See Picture of St Patrick

IMPORTANT DATES

ST. PATRICK'S LIFE STORY - IMPORTANT DATES

387 - St. Patrick is born
403 - St. Patrick is taken as a slave to Ireland
409 - St. Patrick escapes to Gaul and returns home
412 - St. Patrick travels on a pilgrimage around Gaul
417 - St. Patrick joins a monastery in Gaul at Auxerre under St. Gemanus
432 - St. Patrick begins his mission to Ireland
441 - St. Patrick receives the blessing of Pope St. Leo the Great
444 - St. Patrick sets up Armagh as the main see of Ireland
461 - St. Patrick dies

SONGS

Saint Patrick's Song (in "Alive 0 2", p.186)
St. Patrick's Breastplate - "Christ be Beside Me" ("Alive 0 3" p.169/339)

STORIES ABOUT ST. PATRICK

A Slave

" I was sixteen years old when I was taken a slave with thousands of others to Ireland. I did not know the true God. A lot of people had turned away from God. It was as a slave that I met God. He watched over me, protected me and comforted me as a father would his son. I thank God for correcting me. I honour and praise his wonders before the whole world"

Escape from Slavery

"When I was in Ireland I looked after herds every day and night. I prayed a lot and I grew to know and love God. I would pray a hundred prayers every day and the same number at night, in the woods, in the mountains, in snow, frost, rain and all types of weather. I was happy to be with God. One night when I was asleep I heard a voice telling me to get up and go to a ship which was waiting from me two hundred miles away. On the journey the weather got worse. The men on the ship were afraid so I told them to pray to God and we were saved".

The call of the Irish

"A few years later, I was in Britain with my relations who loved me. One night I saw a vision of a man called Victor who came to me from Ireland with a huge number of letters. I opened the first letter and I read the words "The voice of the Irish ...... I could hear the voices of people near the Western Sea. They shouted with one voice "We ask you, young man, come and walk among us once more". I was cut to the very heart and could not read any more. I woke up and decided to go back and tell them about God"

The Easter Fire

The High King of Ireland lived in Tara with his court and the druids. On the day before Easter Sunday he ordered that all fires were to be put out until he would light the great fire to honour the pagan gods.

On the same day St. Patrick arrived at Slane and went up the hill at the other side the valley. St. Patrick lit the Easter fire to remember that Jesus had risen from the dead. The Druids were very annoyed and said to the King "Unless this fire is put out tonight it will never be put out in this land". Many efforts were made to put out St. Patrick's fire but it could not be put out. The next day Patrick arrived before the high king at Tara and eventually the king gave permission for Patrick to preach the Gospel.

A story from Munster

He went to the seat of the king at Cashel of the Kings. The prince, Aengus, wanted to be baptised. St. Patrick had his bishop's staff with him and stuck it in the ground. It went through Aengus' foot and he began to bleed, but he said nothing. At the end of the Baptism St. Patrick noticed the blood and asked him why he had kept quiet. Aengus said he thought it was all part of the ceremony. St. Patrick was very impressed and drew a cross with his staff on the prince's shield. He said it would be the sign of many triumphs.

REFERENCES

"Alive 0 2" pp. 182-186
"The Confessions of St. Patrick" ed. JFX O'Brien Sj, Messenger Publ., Dublin
"Saint Patrick Writes" - Bishop Joseph Duffy DD, Messenger Publ., Dublin
"Devotion to St. Patrick" - Richard Cardinal Cushing, 1982, Daughters of St. Paul, Boston MA, USA

TO DO

1. Investigate sites associated with St. Patrick in your area.
2. Investigate these web sites:

http://donabate.irishchurch.net/
http://skerries.dublindiocese.ie/
www.jubileeireland.com
www.procathedral.ie
www.cyc.ie
www.vatican.va
www.dublindiocese.ie
www.iol.ie/~ycw/
indigo.ie/-nc3m/staudeons/
www.catholic.net
www.churchsurf.com
www.catholic-forum.com/saints/
See list of Dublin Web Parishes here

PRAYER

God our Father, you sent Saint Patrick to preach your glory to the people of Ireland. By the help of his prayers, may all Christians proclaim your love to all people. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.