The Basics: Born about 1100 in Italy; died about 1157 in Italy; beatified in 1779 by Pius VI; feast day, November 7. Woman religious.
The Story: Lucy and her friends were attracted to the simple monastic life known as the Camaldolese, mountain communities established by Saint Romuald. The concept was a mix of community and hermetic living. And while Lucy was attracted to this vocation, serving as abbess at a monastery in Italy’s Ozzano dell’Emilia, a certain nobleman, Count Diatagora Fava, became attracted to Lucy.
Whether the two ever actually met face to face is not clear, but the count would go to her window each day to catch a glimpse of her. When Lucy realized this, she closed the window forever. Feeling hopeless, he left to join the Crusades. What he did not know was that she died the very day he left Europe.
Once in the Holy Land, the count found himself imprisoned and in shackles. He called out to her, asking her to pray for him if she was still alive She then appeared to him to console him and encourage him to persevere. Miraculously, he was freed. His chains are housed at the same church as Lucy’s remains.
Lucy’s Wisdom: “If your love is perfect, you will see my imperishable beauty and share with me the joys of heaven” (to her admirer in a vision after her death).
What We Can Learn from Lucy: Even if we can’t love someone in the manner in which he or she loves us, our prayers for that person can still work wonders.
To Learn More About Lucy: Read the passage that refers to her in Divas in the Convent: Nuns, Music, and Defiance in Seventeenth-Century Italy.
To Learn More About Other Women Saints and Blesseds: Come back next week, or consider buying my book, Sisterhood of Saints: Daily Guidance and Inspiration.
