For over 1000 years, the life and contributions of St. Patrick have been celebrated across Ireland on March 17th. Over the years, 
however, this religious holiday has developed into a worldwide celebration of the Irish people and their culture complete with parades, dancing, food, lots of laughter and perhaps even a pint or two of “gargle” [beer.]
It also holds several distinctions in the “Guinness Book of World Records.” including being considered the “Friendliest Day of the Year.”
But before we go off to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day 2025 with a plate of corned beef and cabbage, let’s take a few minutes to look back at the man behind the celebration.
Who was St. Patrick?
While many specifics of Patrick’s early life have never been documented, a review of sources such as the Encyclopedia Brittanica and History.com provided consistent information of many significant events in his life.
First, St. Patrick wasn’t Irish. He was born in England circa 386 AD. Both his father and his grandfather were members of the clergy, a vocation that Patrick would later follow for most of his adult life.
At sixteen, Patrick was kidnapped by Irish raiders, i.e. “slave catchers” and brought to Ireland where he was sold into slavery. His master was a member of the Druids, which were the religious leaders and scholars of Celtic society and who held major religious influence of Ireland at the time. It was during his six years of enslavement that Patrick became deeply devoted to Christianity. It was also undoubtedly where the seeds were first planted of his goal to someday convert Ireland to Christianity.
It is said that the idea of escaping enslavement came to Patrick in a dream – a dream that he would make come true by convincing some sailors to help him escape. After a harrowing month-long journey Patrick was reunited with his family in England.
Free again, Patrick entered the priesthood and began his formal religious training, never losing sight of his desire to convert the people in Ireland to Christianity. The opportunity to do just that came when the Pope was said to have chosen Patrick to go to Ireland to tend to needs of the existing Christians there and to covert others to Christianity.
Because he understood Irish culture, Patrick would incorporate it in his Christian teachings to create better understanding. For example, let’s take a plant that grew abundantly in Ireland at the time – the shamrock. The Druids considered the shamrock to be a sacred plant with magical powers and spiritual insight. Patrick, in turn, used the shamrock with its three pedals to demonstrate the Christian concept of the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
According to the Saint Patrick Academy, Patrick lived, traveled, worked, and taught all throughout Ireland for over 40 years. By the time of his death on March 17th, Patrick was credited with forming over 300 churches and baptizing over 100,000 Irish people.
As a result, St. Patrick was bestowed with the honor of being named the
Patron Saint of Ireland.
