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.
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