Saint Patrick - Man, Legend, Day

Saint Patrick (386?-461) wasn’t Irish, but he was a real person before he became a legend.

Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, and his feast day is one of the most celebrated holidays around the world.

The Man

Born in Roman Britain, Patricius was from a wealthy Welsh-speaking family. He wasn’t very religious early in life, but that changed when he was captured by Irish pirates at age 16. He was taken back to Ireland as a slave and forced to work as a shepherd, spending much of his time isolated from other people.

Alone in pagan Ireland, Patrick found solace in Christianity, the religion of his homeland, saying over 100 prayers every day. After six years as a slave, he believed he heard the voice of God telling him to escape, so he crossed the island as a fugitive and jumped a ship back to Britain and reunited with his family.

After a year or so at home, he crossed the sea to Gaul seeking formal training to become a priest. He eventually was made a bishop. He could have returned home but instead he felt a calling to bring the Christian message to Ireland. He wasn’t the first missionary on the island, but he was the most successful.

Because he knew the Irish language and beliefs, he was able to share the Christian message in a way the people could understand and accept. The Irish pagans liked bonfires, so Patrick lit bonfires. Patrick showed respect for their customs and introduced the gospel as something that had helped him in his time of need.

Patrick continued to preach, founding many Christian communities throughout Ireland. The archeological record shows Christianity spreading from this point on. His mission in Ireland lasted about 30 years, until his death on March 17, 461.

The Legend 

The most famous story about Saint Patrick is that he banished snakes from Ireland. While that would be cool, there never were snakes in Ireland, as the Irish Sea is too cold for snakes to swim across. It’s best to understand the snake story as an allegory for Patrick pushing paganism out of Ireland.

The other famous legend is that Patrick used the three leaves of the shamrock to explain the idea of the Trinity. While this might have happened, there’s no evidence of it and no record of that story until hundreds of years after he died. But later shamrocks would become associated with Irish pride.

The Day

Saint Patrick became the patron saint of Ireland, and his feast day was set to the day of his death. The English tried to keep Irishness down, so it wasn’t allowed to be that big of a deal on the island, but the tradition developed in America.

In 1601, the first Saint Patrick’s Day fiesta was held in Florida, which was then a Spanish colony that was lucky to have an Irish priest. After that, it’s quiet for over a century, with the next documented celebration in Boston in 1737 and the first Saint Patrick’s Day parade held in New York City in 1762.

Over the decades, the quiet and prayerful occasion of Ireland became the raucous celebration to show Irish pride in America, and later, all over the world. Corned beef and cabbage isn’t from Ireland, but it was enjoyed by Irish immigrants after ~1850 alongside their Jewish neighbors in New York’s lower east side, so you too can enjoy it this Saint Patrick’s Day.

And green beer? Well, maybe that’s a blessing from above or a curse to be banished, your call.

You might hope for a career path that is all smooth sailing. Right school, right first job, promoted when ready. Check, check, check. Retirement party, done. And maybe that might happen for you.

But for most people, a career disruption comes along. Maybe it’s a mass layoff, the company goes bankrupt, a worldwide recession, whatever it is, it skewers your plans.

If you can’t avoid the upheaval, what can you do to make the most of it? After first getting angry and stamping your feet, of course. Definitely do that to start. Get it out of your system. Then use your time wisely.

Saint Patrick didn’t like living alone in the wilderness with just a flock of sheep. But it allowed him to find his faith, which led him to his destiny. After some retraining in his new priestly career, he led not a flock of sheep, but a flock of faithful followers.

You’ve only got one go at life. It stinks that you were captured by pirates, but what will you do now? If you can, use this Time of Tribulation to find your True Calling. With or without the aid of green beer. Again, that’s your call.