St Lucia of Syracuse, whose name means light, was a faithful young woman who dedicated her life to Christ, rejected a pagan suitor who turned her over to the Roman authorities, and was subsequently tortured and martyred. She lived from 283 to 304 and is the patron saint of blindness.
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What Is Saint Lucia (Lucy) Known For?
St Lucy (Lucia) of Syracuse, whose name means “light,” was a faithful young woman who dedicated her life to Christ, rejected a pagan suitor who turned her over to the Roman authorities, and was subsequently tortured and martyred. She lived from 283 to 304 and is the patron saint of blindness.
Lucy committed her life to Christ as a young woman, but her mother arranged a marriage for her with a pagan.
Lucy prayed at the tomb of St Agatha, who then appeared to her in a dream.
St Agatha revealed to Lucy that her mother’s sickness would be healed, and when Lucy explained this miraculous healing to her mother, she agreed to let Lucy follow through on her dedication to God.
But the pagan, would-be bridegroom became enraged at Lucy’s rejection of him and betrayed her to the governor Paschasius.
Paschasius tried forcing her into impurity at a brothel, but when the guards tried to move her, they could not budge her one inch!
The guards then tried burning her by piling up wood around her, but the wood would not kindle. Finally, they drew their swords and slew her.
In another account of her life, when Lucy warned Paschasius that God would punish him for his viciousness, he told his guards to gouge out her eyes. But after she died and her body was examined, her eyes had been restored.
St Lucy is one of eight women commemorated by the Church in the Canon of the Mass.