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Real History Matters: The Prophecy of St Patrick’s Coming to the Irish
St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland and today is his day. The traditional date of arrival to my country’s shores of the man who brought Christianity to the Irish and in doing changed the course of Ireland’s destiny and Europes’ too. Within a hundred years a barren pagan wasteland trapped in darkness was to become a place where many great European saints went to endow themselves with knowledge and the Christian heritage.
We know that he definately existed outside of secondary sources as we have two of his own written works which testify to this – one an autobiography called the Confessions, the second a letter to the soldiers of Coroticus. So ignore the naysayers today in online posts or the traditional media who state he never existed. He may not have converted the whole island, or been the first Christian here but he was the most important. That is the honest truth.
Of course there are also many legends about St. Patrick which is not surprising given that he came to the people who invented a form of storytelling, and who placed a great deal of stature on oral traditions. Before St. Patrick Ireland did not have writing. The language of the Irish people had not even been condensed into word. Nevertheless that is not to say that some of these traditions have no weight. After all history is often based simply on stories which cannot rely on physical or written evidence but seek local knowledge or tradition.
One of the oldest traditions preserved in Ireland is the following story recorded in one of the great ancient books of Ireland – the Book of Armagh which dates to within 200 years of St. Patrick’s life. It is one of the oldest traditional stories about St. Patrick, based not on Christian hagiographers but likely from the words of pagan druids. The ones who St. Patrick fought all his life.
“It is said that, three years before St. Patrick’s apostolic visit to Ireland, the druids of King Laeghairé predicted the event to their master as an impending calamity. The names of the druids were Lochia and Luchat Mael; their prophecy runs thus:—
“A Tailcenn will come over the raging sea,
With his perforated garment, his crook-headed staff,
With his table at the cast end of his house,
And all his people will answer ‘Amen, Amen.'”
The allusions are intriguing. The pagan druids are referring to the priestly vestments, the altar at the east end of the church, and the pastoral staff, the words of priest are sufficiently obvious, and easily explained. Together these describe the Catholic Christian tradition. The prophecy is quoted by Macutenius, and quoted again from him by Probus; but the original is in one of the most ancient and authentic Irish MSS., the Book of Armagh.
It could be fake, written hundreds of years later by imaginative monks with little to do. But I doubt it. There is something in it that screams real to me.
St. Patrick is in many respects a mix of two biblical figures – Moses and St. Paul. St. Paul had a similar experience to St. Patrick of being called across the sea to pagans (in Macedonia) by an angel. Moses was the Jewish deliverer of Israel who freed them from pagan enslavement. St. Patrick modelled himself on Moses, and for the Irish he was a deliverer. He rescued Ireland from pagan darkness and the evil of the druids.
Happy St. Patrick Day Ricochet people.
PS: Ireland could do with another St. Patrick now.
Have a great day. God bless you all. Thanks too for the comments. Slainte Ricochet.
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We’d send him to you if we could find him. Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Paddy.
Happy St. Paddy’s Day, Patrick.
Or Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Paddy.
Whichever way you want to play it.
Paddy, what if that is you? If it was, how would you go about the revival of Catholic culture in Ireland? Don’t dismiss this too quickly. Maybe the only difference between you and St. Patrick is that he listened to the same call and acted on it.
Sometimes Ive wondered the same Michael. Although I do not feel my faith is up to the challange of rescuing Ireland from its current nihilistic secular hedonistic paganism lite. My faith is strong and then very weak. I wonder though and pray that God will call me to do great things.
Like St. Francis, start with something small.
A blessed name-day [St. Patrick’s Day], Paddy! (And to all who claim him this day!)
As a Catholic in the archdiocese of NY, the patron saint of which is St. Patrick, I and my family always welcome his feast day as an opportunity to relax our Lenten fast!
It’s also my second son’s birthday. Happy 18th Maxi!
My second son’s birthday, too. Except today is Bill’s 31st.
Seawriter
My contribution. St. Patrick’s Cathedral in NYC, taken on our 2006 trip. Best wishes to all.
Bishop Wilton Gregory (Archbishop of Atlanta) granted the traditional dispensation here, too. (-:
Padraig, Patrick, the same man no matter how you spell it.
Oh how I wish there were a way to wave a magic wand today and get rid of all the four-leaf clovers that people seem to think have something to do with St. Patrick or Ireland…
GAHHHHH!!!!!
Please tell me each has Patrick as a middle name.
Sorry, my son is Max Francis. Named for two great-grandfathers. His Confirmation patron saint was Patrick, though.
Irish Catholic culture (according to Angela’s Ashes) is about being Catholic while being poor and oppressed and marginalized. According to the book, it’s hard to imagine being Irish with the English leaving and good economy.
It seems to me, a very different thing to love the Christ G-d without suffering.
Be wary of Frank McCourt Henry the guy was a proven liar who deliberately made up stuff in Angela’s Ashes. The famous actor Richard Harris said this and he knew area well. As did one of Ireland’s good journalists Kevin Myers.
Angela’s Ashes is a compelling read, but it’s a novel dressed up as a memoir.
Nope. His middle name is my first name. His first name is his maternal grandfather’s first name. My first name is my maternal grandfather’s first name and my middle name is my father’s first name. It is a tradition in my family.
Seawriter
Huh. I never thought that the book was memoir. I’m listening to it on audible and I thought it was just some guy’s interpretation of Irish life.
Also, who in G-d’s name ever trusts an interesting story told by an Irishman?
My wife is Patricia and my son’s middle name is Patrick. Name days (feast day of the saint one is named after) are a big thing in France, so my wife has always had an extra reason to celebrate.
Frank McCourt’s writing was always too cynical and dark for me. Christy Brown taught me a lot with a memoir, novels, and poetry.
My third son’s middle name is John, which is the masculinized version of Quilter’s first name. Name days are a big thing in the Orthodox church, too, although it is generally the first name that gets the name day treatment.
Seawriter
Christy Brown, in case folks don’t know, was the writer who was portrayed on the big screen by Daniel Day Lewis in the movie My Left Foot.
Yup…It’s not a “Quaternity” after all, is it? :-)
Have you ever seen St. Patrick’s Bad Analogies? It’s a tradition in our house:
Paddy,
Actually, this is the first version of the song I ever heard.
I’m terribly confused.
Regards,
Jim
Exactly. It’s a wonderful book.
I bet you can’t say that fast! ;-)
Here’s to you Paddy! Sláinte!