The Real Story of St. Patrick
Did you know he was actually a Baptist missionary?
Patrick was a Briton who was born near present day England or Scotland. His parents and grandparents were Christians, at least back two generations. When he was 16 years old, he and his friends were playing along the banks when they saw a strange fleet of ships come sailing in. Before they knew what was happening, they had been captured by pirates. Patrick was shipped off to Ireland and put on the auction block as a slave. He was purchased by a prince and sent into the fields to take care of the cows and pigs.
After several years, Patrick called on the name of God and was born again. Shortly after that, he was able to escape and return back home to his family and friends. They all urged him to put the Irish out of his mind and live the life he was meant to live.
But Patrick could not get the Irish out of his mind. He had a burden to preach the Gospel to them. At the age of 30, he returned to Ireland with a group of friends, this time not as a slave to pirates, but as a “slave” to God. He began preaching the Gospel and baptized thousands of converts before he died.
St. Patrick's Day Facts
- Why do we associate the three-leaved shamrock with St. Patrick's Day? Well, while explaining about God to the pagan Irish, Patrick used the shamrock to symbolize the Trinity.Cool, huh? Most people don't know why they wear shamrocks on St. Paddy's Day. It's actually because of a Baptist missionary.
- St. Patrick wasn't Irish. He was Welsh.
- There are more Irish people living in America than in Ireland. I am one of them.
- The first St. Paddy's Day celebration actually took place in Boston, in 1737, not in Dublin.
- St. Patrick is said to have established over 300 churches and baptized over 100,000 people. Wow!
- There is a myth floating around that he drove all the snakes off Ireland's coasts. That is false. There never were any snakes on Ireland. Ever.
Happy Patrick, the Baptist Missionary, Day!
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