Saint Patrick 1600 Years Later

The Irish came over to the United States in huge numbers in the mid 1800's during and after the famine. Irish priests followed in an effort to care for the souls of those who left. Most of the immigrants had lived in Irish rural settings with laws that suppressed Catholic faith practice; many of the immigrants were not well schooled in their own faith. Met here with extreme prejudice like most groups of poor uneducated immigrants, the Irish flocked together and worked hard to become Americans.

Many got a jump start to citizenship by joining in the Civil War—signing up literally right off the boat. Many of the Irish had a propensity towards tough physical labor and joined the railroads. Taking these tough jobs earned the Irish some much needed respect, but they still needed to band together to get a footing in their new home. The one occupation most of the Irish seemed to avoid was farming, having just come from the failed potato patches that their families had “leased.”

It’s pretty certain that Saint Patrick did not drive out the snakes from Ireland. But it is fairly certain that the faith of the Irish was God’s gift carried over by Saint Patrick and many others in the centuries following his mission. Patrick’s gift helped hold the Irish together in the toughest of times under the rule of the English and helped those post-famine Americans in the tenements of New York, Boston and other cities. While we, both Irish and non-Irish alike, may hold up a glass to celebrate the day, I’d like to make my own toast to the Irish priests and sisters who helped “civilize” many of us both Irish and Irish alike in the path of Saint Patrick. May the generosity and sacrifice of Saint Patrick and these good people live on another 1600 years.

Saint Patrick's Breastplate

I love Saint Patrick's Breastplate because it is a dramatic, kind of desperate prayer to match the life of the great Saint. The famous prayer commonly called Saint Patrick’s Breastplate, traditionally attributed to him, is beautiful, yet simply written. The prayer does not appear in Patrick’s meager writings, but it has been handed down over the centuries and can be found in many different variations today. It speaks for those of us today who see and seek divine strength and intervention in daily life. A small part of the prayer follows:

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of sun
Brilliance of moon
Splendor of fire
Speed of lightning
Swiftness of wind
Depth of sea
Stability of earth
Firmness of rock.
I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s host to secure me
against snares of devils
against temptations of vices
against inclinations of nature
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear,
alone and in a crowd.

Approaching Saint Patrick's Day

It is my view that Saint Patrick should be appreciated for his courage, his simplicity and his incredible legacy of success. Kidnapped as a young man from Roman Britain, Patrick was desperately afraid of imminent death as he literally "slaved" away as a shepherd in the fields of Ireland as a young captive. His famous prayer is not some delicate little verse, but a heartfelt almost desperate appeal to God for protection--he didn't just ask for a helping hand, he wanted to be surrounded by Christ as he went about his business. And Patrick did go about his business. After reaching safety at home following years in captivity, he decided that he must go back to face the pagan Irish to convert them.

Unlike the learned Saint Augustine who wrote the foundational work on the Trinity, Saint Patrick was said to have explained it simply to his pagan Irish audience using a clover. It worked. Patrick's life is surrounded in rich traditional stories although there is little we know with certainty. We do know that Patrick and many brave priests that followed him were able to convert the Irish without bloodshed. We also know that fifteen hundred years after Patrick, his legacy spread throughout the United States. Following the almost unfathomable exodus of Irish from their homeland to a new home in North America, the Irish Priests and Sisters followed to make a superb mark on our society here by throwing themselves into their work with the same zeal and courage as Saint Patrick himself.