Collect taken from the memorial of St. Lucy, virgin and martyr.
Collect: May the glorious intercession of the Virgin and Martyr Saint Lucy give us a new heart, we pray, O Lord, so that we may celebrate her heavenly birthday in this present age and so behold things eternal. Through our Lord Jesus Christ…
“May the glorious intercession of the Virgin and Martyr Saint Lucy give us a new heart, we pray, O Lord,”
– We echo the many places in Scripture that ask for a new heart or promise one to those who seek God. The implication is of course that our new heart would be pure. This is fitting since Lucy is a virgin who died for her purity and love of God and since Advent is a time of new beginnings.
“so that we may celebrate her heavenly birthday in this present age and so behold things eternal.”
– With this new heart, we would be able to see past the fading things of this life and so rejoice in the rather bizarre idea of a young girl preferring to die for her virginity over keeping her wealth and status. This in turn opens our eyes to the eternal beauty of heavenly things that can only be seen by the pure of heart.
Questions & Advice: Are you pure of heart? What most occupies your heart when you first rise in the morning and just before you go to bed? Are you willing to risk losing some of the comforts of this world so that your heart and mind can more easily see the invisible and eternal things that are offered to us by God?
Read about purity of heart in the Catechism (2517-33). Spend some of your daily prayer time reflecting on your attachments. Make a little thought experiment of what life would be like without one thing that you are particularly attached to. Ask St. Lucy to help you be willing to get rid of whatever prevents you from loving God more.
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| Sancta Lucia, ora pro nobis! |