Saint Patrick was born in Britain around 386 AD. His birth name was not Patrick but Maewyn Succat. As a child, Patrick, or “Maewyn”, was not raised to be very religious, and did not receive much education. However, his life changed when he was captured at the age of 16 by Irish pirates and taken to Ireland. Patrick was then sold into slavery and his job was to tend sheep. During this time, Ireland was not the Catholic nation that we know today. The dominant religions were pagan, such as Druidism. Paganism is a term that is used to describe polytheistic religions, those that worship multiple gods. During his time as a slave in Ireland, Patrick grew more religious and devoted to Christianity.
One night Patrick had a dream, calling him to escape Ireland and showing him the way home. He traveled to the coast of Ireland and convinced a group of sailors to take him with them out of the country. Patrick and his crew sailed for three days and ended up in France. There he began his studies of Christianity and entered into priesthood. Determined to spread his religion to the pagan Ireland, Patrick was ordained as a bishop and was sent to there by the Pope to do so. He created Churches and monasteries and is considered by some to be the founder of Christianity in Ireland. He supposedly died on March 17, 461. Saint Patrick is now the patron saint of Ireland and a nation symbol of the country.
In 1631 the Church established a Feast Day in honor of St. Patrick. St. Patrick’s day was intended to be something very different than what is today. It is celebrated during lent, which meant you could not drink during the holiday. Yes, St. Patrick’s Day was an alcohol free day. The holiday was first celebrated in America in 1737 in Boston in the form of a parade. This is when the holiday took off and started to become what it is today. The first parade in New York City was celebrated in 1762. Since then the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day grew and grew. Irish people used it to show pride in their culture and heritage in a time when they were discriminated against by many Americans.
St. Patrick’s Day was not declared an official holiday in Ireland until 1903. The British parliament also passed a law that closed down Irish pubs for the holiday, which was not repealed until the 1970s. St. Patrick’s day was still seen as a religious holiday in Ireland and less of a day of celebration and pride. This started to change during the 1990s when the Irish Government started a campaign to use St. Patrick’s day as an opportunity to showcase Irish culture and pride in their country and around the world. They want to build a positive image of Ireland.
Today most associate the holiday with the color green. However, that was not always the case. Originally the color was blue. This changed during the Irish Rebellion in 1798. The color blue was used in the British Government and red was the color worn by their troops. The Irish wanted to differentiate themselves from the British so they chose the color green.
Also, why is the Shamrock, or three-leaf clover, a symbol of the holiday? This is because St. Patrick supposedly used it to help the pagans in Ireland understand the Trinity. However, this is most likely legend.
And where do Leprechaun’s fit into all of this? They don’t. They were invented in an Irish story and were somehow lumped together with St. Patrick’s day and Irish culture. Although they are popular symbols of the country and the day, they really don’t have anything to do with it.
Today St. Patrick’s day is celebrated all around the world with massive parades and celebrations. The largest parade is in New York City, but perhaps the city most devoted to the holiday is Chicago. Every St. Patrick’s since 1962, Chicago has been famously dyeing the Chicago River green. St. Patrick’s day went from being a solemn religious occasion to being a worldwide event celebrating Irish culture, heritage and pride.
Article by MoCo Student staff writer Justin LaFontaine of Walter Johnson High School