Hello everyone! Heyo! Welcome back to Scattering Flowers with Elise and Miles, a podcast where we read the daily gospels and the saint of the day.
Let’s get started! Today is Wednesday, December 24th, and the gospel reading is Luke 1, 67 through 79, and the scripture to reflect on is Luke 1, 68.
Blessed be the Lord, God of Israel, for he has come to his people to set them free.
It’s Christmas Eve! Merry Christmas! It may seem weird, but instead of talking about what’s happening tomorrow, let’s talk about Adam and Eve.
You may remember the story of how Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit that they were told to leave the garden of Eden.
This was a rough start for the human race, but there was hope.
God told the serpent who had tempted them that the person would come one day who would crush his head and defeat him completely.
I think we all should know who that person is.
Jesus, of course! Today is Saint of the Day, Saint Lucy.
She was born in 283 BC and died in 304 BC.
She is the patron saint of those with eye trouble.
Lucy is one of the most popular saints from the early church.
Born in Silesia in the Roman Empire, she gave her life for Christ during the persecution of diocesan.
This much is certain, but beyond that we know is little.
It is, however, that her father died when she was young.
Her mother later arranged for Lucy to marry a young pagan man, but Lucy had already promised to live as a virgin for the love of Jesus.
Lucy rejected Suter denounced her to the Roman authorities who sentenced her to be forced into persecution.
According to legend, Lucy became immovable and no effort was successful in moving her.
She was martyred when her neck was pierced with a sword and she died.
Devotion to Lucy spread widely and her name was introduced in the Roman canon of Mass.
In those many centuries between the Garden of Eden and the coming of Christ, we see all of mankind separated from God by their sin and disobedience.
The people walked for so long in darkness.
When would they see the great light that God had promised?
Tomorrow! Let us turn our eyes to Bethlehem.
Love is on his way.
Lucy comes from the Latin word lux.
Her feast appropriately occurs in Advent near the winter solstice.
As the days grow shorter and darker, Lucy has thus become a symbol that points to Christ, the true light of the world.
While she is widely invoked for help with physical eyesight, Lucy can also help us gain spiritual insight, just like Jesus.
Let’s pray.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Dear Jesus, thank you for all of the blessings that you have given us, and thank you for coming onto this earth to save us from our sins.
And thank you that you came into the world to give us light like Saint Lucy.
Saint Lucy, pray for us.
Amen.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Thank you so much for listening.
We’ll be back tomorrow, Scattering Mark Flowers.
See ya!