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Guarding Truth
He walked the palace grounds,
A steady man with watchful eyes,
Holding truth against the fear,
A calm light under Ugandan skies.
Charles, guard their lives,
Keep your courage at their side,
Soft but certain, never moved,
A steady heart that would not hide.
Charles, guard their lives,
When the danger closed them in,
A single voice that stood upright
Against the weight of threat and sin.
The king’s command grew dark,
A shadow pressing on the day,
Young boys looking up to him,
And still he kept his measured way.
Charles, guard their lives,
Keep your courage at their side,
Soft but certain, never moved,
A steady heart that would not hide.
Charles, guard their lives,
When the danger closed them in,
A single voice that stood upright
Against the weight of threat and sin.
He faced the final fire,
A choice that he would not betray,
And in that rising heat,
His truth refused to turn away.
Charles, guard their lives,
Keep your courage at their side,
Soft but certain, never moved,
A steady heart that would not hide.
Charles, guard their lives,
When the danger closed them in,
A single voice that stood upright
Against the weight of threat and sin.
His footsteps linger still,
A path through Uganda’s rising dawn,
A man who held his truth
And kept the young ones moving on.
SONG OVERVIEW
This song, Guarding Truth was written by Tasmanian songwriter, author and consultant Jason Bresnehan and forms part of his Saints and Sinners series, a collection of twenty-seven original songs inspired by twenty-seven saints whose lives demonstrate overcoming and movement. The series is being developed into a companion book that combines song lyrics with concise saint biographies focused on each saint’s story, saintly movement and the obstacle they overcame.
GUARDING TRUTH, the SONG, by Jason Bresnehan, Tasmanian Songwriter
St Charles Lwanga lived in the late nineteenth century and died in Uganda under the rule of King Mwanga II. His saintly movement took place at the royal court, where he served as a page and protector of younger boys who looked to him for guidance. His resting place is honoured at Namugongo.
Lwanga began as a young man shaped by loyalty, discipline and a quiet sense of responsibility. His movement was the defence of dignity in a place where fear and power pressed hard against conscience. He faced threats, interrogation and the danger of standing against a ruler’s demands, yet he kept his resolve steady. Lwanga’s story is not about rebellion; it is about protecting the vulnerable and holding to truth when force demanded silence. His life shows how courage can rise in the smallest rooms and how a single steady heart can shield others when danger closes in.