Known as the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick's doings are famous throughout the many countries of the world. There are several legends that surround him and how he spread the religion of Christianity all over Ireland. One of the most famous feats he is given credit for is driving all of the snakes out of Ireland into the sea. While there is no one else in Celtic myth that has claimed to have done this, the climate of Ireland probably has more to do with the lack of a snake population rather than Saint Patrick's prayers. Since Saint Patrick lived during a time when documentation was not widespread, there are several stories and legends which may or may not be true, and some information on Saint Patrick is more reliable than others. There are only two surviving records of Saint Patrick's life, one of which is his own autobiographical confession.
The birth date of Saint Patrick is not officially known, but it is speculated to have been sometime in the early 5th century. He was born in Britain, and given the name Succat, which means "warlike". He was later baptized with the name Patricius, meaning "noble", hence the Christian name Patrick. His father, deacon Calpurnius, was a prosperous landowner and tax collector, in the village of Bannavem Taburniae. It was here in his father's villa that Saint Patrick grew up until the age of sixteen (some sources say ten, but in his confession he states that he was in fact 16), when he was taken prisoner and enslaved.
The Irish King, Niall of the Nine Hostages, had raided Britain and taken Saint Patrick hostage. He was then sold as a slave and forced to tend sheep on the mountain of Slemish. His enslavement lasted about six years, and it was during this time period in his life that Saint Patrick realized that although he did not have faith in God, He still watched over him and took pity on his ignorance. Saint Patrick believed that in order to repay God for His pity on him, he must "confess his wonders before every nation under heaven."(1) One night after his day of tending to the sheep, Saint Patrick heard a voice that told him that he would soon be going back to his home country, and a few days later the voice came back and told him that his ship was ready to take him. Saint Patrick escaped the mountain where he had tended to sheep and traveled 200 miles to an unknown area where he had never been before. He believed he was guided there by God, since he had no idea where he was going, and a ship manned by men whom he saw as barbarians, allowed him to travel with them as they set sail out to sea.
On this voyage to Gaul, Saint Patrick had his first experience in influencing others about Christianity. It was a three day voyage to Gaul, and when the ship arrived there was no food in the city because it had been raided by Germanic tribes. Saint Patrick told the captain of the vessel that if he and his crew took faith in the Catholic God, that they would be fed and their starvation would end. When the entire crew began to pray, they were over ran by a herd of hogs. The crew began to capture and slaughter the hogs, and their hunger was cured.
Once back in his native land after several more years, saint Patrick had yet another vision. He was visited in his dreams by Victoricus, a man he had known while he was enslaved in Eirin. Victoricus handed him a letter which was entitled, "The Voice of the Irish" and then Saint Patrick heard the voices of a crowd calling him back to Eirin. He then travelled to Gaul once again to study to become a priest and achieved the rank of bishop. While in Gaul before leaving to go to Eirin, Saint Patrick confessed to a friend a sin that he committed when he was 15 years old in order to receive forgiveness. The nature of his sin is unknown, but given his age of 15 and the time period, it is speculated that the sin may have been murder according to some sources. His confession later caused problems for him when the British Bishops unsuccessfully attempted to remove him from his mission in Ireland.
Saint Patrick was sent to Eirin to replace Saint Palladius, who was the first bishop sent to Eirin to spread the word of the Catholic Church. Saint Patrick landed in Stanford Lough around the year 432 A.D. He travelled to the Kingdom of Ard Marcha and laid the foundations for the Catholic faith. He then travelled to Saul, where he established his first church. Since Saint Patrick had a Celtic background, it was better received by the people of Ireland than the bishops who preceded him, but he still had an enormous task ahead of him.
In order for Saint Patrick to get the different King's of Ireland to believe in Christianity, he had to overcome the King's belief in Druidism. The Druids served as the King's wise men, and counciled them on decisions regarding the governing of their kingdom. The Druids often served as the priests of the Celtic religion. Saint Patrick used some of the Gaelic people's beliefs to his advantage while trying to convert them to Christianity. The Gaelic people believed that the number three, nine, and thirty-three where magical. Saint Patrick used this in conjunction with his teachings of the Holy Trinity the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Saint Patrick's honesty and strong faith gained the respect of the Irish people, and the conversion of Ireland to a Catholic country began to take place.
In 438 A.D. Saint Patrick was appointed to a committee by High King Leogaire UiNiall to revise and write the civil law of Ireland. These laws were known as Brehons Law. The committee consisted of nine persons, three who were catholic, three who were schooled in law, and three who were Kings, Leogaire UiNiall, Dara (King of Ulster), and Corc (King of Munster). By being appointed to such a committee, it showed that Saint Patrick had truly earned the respect of the Irish, and there significance is tremendous as these set of laws laid the foundation for future law governing documents such as the Magna Carta of Great Britain and the Constitution of the United States of America. By participating in writing these laws, Saint Patrick was able to interject Christian principles into laws which would govern Ireland for the next 1500 years.
What was truly remarkable about Saint Patrick's achievement in converting Ireland to the Catholic faith, is that he did it without bloodshed. He did not have to sacrifice himself as a martyr, nor anyone else for that matter, which was common for the times when introducing a new religion or idea to a large number of people. He instead used what was called Green Martyrdom which entailed three phases. The first phase was to leave society and become a hermit. The second was to be baptized as a new convert, and third was to assemble twelve apostles to construct and found a church. If they were able to complete these tasks, they were rewarded by being claimed a Saint upon their death.
Saint Patrick devoted approximately 40 years of his life to trying to convert Ireland to Catholicism. It is quite obvious that he was successful in his mission that set forth to accomplish. There are several legends that are associated with him, like the driving all the snakes out of Ireland, which was mentioned earlier, but there are others which may have some basis of truth. It was said that Saint Patrick used the three leaf clover as a learning instrument in explaining the Holy Trinity. Each leaf represented a different part and the stem of the clover represented all of them being united together under one god. This may be true, but there is no official documentation confirming or refuting this information. It was also fabled that Saint Patrick, in an effort to diminish the Druid's influence on the Celts, burned the Druidic books. Since the Druids passed down their beliefs verbally and only documented laws and judgements, it is very difficult to believe that Saint Patrick did this during his mission.
Saint Patrick died on March 17, 461, but not before significantly influencing the Irish. He converted an entire country to a new religion, a country which kidnapped him from his parents and enslaved him for six years. This act alone signifies the major principle of forgiveness in the Catholic faith. By the time of his death, Saint Patrick was more than well respected throughout Ireland. His funeral wake lasted 12 nights, which was the maximum time allowed by Druidic rituals for people who achieved high status and respect during their lifetime. On the day of his death, Saint Patrick was officially declared a Saint.
Today, the actions of Saint Patrick are still honored all around the world on the day of his death. His life has marked its place in history for an eternity. Celebrations on Saint Patrick's Day in the United States include parades in major cities, the largest which is in New York City, the wearing of green for good luck, finding four leaf clovers, and the serving of green beer in almost every pub in America. While all of these things may have some relevance to Saint Patrick or no relevance at all, his lives and accomplishments are honored on the day of his death. A day where everyone is considered to be Irish.
1. Taken from Saint Patrick's autobiographical confession.