St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is honored on his feast day of March 17th. While it seems as though the entire world, both Christians and non-Christians, celebrate this day, few understand the important part this man played in the Church. It may come as a surprise to many, but St. Patrick was actually not from Ireland. His notoriety lies in Ireland because this is where he performed the bulk of his missionary work. St. Patrick lived from AD 387-461, a time when most of the Irish were pagans. He worried for the souls of these people as they had never heard the word of God. St. Patrick converted most of the pagans to Christians, however, by less than peaceful means. Buildings that held unchristian significance were destroyed and replaced with Catholic churches. These acts were considered a great service to God, but the people often met it with hostility. They were unwilling to change their ways. After years of pushing back, the pagans finally gave in to the wishes of St. Patrick, and began accepting his God as theirs. The Catholic Church rewarded St. Patrick's actions with sainthood in the early 1600s, and his feast day has been celebrated for centuries since. It began as a purely Christian holiday, but evolved into a more secular holiday that celebrates Irish culture as opposed to its patron saint. Today, it is difficult to find someone that does not know of or celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Christians continue to honor the man who saved countless souls, while non-Christians enjoy a day of dabbling in another culture. However, as secular as the depiction of St. Patrick's Day may become, it will always have Christian roots and meaning. When someone pictures a St. Patrick's Day celebration, the first image that comes to mind is the color green. The color green has nothing to do with St. Patrick; green is the national color of Ireland. Because Ireland was the home base for his deeds, the two seemed to collide into one. In actuality, the color of St. Patrick is blue. His home country of Great Britain honored him with a blue shield. It wasn't until the 17th Century that St. Patrick began to be associated with the color green to stop the confusion between whether or not he aided Great Britain or Ireland. Another symbol of St. Patrick is the shamrock. Ireland is home to many shamrocks, so he utilized them in his conversion methods. This 3-leafed plant made a great tool for St. Patrick to explain the Holy Trinity to those who had never heard of it before. Despite the idea of three people in one being beyond human comprehension, a visual aid allowed it to make sense to some of the Irish pagans. The simple tool of a clover forever became associated with the saint who used one of God's gifts to bring people to him. In the secular world, celebrating St. Patrick's Day means diving into the Irish culture for 24 hours. People adorn themselves in green clothes and shamrocks. They eat corned beef and cabbage. They drink whiskey, Guinness, and Bailey's Irish cream. Other traditions include dying beer or milk green, and baking cakes with green dye. Parades with floats covered in leprechauns ride down the streets of many large cities across the country, and the city of Chicago, IL even dyes its river green. Catholics who celebrate St. Patrick's Day in terms of it being a feast day do things a bit differently. This holiday falls during the fasting days of Lent. However, this is the one day that Catholics are permitted to break their fast by feasting on meat and drinks - traditionally corned beef, cabbage and potatoes, and celebrating with dancing and singing. Of course, this will all take place after a special Catholic mass in which the story of how St. Patrick converted the people of Ireland in the name of God. Some Catholics are skeptical as to whether or not they should partake in the feasts and festivities of St. Patrick's Day because of how secular this religious festival has become. The Celtic symbols, overindulgence, and profanity that often accompanies this day was created by those who do not know its deep history. This does not meant that Christians should sit on the side lines. It simply means that they must consciously keep themselves grounded in the Catholic roots, and stay true to their religious beliefs as they partake in the celebration that was originally theirs.