Saint Patrick
Patrick | |
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Stained-glass window of Saint Patrick from Saint Patrick Catholic Church, Junction City, Ohio, United States | |
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| Born | Britain |
| Died | mid-fifth to early-sixth century Ireland |
| Resting place | Downpatrick |
| Venerated in | |
| Major shrine |
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| Feast | 17 March (Saint Patrick's Day) |
| Attributes | Crozier, mitre, holding a shamrock, carrying a cross, repelling snakes |
| Patronage | Ireland, Nigeria, Montserrat, Archdiocese of New York, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Boston, Rolla, Missouri, Loíza, Puerto Rico, Murcia (Spain), Clann Giolla Phádraig, engineers, paralegals, Archdiocese of Adelaide, Archdiocese of Melbourne; invoked against snakes, sins |
Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints being Brigid of Kildare and Columba. He is also the patron saint of Nigeria. Patrick is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, the Church of Ireland (part of the Anglican Communion), and in the Eastern Orthodox Church, where he is regarded as equal-to-the-apostles and Enlightener of Ireland.
The dates of Patrick's life cannot be fixed with certainty, but there is general agreement that he was active as a missionary in Ireland during the fifth century. A recent biography of Patrick shows a late fourth-century date for the saint is possible. According to tradition dating from the early Middle Ages, Patrick was the first bishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland, and is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland (despite evidence of some earlier Christian presence), converting the people from paganism.
Two Latin writings by Patrick survive: the Confessio and the Letter to the soldiers of Coroticus. In his Confessio, he writes that when he was sixteen, he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Britain and taken as a slave to Ireland. He writes that he lived there for six years as a herder before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to spread Christianity in northern and western Ireland. In later life, he served as a bishop, but little is known about where he worked. By the seventh century, he had already come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick's Day, considered his feast day, is observed on 17 March, the supposed date of his death. It is celebrated in Ireland and among the Irish diaspora as a religious and cultural holiday. In the Catholic Church in Ireland, it is both a solemnity and a holy day of obligation.