St. Patrick's Day represents more than the ancient folklore of snakes, shamrocks and the color green. It coincides with the promise of Spring. While the color green associated with holiday represents Ireland as emerald isle, the color green is a purifying, vitalizing color. And all of the metaphoric elements of the true story of St. Patrick hold meaning for your life and well-being.
The truth is, St. Patrick’s Day was more of a religious observance until Irish immigrants to the U. S. supercharged it.
“Until the 1700s, St. Patrick’s Day was a Roman Catholic feast only observed in Ireland—and without the raucous revelry of today’s celebrations. Instead, the faithful spent the relatively somber occasion in quiet prayer at church or at home. That started to change when Irish immigrants living in the United States began organizing parades and other events on March 17 as a show of pride.” —Jennie Cohen, St. Patrick’s Day Myths Debunked, history dot com
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The True Story of St. Patrick Being Associated with the Color Green
We can trace the wearing of green on St. Patrick’s Day to the eighteenth century. This is the point when backers of Irish independence took on the color to represent their cause. Before then, St. Patrick’s Day was not a day of green.
Coincidentally, the green of St. Patrick’s Day falls during traditional Chinese medicine’s (TCM’s) season of energetic Spring. The TCM element (out of five: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) associated with Spring is Wood. TCM also assigns the color green to energetic Spring and the Wood element.
The Truth About the Man Himself–St. Pat
"The modern celebration of St. Patrick's Day really has almost nothing to do with the real man," says Western culture professor Philip Freeman of Pepperdine University.
Originally a Britt, Patrick was kidnapped and taken to Ireland. There he tended sheep as a slave in the chilly mountainous region of the country for seven years.
Not particularly religious before, he got religion in Ireland and became a devout Christian.
Next, he escaped his slavery to reunite with his family back home in England. But a message he received in a dream compelled him to return to Ireland.
He became a priest and later a bishop where, according to John Roach, author of St. Patrick's Day Facts: Shamrocks, Snakes, and a Saint, National Geographic Magazine. hewas:
“constantly beaten by thugs, harassed by the Irish royalty, and admonished by his British superiors,”
Where Did the Shamrock Come From and What Does It Mean?
According to St. Patrick's Day lore, St. Pat used the leaves of the shamrock as a teaching metaphor to describe the Holy Trinity. But the shamrock custom emerged out of eighteenth century Irish nationalism and the 1798 Irish Rebellion against English colonialism.
The Irish adopted the symbol of the shamrock to memorialize St. Patrick’s Day because fervor for the holiday intensified at that time.
The True Story of the Snakes and St. Patrick
As for driving snakes out of Ireland, no evidence exists to prove an abundance of snakes existed anywhere in the region. The mythos seems more metaphorical than literal. Villains and non-believers at the time (fifth century A. D.) were considered snakes.
Today St. Patrick’s Day Looks Nothing Like It Did Centuries Ago.
“For many people around the world, St. Patrick’s Day has evolved into a secular ode to Irish culture (or at least an oversimplified version of it), characterized by parties, music and iconic foods.” —Jennie Cohen, St. Patrick’s Day Myths Debunked, history dot com
In spite of the true story of St. Patrick’s Day, today’s merrymaking and revelry can bring a lightness to our spirits as Spring emerges from the dark. And along with that revelry we look forward to the gushing forth of new life and new possibilities.
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Cohen, Jennie. “St. Patrick's Day Myths Debunked.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 16 Mar. 2012, www.history.com/news/st-patricks-day-myths-debunked.
“St. Patrick's Day Facts: Shamrocks, Snakes, and a Saint.” National Geographic, National Geographic Society, 18 Mar. 2010, news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/03/100316-st-patricks-day-facts-shamrocks/.