The Story and History of Saint Patrick The story and history of Saint Patrick.

Patrick, or Patricius, was believed to h ave been born in Britain c387, near the English border with Scotland. His parent s, Calpurnius and Conchessa, were wealthy Roman nobles. His father Calpurnius wa s a Decurion, a cavalry officer in command of a troop of thirty soldiers, in the army of the Roman Empire. Calpurnius was sent to Britain to help to quell the a ttacks from the Picts of Scotland and the Celts of Ireland. Calpurnius was a Chr istian, as in 380 the Roman Emperor Theodosius I (r.379 to 395) had proclaimed C hristianity as the sole religion of the Roman Empire. Patrick was therefore rais ed in the Christian faith. At the age of fourteen Patrick was captured during a Celtic raiding party and taken to Ireland. He was a slave of the Irish and force d to herd and tend sheep. He was a slave for the next six years where he learned the language of the Irish and about their customs and religion. The Irish adher ed to the religion of the Druids, whose symbol was the Serpent or Snake of Wisdo m. Patrick escaped from Ireland and returned to Britain and re-joined his family . He undertook studies to become a priest, visiting several monasteries in Europ e, and was ordained by St. Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre. He was appointed as a Bishop and due to his experiences in Ireland, and his knowledge of the Irish p eople and the Druids , he was appointed by Pope St. Celestine I to evangelize in Ireland. Patrick knew how important the Druids were and made every effort top d ecrease their power and hold over the Irish people. Hundreds of soldiers support ed Saint Patrick to ensure the conversion of Ireland. Churches were built in the sacred places used by the Druids. Druid teachers and wise men were killed and s o were thousands of their followers. The Druids were defeated. Saint Patrick had converted Ireland to Christianity in 33 years. Saint Patrick died in 464 at Sau l, a small village in County Down in Northern Ireland situated about 2 miles fro m Downpatrick. The Truth About St. Patrick L. Vincent Poupard, Yahoo! Contributor Network Mar 15, 2007 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here." MORE:IrelandSt PatrickSt. PatricksNonbelievers tweet Print FlagPost a comment St. Patrick is considered as the Patron Saint of Ireland. There are many, though , in Ireland that hold him in disdain. These people will never celebrate his leg acy or life. It has been stated that St. Patrick rid Ireland of all of its snakes. Scientists have found that Ireland had not had snakes since icebergs surrounded the island . What could then be meant by the old legend? Before Christianity began to spread into Ireland, the Druids were the leading re ligious figures in Ireland. One of the symbols of the Druids was a snake. In Chr istianity, the snake symbolized the devil. According to the legend, St. Patrick stamped his staff on the ground to rid the snakes out of Ireland. The snakes that were sent from the island were the Druids . During the seventh century, the Christian Church taught its missionaries that if they could not convert any natives, they were to use any means necessary to con vert the nonbelievers. The Druids were not interested in giving up their old ways and converting to Chr istianity. St. Patrick is said to have lead to the murders of almost eight hundr ed Druid priests and priestesses. As he would walk by a Druid who would not convert, he would stamp his staff and

walk away. His flowers would then attack and kill the nonbeliever. In Irish folklore, there is a story of a she-beast that St. Patrick banished to Lough Derg (Red Lake). There is an island in the middle of Lough Derg that is ca lled St. Patrick's Purgatory. It is said that the she-beast called Caoranach was sent to this island. It was said that there was a woman who followed St. Patrick very closely, but no one ever knew her name. After St. Patrick stated that he had banished the she-b east, this woman was never seen again. There was an Irish documentary writer who looked into the theory that St. Patric k may have killed a lover on the island in Lough Derg. In 1998, the writer had a team sent into the water to fish around for evidence. I woman's mummified remai ns were found in the muck under the water. Once carbon dating was done, it was found that the body was from around the seve nth century. In the writer's mind, it confirmed his theory. He was contacted by the Irish government and charged with treason for doing anything to change the p eoples feeling about their Patron Saint. If you are ever in Ireland on March 17th, it may not be celebrate St. Patrick's Day. You might run into someone opinion. There is nothing worth getting in a fight with man. The holiday is not celebrated there, and might not the best idea to try to who disagrees with your an angry and drunk Irish ever be.