St. Patrick’s Day is here again!
Green beer, shamrocks and leprechauns are all on tap. And what better excuse for a mid-week celebration?
Myths and legends surround St. Patrick.
By now we know St. Patrick didn’t drive snakes from Ireland — there were none to begin with — and lo and behold — corned beef and cabbage isn’t a traditional Irish dish.
Digging a bit into Irish sod unearths a few more surprises.
Who’d have guessed that St. Patrick — this rough, tough fifth century missionary — was one of the first church fathers to condemn slavery?
This was thousands of years before the papacy got the memo. The Vatican didn’t declare slavery immoral until the end of the 19th century.
And St. Patrick’s was one of first church leaders to respect and stand up for women — a mission still being fought today in many arenas.
Thomas Cahill, who wrote “How the Irish Saved Civilization,” tells us Patrick is “actually the first male Christian since Jesus to speak well of women.”
So how did St. Patrick come to be an advocate for women, slaves and the downtrodden?
Born into an aristocratic family — probably in Scotland — Patrick was captured by pirates and sold into slavery at age 16.
Lonely, confused and terrified, Patrick turned to prayer during his captivity. Finally, at age 22, he fled his captors.
After his escape from slavery, Patrick could have returned home to a life of privilege and wealth. Instead he chose to study in Europe and returned to become a missionary in the very country that enslaved him.
The suffering he endured while imprisoned could have plunged him into bitterness and anger. But it did not.
Patrick emerged from slavery with an understanding of what it was like to be mistreated.
Patrick could have remained mired in a bog of resentment after his captivity. But he didn’t.
So let’s take a moment to lift a glass to the Irish missionary who refused to be imprisoned by bitterness — who appreciated the dignity of women and who spoke out against slavery.
Faith and begorra!
Retired psychologist Valerie McCullough and husband Bill have lived in Loveland since 1964 and have raised four daughters. She writes a blog on the Reporter-Herald website. She welcomes readers to share their own experiences or feedback on her column at firstname.lastname@example.org or by responding to her blog.