ST. PATRICK’S DAY

The green holiday is coming up and the leprechauns with their pot of gold are certainly something to look forward to. However, while St. Patrick’s day has a rather joyous tone in our contemporary celebration of the holiday, the background surrounding Saint Patrick – the real person – has tales of tragedy and an influential conclusion.

While Patrick’s date of birth is debated, it’s noted that he lived most of his adult life in the 5th century. Born in Roman-controlled Britain, he came from a Christian family. At the time, modern-day Scotland and Ireland were not part of the Roman Empire and not affected, to the same degree, of Rome’s transition from Latin paganism to Christianity. Despite Patrick’s grandfather being a priest and his father a deacon, he was not a particularly faithful participant in his family’s religion.

At the commonly assumed age of 16, Patrick was kidnapped by Irish pirates, and forced to become a slave. Over his six years of slavery, he began to contemplate his spiritual relationship with Christianity. At age 22, hearing a divine voice, he escaped captivity and was able to sail back to Britain. After reaching home, he began formal training as a priest.

After receiving his priesthood, Patrick returned to Ireland to attempt to convert many of the Irish. Although he faced opposition, he became successful in his conversion of many of the Irish people.

Over the time of his missionary period, many stories were created of Patrick and his exploits in Ireland. Some of the more grounded stories state that he had convinced noble women to become nuns and that he even converted some princes and their fathers to Christianity.  Other stories of his exploits are mythological by nature, claiming that all the snakes in Ireland were banished.

While circumstances involving just how he died, and what year he died, are debated, assigning his date of death as March 17 has generally kept consistent.

Just as the beginning of St. Patrick’s tale starts off with a taste of tragedy, so does the history behind St. Patrick’s Day’s popularity in the United States. In the mid-19th century, Ireland was suffering during what is now called the Great Famine. As a result of mass starvation, many of Ireland’s residents had emigrated to the U.S. to seek more opportunity.

While the Irish formed a subculture who faced difficulties in the developing nation, they eventually commingled with the rest of the American population. This resulted in the integration of Irish culture into the growing U.S. culture – including the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.

It is ironic that St. Patrick’s Day is a celebrated holiday. In modern practice in America, it is a secular holiday with a carefree culture.  However, it has religious roots with serious themes of slavery and kidnapping, before entering the U.S. historical arc with famine and cultural integration.