Though the history of St. Lucy has been lost, there is one thing we know for sure: She was a brave young woman who secretly vowed to live as a bride of Christ. Many men wanted her hand in marriage, but time and time agains she refused. Her mother had arranged a for Lucy to marry a young man, but, wanting to remain faithful to her promise, Lucy committed herself to prayer at the tomb of St. Agatha. After several visits to the tomb, the saint appeared to Lucy in a dream, telling her that if her mother were to commit herself to a life of service to God, then the illness which inflicted her mother would be cured.

After this miracle, Lucy’s mother allowed Lucy to remain faithful to her promise of virginity, which angered the rejected bridegroom. In his anger, the young man denounced to the governor that Lucy was a Christian. As a result, she was condemned to public torture. However, when the soldiers came to take her, God granted that she might not be moved, which astonished the soldiers.

St. Lucy is the Patron Saint of Blindness. This is largely due to the legends of the tortures which she endured during her lifetime. There are two stories which are commonly held in regard to this. The first is that the governor ordered the guards to gouge out her eyes. While other accounts tell that it was Lucy who removed her eyes in an attempt to discourage the young man who greatly admired them. Despite these two accounts, when her body was being prepared for burial, they discovered her eyes had been miraculously restored.

St. Lucy, pray for us.