Mary, Jacob, Clare, Sebastian and I went on a pilgrimage to Syracuse, Sicily, to visit the tomb and basilica of St. Lucy. Lucy is one of the early church martyrs who died under the regime of the Emperor Diocletian. Although we do not have many facts about her life, we do know that at a young age, she refused to renounce her Christian faith. The perseverance of this young woman has served to inspire Christians for millennia. When Mary was born, Ron and I named her after Lucy--Mary Lucinda. On this pilgrimage, I begged for Lucy to pray for Mary through these next two years in Italy, her last two years of high school, that she would be given grace upon grace and emerge, too, a towering saint.
Syracuse was at the exact opposite end of the island from our town. Driving across the island, we saw vast expanses of uninhabited, mountainous terrain, speckled with orange tree groves and farmland.
The oldest shrine to Saint Lucy
Lucy's Tomb
The basilica of St. Lucy, across the town from her tomb. It has a baroque exterior but an ancient, Romanesque interior.
Statue of St. Lucy on the front of the basilica
One of the many paintings of St. Lucy
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