Just like St Nicholas’ feast day on December 6 (AKA the real Santa Claus), Advent has another beautiful saint with an epic tradition. This is a Swedish tradition, where delicious braided bread and crowns of candles celebrate the life and martyrdom of St Lucy. Want to learn how this Roman saint got so far north? Read on!
The story of Saint Lucy: a roman saint loved in Sweden
St Lucy lived in the very early days of the Church. During this time, Christians were heavily persecuted by Pagan Rome. St Lucy wished to remain a virgin and dedicate her life to God. However, when she rejected a pagan suitor, he was enraged. He outed her as a Christian, and she was sentenced to be placed in a brothel. When the soldiers tried to take her there, she was unable to be moved, even when they hitched up an ox and cart to pull her there.
They tried killing her buy burning her where she stood, but the wood did not ignite. They plucked out her eyes, but they miraculously grew back. Finally, she was stabbed to death.
St Lucy’s feast day is celebrated on 13 December and she is the patron saint of the blind.
How you can celebrate this Swedish feast day at home
The Swedes have a particular love of St Lucy, and celebrate in style. Traditionally, young girls would dress in white gowns with red sashes, symbolising purity and martyrdom. They would wear wreathes of evergreen on their head, which could include a set of burning candles as well. They would parade through the dark, pre-dawn streets singing hymns. This symbolised that the light of Christ was coming into the darkness of sin.
If you’re not keen on wearing candles, don’t worry. You can make a delicious braided bread and bring it to the table with the candles lit. Each year I make a St Lucy bread, which is infused with saffron and has candied peel and slivered almonds inside. Topped with a lemon icing sugar glaze, it’s very tasty.
This year, I’m using the wholemeal challah recipe from Half Baked Harvest, and adding in my fruit and nuts. I’ll infuse the saffron into the water and allow to cool to lukewarm before adding the yeast and sugar.
Give St Lucy’s day a try this Advent. If you have little girls in your home, get them to dress up like the Swedes, and go around to wake the rest of the household with the plate of candle-lit bread. If you missed it this morning, you can always do it tonight with dinner. I promise it will bring some beautiful light to this second week of Advent.
