Lucy, Odilia, and the Promise of Light

Advent is a season of contradictions and juxtapositions. 

This is the season of "already" but "not yet," as we prepare for the coming-in-fullness of the One who has already been born into time and history. 

This is the dark season when we watch and wait from the dawning of the One who is the Light of the World, lighting the candles of the Advent wreath and praying in the Magnificat antiphon for December 21: 

O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice: 

Come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.  

This theme of light is a fundamental part of our prayer in these Advent days and we recall John the Baptist, the great prophet of Advent, testifying to the coming of this light (see John 1:6-9). 

This is the light of the Lord that illumines the darkened heart of a sin- and war-weary world. 

Reflecting on this, Quaker writer Isaac Pennington wrote, “But of what nature is this light, which shineth in man in his dark state? It is of a living nature; it is light which flows from life; it is light which hath life in it; it is the life of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Word eternal, which is the light of men.” Only the One who is the Light of the World who can drive away the darkness of sin and death which seeks to cover the earth with its heavy pall. And here, we might think of Isaiah the prophet vision that the Advent of the Promised One--the "Servant of the Lord"--would bring light where there was once darkness and unstop that which was once closed (see Isaiah 42:1-8). 

The gift of spiritual sight, unobscured by sin, despair, and doubt, is truly a grace and allows the Christian to recognize how the grace and power of God has been--and continues to be--at work in the world. 

This December 13, 2020, provides us with a privileged opportunity to reflect on this mystery. Not only does the liturgy of this Third Sunday of Advent offer us a glimpse of the coming Light with its rose-colored vestments and the mandate to Rejoice, but the broader tradition of the Church holds up for us two holy women who are witnesses to the Light. 

The first of these is Saint Lucy. A virgin and martyr whose name means Light, Lucy is among the most ancient saints honored in the liturgical calendar and her liturgical commemoration is ranked as an obligatory memorial (which is replaced this year by the Third Sunday of Advent). According to ancient tradition, Lucy's eyes were gouged out as part of the inhuman tortures she endured and this is a powerful symbol of the attempts of the "blind" officials to undermine Lucy's gift of spiritual sight. (You can read my full profile of Saint Lucy for Aleteia.org by clicking here.) 

And, alongside the celebrated Lucy, we also have the lesser-known Odilia. 

Saint Odilia, who lived in the Alsace region of France, knew the true value of the gift of sight—both physical and spiritual sight. Born blind and rejected by her father because of her physical limitation, she lived in darkness and isolation until she was given the gift of sight and a name (Odilia is a form of Sol Dei, “God’s light”) at the time of her baptism. Saint Odilia later became a highly regarded abbess who dedicated her life to the care of the nuns of her community and to works of mercy, feeding the hungry and caring for the sick and pilgrims - the poor in whom she saw the presence of Christ. She was immediately hailed as a saint, following her death around the year 720.

Today, Saint Odilia of Alsace (along with Saint Lucy) is honored as a patron saint of the blind.

Hans Urs von Balthasar has reminded us that, "The Lord, the High God... has left his glory behind him and gone into the dark world, into the child's apparent insignificance, in the freedom of human restrictions and bonds, into the poverty of the crib" (from the essay "Into the Dark With God" in Goodness and Light).  And why this humility on God's part? So that eyes made blind by sin, doubt, and complacency might be opened and spiritual sight restored. As Pope Francis reflected in his homily for Christmas Midnight Mass in 2013: "He has entered our history; he has shared our journey. He came to free us from darkness and to grant us light... God loves us, he so loves us that he gave us his Son to be our brother, to be light in our darkness."

Advent is the season in which we watch and wait, looking for the signs of God's Providence at work, even as events in our world and individual lives may make us that the light of the new day will never dawn. But, we believe in a God who keeps the promises made to our spiritual ancestors and the witness of the saints--including Lucy and Odilia--remind us that if our faith is strong, we will never be disappointed in our waiting: "Behold our Lord shall come with power; he will enlighten the eyes of his servants" (Alleluia verse for Friday of the First Week of Advent). 

A Prayer in Honor of Saint Odilia + 

O God, who called your handmaid blessed Odilia to seek you before all else, grant that, serving you, through her example and intercession, with a pure and humble heart, we may come at last to your eternal glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. 

(from The Roman Missal: Common of Holy Men and Women--For a Nun)