St. Patrick is one of the best-known Catholic saints among Americans.
Most people know his name, but they don’t know the details that made him a hero in the faith. It has nothing to do with a pint of Guinness nor the famous corned beef. The life of St. Patrick was defined by perseverance and faith.
St. Patrick was originally born in Great Britain toward the end of the fourth century, but he was later held captive by pirates and taken to Ireland, where he was enslaved for over six years. Throughout his imprisonment, Patrick kept a diary that recounts the dramatic growth he experienced in his relationship with God. He remarked that what strengthened his faith more than anything else was simply speaking to God more often: “I prayed in the woods and on the mountain, even before dawn.” No matter the time, place, or circumstance, Patrick would use it as an opportunity to speak to God.
Patrick later escaped slavery and returned to his home country. Within a short time, he returned to Ireland as a priest determined to set people free from sin and to help them experience the love of God. Tradition tells us that he used the image of a shamrock to portray the utter simplicity and grandeur of our God being a communion of three persons. God is relationship, and to be in union with God is the fulfillment of the human heart.
Now more than ever, we need to be reminded of the glue that binds the world, the Church, and our God together: communion. Division is the result of evil in our world. Whether this arises on the global stages of war or in the more personal confines of our homes, we can all benefit from the reminder that God is a relationship and that we are crafted for participation in that relationship. The more we live connected to God, the more fulfilled we become because He made us. Once we get that relationship correct, our other relationships flourish as well.
Despite this, we often forget our need for God. The “Confession of St. Patrick,” written in his own words, highlights how he was moved from separation from God to belief in Him as the most important reality. The saint notes that it was his captivity that opened his eyes to his own unbelief; it was his enslavement in Ireland that forced him to consider the most important things in life.
This is the story of countless saints throughout the ages and many people in our contemporary era. It is often through challenging times in our lives that we recognize that the only thing that can carry us through is God. The trials of life often form the soil for faith to grow.
For this reason, Patrick wrote that God was present to him, even when he wasn’t appreciating faith. He said that God “watched over me before I knew Him, and before I was able to distinguish between good and evil, and guarded me, and comforted me as would a father his son.”
Any parent knows that even when their child is not acting as they should, their love for the child remains. The irony of the waywardness of our children is that we often burn with love for them more when they are not doing as they should. This is because we know what is best for them and we desire them to be who they were made to be.
The language of love and faith is the most critical thing to remember when celebrating St. Patrick. While the Guinness will certainly flow and the parades will be joyous, it is the man who spoke about God’s love and conversion that we should remember the most on March 17. For if we are focused on faith and the fact that we are being called to be greater than we currently are, we will be renewed, like Patrick was. Then we will become beacons of hope like he was in Ireland.
“In the light, therefore, of our faith in the Trinity,” Patrick wrote, “I must make this choice, regardless of danger I must make known the gift of God and everlasting consolation, without fear.” This year on his feast day, let us celebrate the faith of St. Patrick—and be more committed to living ours out in the process.
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