WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — St. Patrick’s Day falls on Sunday this year.
Originally considered a solemn day, it took on a life of its own in the United States. According to Historian Michael Francis, the first record of a St. Patrick’s Day celebration in the United States was in Spain’s national archives, and that’s because it happened in the 1600s in St. Augustin, Florida, which was a Spanish colony at the time.
The holiday became popular among the Irish Diaspora in America. According to the Census Bureau, there are over 30 million people of Irish descent living in the U.S.
St. Patrick’s Day has moved beyond being only an Irish — or even a Catholic — celebration. It’s become part of American culture, but what do we know about the person behind the holiday?
St. Patrick is just one of several Irish saints who played an important role in the history of Catholicism in Ireland. However, we know very little about him, and there are questions on whether he actually existed.
St. Patrick was reportedly born sometime at the end of Roman rule of Britain. He might have been born in Cumbria, in the northern part of England, or possibly even Scotland.
According to the Catholic Encylopedia, he originally came to Ireland as a slave, and it was during his captivity on the then-pagan island that he converted to Christianity. He would eventually escape but would return years later as a missionary.
He was never officially canonized by the Catholic Church, though sainthood during that period was determined on a more local level.
The one feat most often associated with St. Patrick is his driving all the snakes out of Ireland. Today, we know he didn’t do that, but more to the point, that legend may have developed from misinterpretation.
The confusion lies in the word. St. Patrick drove out the serpents, something a bit different from snakes.
Serpent is a broader term, especially when referring to creatures in antiquity. It could also refer to dragons and all manner of similar legendary beasts.
According to reporter Tom Prendiville, who wrote in the Irish Independent, the legend of St. Patrick and the serpent was probably a misreading of ancient text. St. Patrick likely led a group of armed missionaries against a pagan cult that used serpent symbology in their worship.
While there will likely never be a definitive answer as to what is fact or fiction regarding St. Patrick, it’s hard to deny the significance of his influence on Ireland and Catholicism. That influence has also impacted American culture, giving way to celebrations — many involving parades — to iconography like shamrocks and leprechauns.
To learn more about St. Patrick, both in legend and the context of Catholicism, visit Catholic Online.
