Will the real St. Patty please stand up…

Walking into work today wearing an appropriately festive green and white plaid blouse, I realized I was missing a large chunk of Celtic knowledge. Aside from the green beer, corned beef & cabbage, and shamrock décor festivities of St. Patrick’s Day, I had no awareness to the actual facts behind this passionate celebration. Since I was little I have merrily commemorated this day by wearing green, plucking clovers, and in more recent times consuming my fair share of alcoholic beverages. I have even attended the dying of the Chicago river numerous times, but never did I stop to ask myself Who is Saint Patrick?, Why was he important?, What is his association with Ireland? Per usual, I must have been too consumed (wasted) with the excitement of the day, and not so much with the context. So today, I read up on this very green holiday.


Long story short St. Patrick’s Day is an originally Catholic celebration of the patron saint of Ireland. Born into a very wealthy and godly British family around the 5th century, Patrick had long standing family connections to the Catholic Church. At the age of 16 he was captured and enslaved in Ireland. Able to flee captivity, he returned to Britian where he began his mission toward priesthood. Eventually he was called back to Ireland to lead the Irish, both rich and poor into a Catholic lifestyle. It is my guess that he succeeded considering the million and two times I have heard people reffered to as “Irish-Catholic” in my great city of Chicago.

The shamrock, rather than the “lucky” four-leaf clover, graces March 17th as a beloved symbol because Patrick used it as a tool to teach the idea of Holy Trinity to the Irish people. One leaf each for the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Green is also associated with St. Patrick due to the many shades of green that grace clovers, as well as the ribbons wore in the 17th century to celebrate his death.

I hope you feel at least one Leprechaun step more informed after reading this, I know I do. Now go out there and celebrate the day of St. Patrick. As the saying goes “Patty’s Day- Everyone’s Irish on March 17th.”