The Truth About Patrick

Today is the day we celebrate all things Irish. We wear Green to avoid getting pinched. People all over the world drink a pint of Guinness and toast leprechauns. We search for four-leaf clover to signify good luck. We march in parades and on this day, everyone is Irish.

St. Patrick’s Day has its roots as a religious holiday. It was a solemn feast day in Ireland, and drinking alcohol on this day was prohibited until the 1970’s. It celebrated the life of  Patrick, the man credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland, to driving out the snakes and to bringing the symbol of the shamrock to the people.

Patrick first came to Ireland as a slave, a captive of Irish pirates kidnapped from his home in Wales. He came from a religious family, but had no faith of his own. During his captivity God worked on his heart and he discovered a way to have peace. After six years of captivity, he had a vision that there was a ship waiting in a harbor to take him home. He ran away from his master, found the ship and returned to Britain. He studied and became a Catholic priest. He had another vision, this time of the people of Ireland asking him to return and lead them to salvation.

The truth is that there never were snakes in Ireland. The pagan druids frequently had large snake tattoos on their arms, so driving out the snakes was a picture of replacing pagan religions with Christianity. There was already a Christian presence in Ireland before  Patrick, and the shamrock was the visual that  Patrick used to explain the concept of the trinity to the people.

The real miracle of  Patrick was that he found a love and compassion for the people who were his captors, the people who enslaved him for six years. He lived God’s love to the people, and we celebrate the day of his death because of the life of sacrifice that he lived.

“You have heard it said, ‘you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.”

Matthew 5:43-44

However you celebrate, or don’t celebrate, St. Patrick’s Day, remember why he is celebrated. He loved. He loved his enemies, and he dedicated his life to bringing them the good news of salvation. Let your Irish stew, your corned beef and cabbage and your “Kiss Me I’m Irish” sweatshirts remind you of Patrick, and remind you to live the love of Jesus to those around you. We were once the enemies of God, and he chose to love us. How can we do less?

God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us… For is while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. Romans 5:8, 10

God IS With Us!

I’ve so enjoyed reading your Facebook posts, the ones where you show off your trees, all pretty and decorated, a pile of perfectly wrapped presents underneath. I love all the recipes for the different cookies you’ve been busy baking, and the projects you’ve been sewing and handcrafting.

When my kids were at home, I did a lot of this stuff too. We always went the Saturday after Thanksgiving to a tree farm up in the Columbia River Gorge and cut our tree. We hoped for snow, and we were usually rewarded. We’d throw snowballs and somebody would cry, and we’d stand around the fire they had going to warm up while Dad tied the tree to the top of the Jeep. We’d get home and the kids would hang all their wet gloves and hats and coats over the railing around the stairwell to dry. On Christmas Eve we always had soup for dinner, and then went to church as a family, and usually several of us were performing in either a pageant or in song. Christmas Day meant presents and a huge dinner. There were caroling parties and madrigal feasts and lots of dinners with friends. There were school programs, and lots of shopping.

Christmas is different now. My kids have all grown and moved into homes of their own. No school programs, no cutting a tree, and Christmas at church is different, more modern. Last year I cooked Christmas breakfast for my kids who live in town, and then drove three hours to have dinner with my daughter. I drove another two hours and finished the day with my Mom. There is less shopping, and more gift cards.

We all have different ways of celebrating Christmas, and those celebrations change with our place and season in life. The really great thing is that we have reason to celebrate. God, the same God who created the universe, who hung the stars in the night and stretched the rainbow across the sky, this same God, wanted to be with us. He became incarnate, the Emmanuel. He came to earth and inhabited human flesh. When Mary looked into the manger and smiled at her little baby, she was smiling at God.

 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”  Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” Matt. 1:23

This idea of God wanting to be with us is prevalent throughout scripture. God walked with us in the garden, he had his people build him a tabernacle and dwelled in it in the wilderness, and he came to earth and became one of us.

He didn’t stay a baby, though. He grew up and lived and died and rose again for us. And then this God who would be with us, indwelt us.

We have reason to celebrate. Our traditions may change, our life situations will certainly change, but God never changes. He still wants to be with us.

However you celebrate, whether it’s Christmas or just being alive and saved, don’t forget about Jesus. So much of our preparations for Christmas are harried and busy. We are so focused on getting everything done and decorated that we forget the point; God wants to be with us. Don’t leave him out. Don’t ignore him. Be with him.

How will you be with him, who loves you and calls you Beloved?