It is by sheer happenstance that I get to write on my patron saint’s feast day. I couldn’t be happier.
As is the case with many of our venerable saints, hard facts about him are scarce, and legends abound. No one is sure about the date of his birth, except that it was probably at the end of the 4th century or the beginning of the 5th. Surprisingly, perhaps, he isn’t an “official saint,” having lived before the Church developed its formal canonization process.
Most commentators agree that Patrick – the personification of all things Irish – was not native-born. He is often described as Romano-British or Romano-Gallic. Either way, he was brought to Ireland as a slave and, during his six years of captivity, learned the Irish language. Remarkably, after becoming a priest, he voluntarily returned and spent the rest of his life serving the people who had taken him by force from his home.
Despite strong evidence of an earlier Christian presence in Ireland, he is generally credited with introducing the faith and he became the first bishop of Armagh [which, despite Dublin’s importance these days, is still the prelature.]
The most famous prayer attributed to him is St. Patrick’s Breastplate. Too long to cite in full, I want to share with you my favorite lines:
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.