Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I found this stuff on the internet. I really like the story of St. Patrick, and Veggietales just doesn't cut it (although if you haven't seen the Veggie Tale's version of the story of St. Patrick, it is awesome.) So for those of you who are interested in why we celebrate St. Patrick's Day, here it is. (Or you can read it just to appease me and my obsession with Ireland. :0)

Who is St. Patrick Anyway? According to the World Book, St. Patrick lived about 389-461A.D., and is the patron saint of Ireland. Patrick was chiefly responsible for converting the Irish people to Christianity. He became known as the Apostle to the Irish. His Latin name is Patricius.Patrick was born in Britian. His father was a wealthy alderman and a Christian. When Patrick was 16 years old, pirates captured him during a raid and sold him as a slave in Ireland. (pirates! how exciting!) He served as a shepherd of an Irish Chieftain in Ulster. During his captivity, he dedicated himself to Christianity. After 6 years of slavery he escaped and returned home to Britian. As a result of his experiences in Ireland, Patrick became driven by the idea of converting the Irish to Christianity. To prepare himself for the task, he studied in the monastery of Lerins, an island off the coast of France. He also went to Auxerre, France and studied religion under Saint Germanus, a French Bishop. Partly because Patrick's earlier education was inadequate, his religious superiors were reluctant to let him return to Ireland as a missionary. (I guess God had other plans. Maybe those guys hadn't read the Bible, because since when does God use pious educated people to change the world? Not very often.) After Palladius, the first Irish missionary bishop died in 431, Pope Celestine I sent Patrick to Ireland.Patrick began his work where no one had ever preached Christianity. (that's brave) He gained the trust and friendship of several tribal leaders and soon made many converts. He is said to have founded more than 300 churches and baptized more than 120,000 people. (whoa! That's a lot of wet peoples. That's like the entire population of Tallahassee.) He brought clergymen from England and France for his new churches. He succeeded in his mission to Ireland, even though many British clergymen opposed him and the way he organized the churches. (Well, I didn't hear about them helping out any. Isn't that always the way it goes?) Patrick preached in Ireland for the rest of his life. (Rock on!) Several of Patricks writing have survived and serve as the most important sources of information about his work and life. Patrick wrote "Confession", an account of his spiritual developement. In it he justified his mission to Ireland, and expressed his humility and thankfulness that God had called him to serve the Irish. Patrick also wrote a letter to Coroticus, in which he criticized a raid on Ireland conducted by Coroticus, a British chieftain. During the raid, several of Patrick's converts were killed. The letter also reflects Patrick's resentment of the scornful attitude of British clergymen and nobility toward the Irish.Legends about Patrick:Many of the stories about Patrick are based only on legends.One of the best known tales tells how he charmed the snakes of Ireland into the sea so that they drowned. Different tales tell of his standing upon a hill, and using a wooden staff, drove the serpents into the sea, banishing them forever from the shores of Ireland. One legend says that one old snake resisted, but the saint overcame it by cunning. He is said to have made a box and invited the reptile to enter. The snake insisted the box was too small and the discussion became very heated. Finally the snake entered the box to prove he was right, whereupon St Patrick slammed the lid and cast the box into the sea. (There are no snakes in Ireland. How weird is that?) According to another tale, Patrick used a three-leaf shamrock to illustrate the idea of the Trinity. Many people believe the shamrock came to be the traditional symbol of Ireland as a result of this legend. Today, his feast day, March 17th is celebrated as a national holiday in Ireland.St. Patrick also introduced the Roman alphabet and Latin literature into Ireland. After his death, about 461AD, Irish monasteries flourished as centers of learning.Compton's Encyclopedia adds that despite a constant threat to his life, Patrick traveled widely, baptizing, confirming, preaching and building churches and monasteries. Patrick succeeded in converting almost the entire population of the island. His "Epistola" pleads the case of the Christian Irish at the hands of their British conquerors. Patrick's writings have come to be appreciated for their simplicity and humility.
St. Patrick was awesome! That's why it's one of my favorite holidays.