December 13

St. Lucy

Saint Lucy: The Guiding Light Through History

When they lived:

Saint Lucy, also known as Saint Lucia, lived during the late Roman Empire in the 3rd century. Her exact birth and death dates are not certain, but it is widely believed that she was born around 283 AD and died around 304 AD.

Where they lived:

Saint Lucy was born in Syracuse, a vibrant and bustling city located on the eastern coast of Sicily, which was a part of the Roman Empire at the time.

Notable world events during the time of their life:

Crisis of the Third Century (235-284 AD): The Roman Empire was in a state of turmoil, facing multiple challenges such as political instability, economic crises, and invasions from external forces. This period saw numerous emperors rise and fall, leading to a weakened empire.
Diocletian’s Reforms (284 AD): Emperor Diocletian implemented significant administrative and economic reforms in an attempt to stabilize the Roman Empire. He divided the empire into the Eastern and Western halves, each with its own ruler, laying the groundwork for the Byzantine Empire.
Great Persecution of Christians (303-311 AD): One of the most significant events during Saint Lucy’s time was the intense persecution of Christians under Emperor Diocletian and his successors. Many Christians, including Saint Lucy, faced martyrdom for their faith.

Her patronage:

Saint Lucy is widely venerated as the patron saint of eyesight, the blind, and eye-related illnesses. This patronage is inspired by the legend that, during her torture, her eyes were gouged out, but later miraculously restored.

Early Life

She is known as St. Lucia to Italians and called the patron saint of the blind by all, partly because her name means “light.”

Lucy was born in 283 AD to an Italian father and a Greek mother, Eutychian. Lucy was born into rich and noble parents in Syracuse, Sicily. Sadly, St. Lucy lost her father when she was 5 years old, leaving her and her sick mother, Eutychian, without a protective guardian.

St. Lucy was privately raised as a devout Catholic by her mother. As her love for God leaped, she secretly took an oath of perpetual chastity and never to be married. It was her earnest desire to distribute her riches to the poor. Her vow to God was to become her undoing.

Young Lucy’s Life with Her Mother

Lucy’s mother’s hemorrhagic illness (bleeding disorder) became too grave, and fearing for Lucy’s future if anything were to happen to her, Eutychia arranged Lucy’s marriage to a paganistic young man from a wealthy family, not knowing of Lucy’s oath to the Lord. Lucy has grown into a young maiden, renowned for her beauty and sparkling eyes, and more suitors have sought her hand in marriage.

Thinking of a way to tell her mother of her vow to God, Lucy persuaded her mother to visit the shrine of St. Agatha at Catania with her in the hope of a cure. St. Agatha (February 5, 251 AD) was a young virgin martyred for her faith during the Decian persecution. St. Agatha’s tomb had become a pilgrimage center for many as miracles were received at the shrine.

While Lucy and her mother were at Catania, St. Agatha came to Lucy in her dream. She told her that her mother, Eutychia, would be cured because of her faith. Eutychian received her healing while still at Catania; using this opportunity, Lucy confessed to her mother about the vow she swore to the lord and why she should allow her to distribute a more significant part of her riches to the poor. Though dismayed at the thought that her daughter wouldn’t be married, Eutychian agreed to let her serve God according to her faith.

She, however, suggested that Lucy leave her riches as a legacy. To this, Lucy responded, “Whatever you give away at death for the Lord’s sake, you gave because you could not take it with you. Give now to the true savior, while you’re healthy, whatever you intended to give at your death”.

Killed for Her Faith and Belief in God (Virgin and Martyr)

Lucy was born in an era of anxiety, paganistic Rome, and great persecutions of Christians (Catholics) under the rule of Emperor Diocletian. He had made the restoration of Rome to its former glory his sole purpose. To achieve this, the emperor wrongly believed that the pagan traditions of Rome must be upheld and any other faith suppressed and crushed to unify Rome again into one impenetrable empire.

Thus, in that era, being a Christian (Catholic) in Rome was dangerous, and St. Lucy’s groom knows this. Word got to St. Lucy’s intended groom that Lucy had given out a large part of her riches and inheritance to the poor and was never to be married. The pagan intended groom of Lucy, spurned by her rejection of him and possibly fueled by greed for her riches, reported Lucy as a Christian to the local authorities.

Governor Paschasius asked Lucy to burn a sacrifice for the emperor, which she refused because it went against her faith. Governor Paschasius then ordered that Lucy be moved to a brothel to become a prostitute. History explained that she couldn’t be removed when the soldiers came to move Lucy to the brothel. The governor ordered that she be burned, yet the fire built around her didn’t burn her.

Lucy suffered many persecutions while in prison, including having her ears gouged out, but she remained steadfast to her vows and belief in God. Her courage during her ordeal was unheard of in Sicily, and her fame spread beyond Rome.

St. Lucy paid the ultimate price for her faith in God on December 13, 304, when a sword was pierced through her neck in public. She died a virgin martyr.

5 Interesting Facts About St. Lucy

I bet you didn’t know that St. Lucy is one of the eight women.
mentioned by name in the Roman Catholic mass during the
eucharistic celebration. Yes, she’s one of the few.
Did you know that St. Lucy’s feast day (December 13) is known as the
festival of light? This is because her feast day once coincided with
with the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year before
calendar reforms.
A great miracle was witnessed at her burial. While her body was
being prepared for burial, her eyes were discovered to be
miraculously restored. Speak of the title, Patron of the Blind.”
and eye disorders.
Sweden has the most peculiar way of celebrating the feast day of St.
Lucy. The first daughter of any family dresses in white (purity).
red sash (martyrdom) and carries a wreath of candles on her head.
Just in case you didn’t know, St. Lucy has a country named after her. St
Lucia, the island Caribbean country in the West Indies, bears the
record as the first-ever country named after a woman.

Prayer to St. Lucy

Saint Lucy, you did not hide your light under a basket but let it shine for the whole world, for all the centuries to see. We may not suffer torture in our lives the way you did, but we are still called to let the light of our Christianity illumine our daily lives. Please help us have the courage to bring our Christianity into our work, our recreation, our relationships, and our conversation in every corner of our day. Amen.