creation and ourcommon home#

ear brothers and sisters& this is the le%acy which youhave received from the )%anda martyrs = livesmar,ed by the power of the Holy Spirit& lives whichwitness even now to the transformin% power of the-ospel of Jesus *hrist# 'his le%acy is not served by anoccasional remembrance& or by bein% enshrined in a

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museum as a precious ?ewel# @ather& we honour them&and all the saints& when we carry on their witness to*hrist& in our homes and nei%hbourhoods& in ourwor,places and civil society& whether we never leaveour homes or we %o to the farthest corner of theworld#

3ay the )%anda martyrs& to%ether with 3ary& 3otherof the *hurch& intercede for us& and may the HolySpirit ,indle within us the re of his divine loveB

"mu#ama $%awe "mu#isa& (-od bless youB"(from Catican @adio"

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/11/28/mass_at_sanctuary_of_ugandan_martyrs_homily/1190234http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/11/28/mass_at_sanctuary_of_ugandan_martyrs_homily/1190234