Dear Crystal:

The Feast of St. Lucy is on December 13th. The date of the 21st relates to the change of the calendar.

According to the Julian calendar, December 13th was the shortest day of the year. The change to the Gregorian calendar altered the date to December 21st, but did not change Lucy's feast day celebration, and she is forever associated with lengthening days and more sunlight.

 Do not worry about pagan holidays. Everyday of the year is some pagan or occult day. It matters not to the Catholic Church. We set the feast days usually on the day, or near the day, the Saint died (born into heaven).

Other Feast Days have been set by the Church to specifically counter pagan days. The Feast of All Saints (November 1) and the Feast of the Nativity (December 25) are two examples.

When evangelizing a people whose tradition is to celebrate some pagan holiday, it helps to give those people a Christian Holy Day to replace the pagan one. Thus, the Church Christianizes the day to help the people avoid going back to old habits.

The Saints are our older brothers and sisters who have gone on to heaven before us. They are canonized Saints by the Church because they are role models for the rest of us. In addition, God is pleases that we pray to the Saints to ask them to intercede to Jesus for us. Also, God considers us all one big family. Just as in a extended multi-generational family hear on earth, like what was typical in centuries past, or as examples by the old TV show, The Waltons, the whole family helps each other. Sometimes a child may go to the father for advice, other times to an older sister, or a grandparent. Such is God's economy of the Body of Christ. Christ's Body is not paralyzed where one part of the Body cannot communicate with another part. Those in heaven are not dead, they are more alive than we are, and as part of the Body, we can ask them for help.

The various Saints have their own specialities in providing help to us. For example, St. Lucy is Patron Saint for those with eye problems.

Tradition tells us that Saint Lucy was born of noble, wealthy, Christian parents in Syracuse, Italy. Lucy had few memories of her father, for he died when Lucy was an infant. As a young girl, Lucy took a secret vow to consecrate her virginity to Christ. Thus her mother was quite dismayed when Lucy, as a teen, refused marriage to a young pagan. When Lucy's mother developed a hemorrhage, Lucy persuaded her to visit the tomb of St. Agatha to pray for healing. When her mother was healed, Lucy revealed her vow of virginity and asked permission to bestow her fortune on the poor. Joyful at her cure, Lucy's mother agreed, but Lucy's pagan suitor was incensed. With the persecution of the emperor Diocletian at its height, the jilted young man accused Lucy, before a judge, of being a Christian. When Lucy refused to relinquish her faith, the judge ordered her to a brothel. However, guards who attempted to drag her to the house of sin were unable to budge her. Similarly an attempt to burn Lucy to death failed so she was dispatched by thrusting a sword into her throat. The date of Lucy's martyrdom was December 13, 304.

As early as the sixth century, Lucy was honored in Rome as one of the most praiseworthy virgin martyrs, and her name was inserted into the canon of the Mass. Possibly because of her name, which means "light," Lucy was invoked by those who suffered from eye trouble or blindness. Due to this connection, various legends arose. One legend claimed that her eyes were put out by a tyrannical government official or by her jilted boyfriend. Another declared that Lucy tore them out herself to discourage her pagan suitor. In every story, however, the Lord restored her eyes to her, more beautiful than ever.

St. Lucy is an example to us all of love, devotion, and determination to always put God first, even above our own lives.

Since the Saints are part of the Chrisitan family, you do not need to be Catholic to offer prayers to her or to ask for her intercession. Here are two prayers:

1) SAINT LUCY, Whose beautiful name Signifies light, By the light of Faith Which God bestowed upon you, Increase and preserve His light in my soul, So that I may avoid evil, Be zealous in the performance Of good works, And abhor nothing So much as the blindness And the darkness Of evil and sin. Obtain for me, By your intercessionWith God, Perfect vision For my bodily eyes And the grace to use them For God’s greater honor And glory And the salvation of souls. St. Lucy, Virgin and martyr, Hear my prayers And obtain my petitions. Amen.


2) Relying on Your goodness, O God, we humbly ask you, by the intercession of your servant, Saint Lucy, to give perfect vision to our eyes, that we may serve for your greater honor and glory. And we pray for the salvation of our souls in this world, that we may come to the enjoyment of the unfailing light of the Lamb of God in heaven. St. Lucy, virgin and martyr, hear our prayers and answer our petitions.
Amen.

.

See references to her:
http://saints.sqpn.com/saint-lucy-of-syracuse/ 
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09414a.htm
http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=75
http://www.penitents.org/lucy.html

This last reference has additional information about how her feast day is celebrated in various countries with special foods, etc. 

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary