St. Patrick

 March 17, 2024 - or any year!

Today is St. Patrick’s Day, and I have a few questions for you to commemorate this important holiday.

1.    What do you get when you cross a 4-leaf clover with poison ivy? A rash of good luck.

2.    How do musicians show off on St. Patrick’s Day? They play their brag-pipes.

3.    What do you call a leprechaun prank? A St. Pat-Trick.

4.    Finally, who, exactly, was St. Patrick?

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. Patrick lived a long, long time ago, and the people of Ireland believe that he is in heaven protecting and watching over them. Most countries have one or more patron saints. The most popular is the patroness saint Mary, the mother of Jesus. She is the patroness saint of the United States, in fact. But back to Ireland and St. Patrick…The interesting thing is, Patrick wasn’t Irish.

He was born in Great Britain to wealthy parents near the end of the 4^th century. His family was not particularly religious. When he was 16 years old, Patrick was kidnapped by a group of Irish raiders who were attacking his family estate. They took him to Ireland where he spent six years as a slave.

During this time, he worked as a shepherd, tending sheep outdoors and away from people. He became lonely, cold and afraid. He turned to the religion of his childhood for comfort, and became a devoted Christian.

Finally, Patrick escaped. He made his way back to Britain. He wrote that an angel told him in a dream that God wanted him to return to Ireland as a missionary. Patrick studied Christianity for over 15 years, was ordained a priest and returned to Ireland with a two-part mission:

1.    To minister to the few Christians already in Ireland, and

2.    To tell all of the Irish people about God’s love for them in Jesus.

Patrick was a brave and faithful man. He did a lot of good for the Irish people—so much that the people of that country—Catholics and Protestants—agree that Patrick deserves to be the nation’s patron saint. Irish immigrants brought their love of St. Patrick with them when they came to the United States, and that’s why we all celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, whether we are Irish or not!