It's a special day for us, italian and european people.... This is the day children await the most (In some parts of Italy and Europe, Saint Lucy brings gifts to children like Santa Claus).
Celebrated in many parts of the world, but in Sweden above all, Lucy is a Saint that is born from an ancient legend of the Sicily (South Italy).
(Saint Lucy's body, Venezia, Church of Saint Lucy,Italy. Go to see the Church at http://digilander.libero.it/santigeremiaelucia/ )
Lucy=Lucia=Lux=Lucis=Light
(Santa Lucia, oil on canvas, scuola popolare siciliana del secolo XVIII. Chiesa Madre. Santa Maria di Licodia)
from Wikipedia..." Her feast day in the West is December 13, by the unreformed Julian Calendar the longest night of the year; with a name derived from lux, lucis "light", she is the patron saint of those who are blind. St. Lucy is one of the very few saints celebrated by members of the Lutheran Church among the Scandinavian peoples (Danen, Swedes, Finns and Norwegians) who take part in Saint Lucy's Day celebrations that retain many indigenous Germanic pagan pre-Christian midwinter elements...
In medieval accounts, St. Lucy's eyes are gouged out prior to her execution.
In art, her eyes sometimes appear on a plate that she's holding.
(Saint Lucy of Siracuse, Italy)
Dante also mentions Lucia in Inferno Canto II as the messenger "of all cruelty the foe" sent to Beatrice from "The blessed Dame" (Divine Mercy), to rouse Beatrice to send Virgil to Dante's aid. She has instructed Virgil to guide Dante through Hell and Purgatory. Lucia is only referenced indirectly in Virgil's discourse within the narrative and doesn't appear; the reasons for her appearing in this intermediary role are still somewhat unclear to scholars, although doubtless Dante had some allegorical end in mind, perhaps having Lucy as a figure of Illuminating Grace or Mercy or even Justice.[13]Nonetheless Dante obviously regarded Lucia with great reverence, placing her opposite Adam within the Mystic Rose in Canto XXXII of the Paradiso.
In Mark Musa's translation of Dante's Purgatorio, it is noted that Lucy was admired by an undesirable suitor for her beautiful eyes. To stay chaste she plucked out her own eyes, a great sacrifice for which God gave her a pair of even more beautiful eyes.
(Francesco del Cossa, Saint Lucy)
...Lucy's name also played a large part in naming Lucy as a patron saint of the blind and those with eye-trouble. She was the patroness of Syracuse. (Italy)
(Saint Lucy,Domenico Beccafumi, Italy)
(Saint Lucy's burial, Caravaggio, Italy)
Is It for you a special Day around the World? I want to know! write on my blog!