"Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me [Psalm 50:15].
Listen to: All Sons and Daughters: "Christ Be All Around Me"
As a born and bred Irish Roman-Catholic, St. Patrick's Day on March 17 still remains the "High Holy Day" of the year. Apart from what it has sadly degenerated to in popular culture, I've come to appreciate the life history of brother Patrick and what he did for Irish history -- and for all of us.
A son of a British aristocrat, Patrick was kidnapped and enslaved in Ireland at age 16. For six years the young aristocrat was forced into a shepherd's role, foreshadowing the path God was to guide him to later. In his twenties, Patrick escaped and managed to return to England. He took up studies for the priesthood. Unbelievably, He felt called to return to the land of his enslavement. There he brought the Good News of Jesus Christ. Patrick’s time in captivity in Ireland had influenced him greatly and he brought many Irish customs to the people he served. He began celebrating Easter with a large bonfire, following the Irish practice of honoring their gods with fire. And he created the Celtic Cross by superimposing the image of a sun onto the cross. He reached people through ways that they knew. He respected them and they in turned came to love him and the God he proclaimed.
No, St. Patrick did not drive the snakes out of Ireland. But he did a more important feat. He drove hatred, anger and fear out of his own heart. The hatred and fear out of his own captivity. The fear of being poorly educated. The anger toward his captivity so he could return to Ireland a freeman with love in his heart instead of spite or the desire of revenge. Because he surrounded to God these experiences to God and allowed God to use them for good, God transformed the man -- transformed a country -- and instead touched many millions of people throughout the course of time.
When we are in the midst of some trial or enslavement, we often cannot see the future good or benefit that will come. Can you imagine a 16 year old stuck up on the isolated mountainside with only the sheep, far from family and friends and the fine life he was used to? Sometimes God takes us out of what we know, what we are used to, places us in the most desolate of situations, in order to equip us for a greater vision, or a new purpose. Sometimes this is transformation is a journey of years that requires patience. However in the greater scheme of life, there isn't an Irish person alive (and who isn't Irish on St. Patrick's Day?) who hasn't been touched by the spiritual legacy of Patrick?
So this Tuesday, honor the the great saint and the Lord he loved not by inebriation or other actions you'd be too ashamed to tell your mother, but by reflecting on your life. What snakes do we need to drive out of our hearts? Are you feeling trapped or exiled in some fashion? Learn from Patrick, who over the time of his captivity, transitioned from a life of privilege to a life of enslavement, to a life of service. He went from captive to liberator. He mastered a negative situation and turned it into an opportunity for change, for growth and transformation. May we each make the same journey well.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.
Christ ever be.