A strong believer in a self-governing, self-supporting, and self-propagating church, he backed the appointment of Aberi Balya as bishop in the Native Anglican Church of Uganda and encouraged everyone, rich and poor, to contribute to the building of churches and Christian schools. He set the example by devoting many of his funds to this purpose, including the building of Bishop Tucker Theological College, now called Uganda Christian University.

In 1882, twelve-year-old Hamu Lujonza Kaddu Mukasa, son of a chief in the Buganda Kingdom, was sent to the court of King Mutesa I to serve as a page. There, his life began to take a course he had never imagined.

From Mukasa to Hamu

At court, he was exposed to new experiences and new religions, particularly Islam, which was the king’s favorite religion. He also visited the local Anglican mission, where he was invited to take reading lessons. At that time, Mukasa didn’t know anything about Christianity and thought it was the same as Islam. He remembered a sermon about the final judgment that filled him with fear.

King Mutesa allowed Anglicans and Catholics to operate inside his officially Muslim kingdom because he mistrusted all foreigners (including Muslim Arabs) and hoped that they would cancel each other out. When he died in 1884, he was succeeded by his sixteen-year-old son Mwanga, who didn’t hide his dislike for Christians. The first victim of this new policy was the Anglican Bishop James Hannington, who was murdered while traveling.

Mukasa was at home visiting his family during the change of government, and stayed there for a while. When he returned to court, he discovered that many of the pages had learned how to read. Some were reading the gospels and prayer-books. More than ever, Mukasa wanted to learn too, but he was progressing slowly because he was not putting out enough effort.

Mwanga was not pleased to learn that many of his pages could read, since he knew they were getting educated at the Christian mission. He demanded that they renounce their faith in Christ, and killed those who refused. On 3 June 1886, 22 Christian pages were burned to death at Namugongo, 16 miles east of the Ugandan capital, Kempala. Witnesses to the execution reported that the martyrs went to their death with joy and endured the fire with courage.

Feeling threatened because of his Christian connections, Mukasa escaped to a nearby village, until he heard news that the king wanted him back and was willing to forgive him for running away. In fact, when Mukasa returned, Mwanga put him in charge of the other pages.

Still, life at court was not a bed of roses. Mukasa had to endure both the slanders of jealous rivals and the swinging moods of the king. Each time, his life was spared. Later, Mukasa recognized this as an act of God’s mercy.

In the meantime, he refined his reading skills and attended services at the Anglican mission. In 1886, he was baptized and adopted the name Hamu as a symbol of a new life. He reported in his memoirs his feelings of an ongoing spiritual battle between the “old man” Mukasa and the “new man” Hamu.

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