Memorial of Saint Lucy, virgin and martyr
(Isaiah 48:17-19; Matthew 11:16-19)
Today’s celebrated Saint Lucy was martyred during the
Diocletian persecutions of the early fourth century. Her name means light. By her very martyrdom she reflected the light
of Christ.
In the gospel Jesus expresses exasperation with the crowds
for refusing to respond to the message of repentance in face of the coming
Kingdom of God. When John the Baptist
preached it, the people said that his lifestyle was too ascetic to make the kingdom
desirable. When Jesus preaches it, they say his lively way of reaching out to known
sinners discredits the message. He can only regret that the people will be left
outside God’s kingdom when he is shown to be right.
We are blessed to realize that God does not want us to be
unhappy. Quite the contrary, He desires
that we rejoice in knowing that eternal life is our destiny. Our lives are to shine like that of St. Lucy
when she sided with Christ in face of his persecutors.
