I Love St. Lucy

Today, December 13, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Lucy. You may not be terribly familiar with St. Lucy, but she holds a very special place in my life as a priest and she will forever remain one of my all-time favorite saints.

Lucy was a young girl who lived during the late third and early fourth centuries, at a time when Christianity was still out-lawed by Roman government. Lucy decided to dedicate her life, her body, and her virginity entirely to Christ. Consequently, she enraged a young suitor by rejecting his advances; the suitor denounced her as a Christian and turned her over to the authorities (way to win a girl’s heart, buddy...). She was questioned and threatened with the worst sorts of torture and punishment if she did not renounce her faith, but Lucy remained unwavering. Her tormentors attempted to inflict all kinds of punishments on her but God made her body immovable so that the torturers could do nothing to her, until they finally pulled out their swords and ended her life.

Part of the legend around St. Lucy involves the story of her executioners removing her eyes as part of her torture, although they were miraculously restored. This is whence comes St. Lucy’s title as the patroness of eyesight. Scandinavian countries celebrate the feast of St. Lucy, whose name means “light”, with the tradition of having the oldest girl in the family dress in white with a red sash, white for her purity and red for her martyrdom, and wearing a wreath with lit candles. The young lady would often carry and distribute rolls and cookies to the rest of the family as part of the celebration.

I love the spirit of devotion and admiration for our Catholic heroes and heroines that inspire such pious celebrations; but above all, my admiration for Lucy stems from her willingness to give Christ everything, first her body as a virgin and then her whole life as a martyr. That is the kind of total self-surrendering with which we too need to give ourselves entirely to Jesus, and it is also the kind of devotion and fortitude that we especially need in our young people.  The courage and faith of this brave young girl should indeed serve as a light for us as we continue this season of Advent.

Pax Vobiscum