St. Patrick
Preacher to the Ends of the Earth
Whatever
happens to me, good or evil, I must accept it and give thanks to God. He has taught me to trust in him without any
limits. God heard my prayers so that I,
foolish though I am . . . in my own way, might be like those God said would
come to preach and be witnesses to the good news to all nonbelievers before the
end of the world . . . it has been done.
I can testify that the good news has been preached to the very edge of
the inhabited world.[1]
- St Patrick
- St Patrick
St. Patrick of
Ireland: A Biography
by Philip Freeman is an incredibly well written historical biography about the
slave turned missionary who was primarily responsible for the conversion of
Ireland to Catholicism. While not an
academic work, Freeman’s book separates facts from legends and provides a very
good understanding of what we actually know about St. Patrick.
Freeman
clearly describes the main events of St. Patrick's life, specifying what has
been documented and what must be based on speculation. These events include St. Patrick’s:
§ early life in
England in the late 300s, before being enslaved by Irish raiders at the age of
fifteen
§ six years as a slave
in Ireland living a very hard life as a shepherd
§ miraculous
escape from Ireland back to his home in Britain
§ training and ordination
to the priesthood (a twenty-five year period about which little is known)
§ return to
Ireland circa 431, consecration as a bishop, and extremely successful missionary
work
What
makes Freeman’s biography most effective is his ability to distinguish known
facts from the many legends about this well-loved saint while still telling the
story in a way that is very interesting and inspiring. He also provides extra historical content
that puts St. Patrick’s life and work in context. For example, Freeman covers the major events
in the British Isles as the Roman Empire was disintegrating and explains the
omnipresence of slavery in the culture during that time.
The
best sources that we have about the life of St. Patrick are the saint’s own
words in two letters written toward the end of his life, the content of which
amazingly has been preserved for over fifteen-hundred years. Letter
to the Soldiers of Coroticus was an “appeal and condemnation to a
slave-raiding king and his band of mercenary pirates,”[2] and
Confession was “a defense of (Patrick’s)
work against accusations by fellow churchmen.”[3] Neither letter is lengthy or intended to be autobiographical,
but they provide critical insights about St. Patrick’s life. In addition, Freeman points out that
. . . the letters of Patrick are not the
only sources available for uncovering the story of his life and times. Archaeological excavations and discoveries
shed a great deal of light on Roman Britain and early Ireland. Greek and Roman writers, although they never
specifically mention Patrick, are marvelous aids in fleshing out the world he
lived in. Later Irish traditions on
Patrick, though full of legendary material, also preserve bits and pieces of
genuine information. Taken together with
his letters, these sources tell the story of an extraordinary man living in a
tumultuous age.[4]
Freeman’s
ability to intersperse quotes from St. Patrick’s letters in this roughly
chronological retelling of the saint’s life and inclusion of the full text of
his letters in the Epilogue brings authenticity to the biography. In this way, St. Patrick’s voice, which is
both humble and bold, is woven into the historical narrative.
So
listen to me well, all of you, great and small, everyone who has any fear of
God . . . listen and consider this carefully: God chose foolish little me from
among all of you who seem so wise and so expert in the law and so powerful in
your eloquence. He picked ignorant
Patrick ahead of all of you – even though I am not worthy – he picked me to go forth
with fear and reverence . . . to serve the Irish faithfully. The love of Christ carried me here to be a
help to these people for the rest of my life, if I may be worthy, and to work
for them with humility and in sincerity.[5]
Another
interesting point that Freeman highlights is St. Patrick’s driving motivation for
his return to Ireland and his work among the Irish people. St. Patrick was convinced that he was definitively
called by God . “I am Patrick the ignorant sinner and,
I declare, a bishop in Ireland - a position I believe I was appointed to by God
himself.”[8] He was compelled to preach the Gospel
regardless of the many risks to his own life. “I
must choose to proclaim the gift of God and his everlasting help confidently
and without fear, to make known his name everywhere, so that even after I die
it might be a kind of spiritual legacy left behind for my brothers and sons, so
many thousands I baptized for God.”[9]
For
some readers, the lack of any footnotes in St.
Patrick of Ireland may be a significant drawback. An extensively annotated list of suggested readings
organized by chapter is provided, but the absence of citations in the text
makes it impossible to trace facts or concepts back to original sources. Other helpful features in the book are
complete reproductions of St. Patrick’s two letters, a time line, an explanation of Irish words and pronunciations, and a comprehensive index.
Philip
Freeman is the Orlando W. Qualley Chair of Classical Languages at Luther
College in Decorah, Iowa and a visiting scholar at Harvard Divinity
School. His other books include
biographies of Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. St.
Patrick of Ireland: A Biography (ISBN-13: 978-0743256346) is available on Amazon in print,
Kindle, and audio formats.
[1] St. Patrick, Confession, quoted in Philip Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography (New
York: Simon & Schuster, 2004), 185-186.
[2] Philip Freeman,
St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography
(New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004), xvii.
[4] Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, xix.
[5] Patrick, Confession, quoted in Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, 179.
[6] Patrick, Confession, quoted in Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, 140.
[7] Patrick, Confession, quoted in Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, 18.
[8] Patrick, Confession, quoted in Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, 54.
[9] Patrick, Confession, quoted in Freeman, St. Patrick of Ireland, 152.
Bibliography
Freeman, Philip. St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004.
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