Why is St Patrick so Popular?
Of course, we have all heard of St. Patty’s day and understand that it has some relation to St. Patrick, but what made him such a popular and consequential saint?
St. Patrick has an interesting story that led him to the level of notoriety that he has now, and it is one of unforeseen circumstances. His life brought him to not only be a popular saint but to also be revered as the one who opened the hearts of the Irish to the word of God.
He was born in Britain but was kidnapped by Irish pirates when he was about fourteen years old. He was forced to work as a sheep herder in Ireland and at that time, Ireland was full of pagan rituals and Druids, which meant that his reliance on his faith was even more important. Patrick upheld his faith and continued to seek God in the midst of his misery.
He wrote about how his faith actually grew exponentially during that time of captivity and when he was twenty years old, he had a dream in which God told him to escape.
In his dream, he was told to go to the shore and that he would be able to escape that way and so when Patrick ran there, he came across a group of British sailors who were able to take him home.
After returning home, Patrick eventually had another vision in which he was given letters by a man named Victorious. One of the letters was titled as the Voice of the Irish and it had a big impact on how he began his studies for priesthood. After his ordination by St. Germanus, Patrick was sent back to Ireland to work as a messenger of the Gospel there.
There are endless stories about various members of the Druids who tried to kill him, discredit him, abuse him and tarnish his name. All of these stories are met with stories about how God intervened and allowed Patrick to lead even the least likely to be open to Scripture into a relationship with God.
Because Patrick was so effective, he became responsible for building churches across all of Ireland and therefore he became a prominent figure in the country for decades to come. You may wonder why the shamrock is such a big part of the holiday of St. Patty’s Day, but that also is directly tied to the ministry of Patrick. He was known to use the three-leafed shamrock as a way to explain the Holy Trinity to nonbelievers in his ministry, The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit.
Of course, Patrick was also a humble and gentle man who was focused on his ministry and was known to be pious and fully devoted to ministering to the Irish people so the raucous drinking and partying that goes on during St. Patty’s Day is completely unrelated to the history of this priest.
Since St. Patrick’s life of ministry had such a significant impact on the religious tradition and history of the entire country of Ireland, he is categorized as the patron saint of Ireland. He died in the church that he first built in that country and is said to have been buried in one of the others. The Irish Catholics hold him in very high regards because his ministry is responsible for ensuring the salvation of thousands of Irish over many generations.
Had it not been for his devotion to his ministry and his openness to return to a community that had kidnapped him from his family and used him as a slave, the country of Ireland would likely not be as firmly Catholic as it is today. His work has resonated for years and will continue to do so with the help of those of us who remain in the traditions of the church today.
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