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In America, everyone claims to be at least somewhat Irish and thus it’s no surprise that March 17th has become a nationally acceptable day to throw down, put on a wacky green leprechaun costume, and drink a bunch of traditionally Irish beers. It could be worse–you could settle for some mass-produced lager with green food coloring in it, but you won’t hear any of the ACB faithful offering up any such suggestions.
So with all this hubbub surrounding what has practically become a national holiday to some, it made us ask, just what the hell is this day about anyway?!
Will the Real St. Patrick Please Stand Up?
A little background info on our country’s favorite Saint. Patrick lived during the fifth century BC, was actually British, and was kidnapped by pirates at the age of 16 and made to live as a slave for six years in Ireland before escaping and returning home. Although the details of his life are a bit murky, a few different things are universally accepted.
Patrick reached the level of Bishop within the Catholic Church and spent the bulk of his time as a missionary converting the Druids and other pagan disciples of Ireland to Catholicism. By the seventh century, he effectively became the patron saint of Ireland. While some scholars believe that the works of St. Patrick may have actually been the deeds of two men, told as the story of one, there’s no definitive evidence that this was the case.
Sure there are tons of cool stories about St. Paddy, most notably that he’d driven snakes from the island after being attacked by them, though there’s ample evidence that snakes never inhabited Ireland while he was alive. Though snakes were a common symbol of the Druid, the story was just a great way to associate him driving all other religions out of the country. And other than us being pretty sure he had no preference between Bushmills vs. Jameson or Guinness vs. Harp, much of the rest of his life is a bit uncertain beyond his childhood and his work as a missionary.
Earliest Traditions
In the early 17th Century, the Catholic Church made his accepted date of death, March 17th, an official day of feast and it became a national holiday in Ireland in 1903. In 1996, it became a three-day festival that now stretches to 5 days and draws a million visitors to parades, concerts, and fireworks every year.
The wearing of the color green can be a bit confusing. Sure, Ireland’s flag is green and orange, which you’ll always see on St. Paddy’s. But associating green with the Saint makes even more sense when considering his teaching that the three leaves of a shamrock symbolize the holy trinity. It gets confusing when you bring in the Order of St. Patrick, created in 1783, who for some reason decided to choose blue as their official color. What?
Coming to America
Centuries later, Irish immigrants brought the celebration of their vaunted saint to the new world, continuing to hold parades and festivals in his name. The celebrations remembering St. Patrick may be more fervent, in the historic sense, within the walls of Catholic Churches around the world, though there’s little doubt that the secular celebration of St. Paddy’s is no bigger than it is here in the states. From dying the river green in Chicago to the largest attended celebration and parade in New York City and the oldest celebration in America in Boston since 1737, we’re pretty serious about greening our cities.
So while there are ample reasons to celebrate the life of a Saint who died over 1,500 years ago, it’s pretty clear that we here in the states just need another excuse to party, wear green, and continue a tradition that isn’t going anywhere soon.
