Let There be Light

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Lucy, Virgin and Martyr.  Legend has it that she refused to be married.  When it was discovered that she was a Christian, Lucy was sent to a brothel.  Again she refused the orders of the guards there and was sentenced to be burned.  The flames did not harm her, so her executioners stabbed her to death instead.  She is a patron of those with eye troubles, presumably because her name means light.  She is a perfect Advent saint in that she maintained her Christian posture even in the face of persecution.

While we do not know what traditions are true, and which are simply stories, from the early Church, we are aware that being a Christian was ominous journey in those early days.  Christians were used as scapegoats for some of the social ills and national problems, and were looked upon with suspicion because of the values and virtues they adhered to.  So much of the growth of that early Church occurred because faithful men and women, and faithful communities, remained centered on the teachings of Jesus Christ, and the tradition of the Gospel.  These early Christians were the kindling of the flame of faith in those early days.

I think that it would be easy to look at the problems in our world today, and even in the Church, and to simply 'go along with the program.'  We speak about Jesus being kind, nice, and loving, so he would certainly understand.  If the Church relaxed its teachings on life, dignity, and holiness, we would certainly be more popular.  But as we will uncover in Mark's Gospel, over the next several months, Christianity is not about a popularity contest.  Our counter-cultural stand on matters of life and a holy lifestyle becomes a stumbling block for those who want a subjective morality.

During this Advent time the prophets point out how Sin and Evil diluted the religious ethos of the day, and eventually the culture along with it.  These prophetic types, along with scripture and the teachings of the Church, draw our attention to the fact that the emperor has no clothes on.  The scandal of the cross points to a life that is lived well for the unfolding of the Kingdom.

In Scandinavian tradition the oldest daughter of a family, while wearing a wreath with candles, serves her family traditional pastry, in order to honor St. Lucy.  Just as the vocation of these martyrs in the early Church was to live faith in a very public manner, our baptism and confirmations asks us to be light and bread for those around us.  May we be so inclined to serve one another in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.