Have you ever really stopped to think about St. Patrick’s Day? Or do you just put on a green shirt and walk out the door? Chances are that you, like most Americans, don’t really know the story behind St. Patrick or his day.
--Declan Mcmahon
Have you ever really stopped to think about St. Patrick’s Day? Or do you just put on a green shirt and walk out the door? Chances are that you, like most Americans, don’t really know the story behind St. Patrick or his day.
To understand St. Patrick’s Day, you really need to understand St. Patrick.
He was born to a Roman family in Britain, some time in the 5th century. When he was 16, Irish raiders kidnapped him and put him into slavery, at which point he turned to his faith, Christianity, with passion. After six years as an enslaved herdsman, he had a dream that the ship to take him back to Britain was ready, so, in a panic, he escaped, and found passage back to Britain. He suffered a brief recaptivation, and once almost starved, but made it through.
Then, he got a letter from a man named Victoricus, titled “Voice of the Irish,” which was supposedly so moving that it compelled him to go back to Ireland. There, he baptized and confirmed people with speed and utmost passion. Now, I’m sure you’ve heard of a shamrock and know how closely associated it is with St. Patricks Day. The legend goes that he was trying to explain the Holy Trinity, the concept that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all united under one Godhead, to an unbeliever by showing him the three-leaved shamrock, connected to one stalk.
Sadly, there was a lot of bad parts to St. Patrick’s story, that history most of the time brushes over. Upon his return to Ireland he also enslaved multiple Irish unbelievers who followed their own Celtic faith.
St. Patricks Day is celebrated on his date of death, March 17th. It was originally a strictly religious holiday in Ireland, but emigrants to the United States in the mid-18th century turned it into the Irish beer/wearing green holiday it is today.
So how did this annoying pinching part get introduced? Many people don’t appreciate it for this lousy reason, such as 6th grader Trevor Walton who said “It shouldn’t even be a holiday!” In the 18th century, Irish emigrants started pinching people who weren’t wearing green to remind them that if they didn’t wear green they would be pinched by a mischievous leprechaun, who can’t see green.
Many people I interviewed have little to no idea about the story behind St. Patrick’s Day, including sixth-grader Chiara Kovac “I know there was something about slavery, and a shamrock!” or Cecillia Fontaine who said, “Nope. Nuh uh. Not a bit.” Milo Trejo responded, “No! Who does?”
Many holidays including St. Patricks Day have been smoothed around the edges down the years to make them simpler, more festive things. I don’t think that is OK. I think history and originality should shine through, and I encourage you to do your own background research to look deep into holidays and find out some truths.
To understand St. Patrick’s Day, you really need to understand St. Patrick.
He was born to a Roman family in Britain, some time in the 5th century. When he was 16, Irish raiders kidnapped him and put him into slavery, at which point he turned to his faith, Christianity, with passion. After six years as an enslaved herdsman, he had a dream that the ship to take him back to Britain was ready, so, in a panic, he escaped, and found passage back to Britain. He suffered a brief recaptivation, and once almost starved, but made it through.
Then, he got a letter from a man named Victoricus, titled “Voice of the Irish,” which was supposedly so moving that it compelled him to go back to Ireland. There, he baptized and confirmed people with speed and utmost passion. Now, I’m sure you’ve heard of a shamrock and know how closely associated it is with St. Patricks Day. The legend goes that he was trying to explain the Holy Trinity, the concept that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all united under one Godhead, to an unbeliever by showing him the three-leaved shamrock, connected to one stalk.
Sadly, there was a lot of bad parts to St. Patrick’s story, that history most of the time brushes over. Upon his return to Ireland he also enslaved multiple Irish unbelievers who followed their own Celtic faith.
St. Patricks Day is celebrated on his date of death, March 17th. It was originally a strictly religious holiday in Ireland, but emigrants to the United States in the mid-18th century turned it into the Irish beer/wearing green holiday it is today.
So how did this annoying pinching part get introduced? Many people don’t appreciate it for this lousy reason, such as 6th grader Trevor Walton who said “It shouldn’t even be a holiday!” In the 18th century, Irish emigrants started pinching people who weren’t wearing green to remind them that if they didn’t wear green they would be pinched by a mischievous leprechaun, who can’t see green.
Many people I interviewed have little to no idea about the story behind St. Patrick’s Day, including sixth-grader Chiara Kovac “I know there was something about slavery, and a shamrock!” or Cecillia Fontaine who said, “Nope. Nuh uh. Not a bit.” Milo Trejo responded, “No! Who does?”
Many holidays including St. Patricks Day have been smoothed around the edges down the years to make them simpler, more festive things. I don’t think that is OK. I think history and originality should shine through, and I encourage you to do your own background research to look deep into holidays and find out some truths.
