Saint Patrick’s Day: who was the saint who evangelized Ireland and why it’s celebrated on March 17

Every March 17, Saint Patrick’s Day is celebrated., the patron saint of Ireland. Originally celebrated with church services and parties, it became a secular celebration of Irish culture from the 1700s. Towns with large Irish immigrant communities were the first to hold parades and who have transformed the myth into an internationally recognized event.

The city of Boston held its first parade in 1737 and new York I would do it 25 years later. It is currently a day that is commemorated nationally in the United States, although in other parts of the world where there are Irish communities, it is common for small parades or celebrations to take place as well.

In Argentine cities, the party is about 20 years old and was born in the first Irish pubs located in the lower part of Buenos Aires. Later, with the rise of craft breweries, it spread to other areas of the city. Like other cities and provincial capitals. In any case, the predominance the color green and the trefoil as the emblem of the saint.

the two patricians

Patrick’s story is told by Irish scholar TF O’Rahilly. This historian proposed “theory of the two patricians” in which he suggests that many traditions later linked to Saint Patrick actually referred to a Palladius that he was sent by Pope Celestine I as the first bishop of the Christians of Ireland in 430 and worked in this region until 441, when he died without being able to complete his work of evangelization.

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The other patrician is a certain Padraig, which in Latin would be translated as Patricius. Over the centuries, the two biographies merged into one.

Padraig was born around the year 389 and died in 461. He was of Romano-Breton origin. His father Calpurnio was a deacon and an officer in the Roman army; his mother Conchessa was a niece of Saint Martin of Tours. His grandfather had been a priest: at that time the law of priestly celibacy was not yet imposed throughout the West.. His life will be related in a Confessio.

Padraig was born in Bannaven of Taberniae. Scholars suggest it could be in Dumbarton or Ravenglass, in Britain or some part of Britain or Scotland. Some authors report that he was captured at the age of 16 with two women, Darerca and Lupidawho her sisters were, but apparently this sisterhood was due to the fact that they were Christians and not related by blood.

He was taken to Silva Flocuti, i.e. the “Forest of Flocut”, located near the “Western Sea” and worked as a shepherd for Miliue of Antrim (also known as Miliuc), who sent him to take care of the herd in the nearby valley. of Braid, for 6 years.

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Writer Thomas Cahill describes his condition: “The life of a slave herder was an unhappy life. Torn from civilization, Patricio (he had already changed his name to the Latin translation) had as his only protector a man who did not place much importance on his own life, let alone that of others. The work of these shepherds was bitterly lonely, they spent months alone in the hills, the occasional contact they might have made more difficult…. Like many others in intolerable circumstances, he began to pray. He had never paid attention to the teachings of his religion, he had never believed in God, and he found priests ridiculous, but now there was no one to turn to except the God of his fathers.”

There he learned to speak Irish. He decided to run away and walked for several days to a possible port between Bantry and Wexford, where he found a ship whose captain, after having admitted it and after three days of navigation, reached its destination, which would be the island of Saint-Honorat. There he was baptized and began his path to the priesthood. Later he moved to Auxerre for fifteen more years where he met Bishop San Germán de Auxerre.

Patrick on his way to Ireland

Patrick traveled to Rome and Pope Celestine I, around the year 423, he sent him to Ireland to preach the word of God. Then he was ordained the second bishop of Ireland and left for these lands to complete the work of Palladio (the first patrician). VS

When he landed (probably in Wicklow) the people were so hostile that they immediately headed north. Patrick spoke Irish and knew their beliefs from his years in captivity. This is how he was able to do his work of evangelization.

The Irish bishop knew well that in this region people believed in the ancestral goddesses who were: Eriu, Fodla and Banba. They were the three facets of the spirit of the earth. Also another deity the goddess Brigid was depicted as three sisters who personify the vital forces: healing, creativity and productivity.

Patricio incorporates clover into his evangelism because of his knowledge of the Irish. In this way, it was easier for him to explain the gospel in familiar terms: “the Trinity is like the three leaves of a clover forming one”. The shamrock has become the symbol of Ireland and green its national colour. Several centuries later, they are the two symbols on which the celebration in the streets of cities around the world is based.

Patrick’s Miracle

A miracle is also attributed to him. The story goes that he struck his stick against the earth and all the snakes that inhabited the island went to the sea and never returned. This is how his pictures represent him with these reptiles at their feet. However, never these types of animals in Ireland. Which is supposed to represent his work to banish paganism from the island.

In 440 Patrick embarked on the special task of converting Ulster. Four years later, Daire, the lord of the district, gave him the choice of any site in his territory that he deemed suitable for his religious purposes.

Patrick chose the hill on which stands the old cathedral of Armagh. From Ulster, Saint Patrick probably went to Meta to consolidate evangelization and from there he continued his way through Leinster with two companions: Auxilius and Iserninus.

Already at the end of his days Patrick had a vision. He saw all of Ireland lit up with the brightest rays of divine faith and an angel said to him, “The light you lit will never go out”.

Patrick’s death

This bishop, evangelizer of Ireland, died on March 17, 493. Some ancient chronicles report that for several days the light of heaven shone around his deathbed and that he was kept awake for several days without his body breaking down.

His remains were buried in the fort of Saul. The current Downpatrick Cathedral stands next to the tomb of Saint Patrick. The temple was completed only in the 19th century. His grave is marked by a simple stone next to the church.

And how does the beer arrive at the festivities? Ireland is one of the places where the most beer is consumed. One of the old restrictions of Lent was not to drink alcoholic beverages during this time. Beer was therefore prohibited during this particular period in anticipation of Easter.

Because Saint Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, it is a public holiday and therefore abstinence is broken on this day and drinking is permitted. After the church services, the pubs opened and the Irish spent many hours toasting.

Then, over time, the Irish were one of the most important migratory streams to the United States, especially to New York. In this town they built St. Patrick’s Cathedral and they took their traditional feast there.

New York, center of the festivities

In 1762, the first “parade” was held for Saint Patrick’s Day, or St. Patrick’s Day At New York. Immigrants gathered every March 17 to remember their land, dressing in green and singing songs typical of the Emerald Isle. The Saint-Patrick cathedral that we know today did not exist, and the “parade” was only a march made by Irish people, singing ancestral songs of their region.

In 1809 the foundation stone was laid for the old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which would be inaugurated in 1815 as the tallest church in the city at that time. The cathedral has become the protagonist of religious life in the region and scene of the annual parade in front of the temple after mass.

In 1866, this first temple was burnt down and it was decided to build the new Midtown Cathedral on the current location. The old cathedral is rebuilt and becomes a parish.

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