You would most likely associate St. Patrick with Ireland but he was born in Briton and was a Roman Citizen. Around the age of 16 he was taken by Irish raiders with thousands of other people. Taken in captivity in Ireland, he was sold as a slave and worked as a shepherd tending sheep. He was able to escape about 6 years later and had to travel 200 miles to a port to get a lift on a ship. After 3 days at sea, he arrived back in Briton and eventually was reunited with his family.
At some time after this, he said he had a vision of a man begging him to return to Ireland and bring the Gospel. And so, his journey begins. He prepared about fifteen years in training as a Deacon and then, a Priest. It has been said that he spent time training in Gaul which is modern day France. He then took the Latin name Patricius which is Patrick in English. He was ordained as a missionary Bishop to pastor the Christians in Ireland and he missioned among the pagan Irish.
Patrick wanted to go back to his homeland and family in Briton. He also longed to visit Gaul again. But, feeling compelled by the Holy Spirit, he stayed in Ireland. He truly felt God wanted him there because there was much work to do. He and his followers, travelling from village to village, would preach and baptize, train leaders, then form a church. He wrote that he had baptized thousands of people and ordained hundreds of priests.
He retired to Saul in Northern Ireland near the end of his life. He believed an angel spoke to him and that he should die at the site of his first church in Saul. But his real desire was to die in the ecclesiastical metropolis Ireland.
St. Patrick is celebrated on March 17, the anniversary of his death. In Ireland, it remains a religious occasion including prayers for peace. However, St. Patrick’s Day has evolved into a celebration with a major national and patriotic holiday in Ireland as well as a global celebration.
A legend to this day is that a shamrock was used to explain the three persons in one God, the Holy Trinity. It is used to explain this mystery with the three-leaved plant with one stalk. It is the national flower of Ireland and, traditionally, the Irish wear shamrocks on their lapels on St. Patrick’s Day.