The Origin of St. Patrick's Day

Maewyn Succat was born in Britain back in the 4th century in the year 387.  He was born in Dumbarton, Scotland which was then under Roman control.  When he was sixteen years old, he was captured by raiders and taken to Ireland and sold into slavery. Being raised by a father who was a church deacon, he would pray for guidance.  He claimed that one day God answered him and told him to escape and go to the coastline where there, he found a ship.  He was able to board and returned to home to Britain.  Having become a true believer in God, he studied under the church in France and became a priest, then a bishop.  It was then he took the name of Patrick.

He returned to Ireland around 432, only this time to teach the word of God as a bishop to the church.  One of his most famous teaching methods to the pagans was that of using a shamrock to represent the trinity.  Each of the three leaves of the shamrock representing The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Through his teachings, Christianity became widespread across Ireland.

The Irish Clover or "Shamrock" was used by then, Bishop Patrick to teach the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish

St. Patrick passed away on March 17, 461.  He was followed by many more evangelists to the island of Ireland, but he became a legend and was considered the primary man responsible for Christianity's existence in that country.  As the celebration of his life on March 17 gained more popularity, it became widespread across all of Ireland.  Celebrations began around the 17th century when Irish Christians would hold a feast in honor of Patrick. After Patrick was made a Patron Saint of Ireland, it became a national holiday and in the 1600's it was officially added to the Catholic Church calendar as a holy day of obligation.

St. Patrick was originally named Maewyn Succat and was born in what is now Scotland

Over the years, St. Patrick's Day became more of a celebration of Irish ancestry and pride.  The phrase "Erin Go Braugh" which is commonly used on St. Patrick's Day, is loosely translated as "Ireland Forever".  Green was not always the color associated with St. Patrick's Day.  Early on, blue was used in celebrations.  With the association of the shamrock with St. Patrick's teachings, eventually the color green and the shamrock symbol itself became mostly used in the celebrations.

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