St. Patrick's Day and All Things Irish?

St. Patrick's Day brings to mind all things Irish: kissing the blarney stone, shamrocks, corned beef and cabbage, and wearing of the green. I wondered about the history of St. Patrick's Day in Colonial America, and what I found surprised me!

A little review about St. Patrick himself is in order. His birth name was Maewyn Succat, and he was born not in Ireland, but in Roman Britain near Dumbarton, in

387 AD. At the age of sixteen, he was kidnapped by a band of Irish mauraders and lived in Ireland, in captivity, for six years.

Though born to a deacon father, he was not a particularly religious lad. His years spent in Ireland in solitude as a shepherd brought him closer to God and he converted to Christianity. It was a vision that prompted Maewyn to flee to a ship that would take him back to his home in Britain.

A second vision came to him as an angel in a dream: to return to Ireland as a missionary. He would study for fifteen years before returning as an ordained priest with the Christian name Patrick, to minister as bishop to the Christians and convert the Irish.

He died March 17, 461 AD, and centuries later was honored as a patron saint of Ireland.

The legend of St. Patrick's Day has its roots in Ireland, of course, but today's celebration, as we know it, took root in colonial America. Tradition has it that St. Patrick used the three-leaf clover to teach the Holy Trinity and wore the shamrocks on his robe.

The first St. Patrick's Day parade took place in Boston, 1737, and was organized by the Charitable Irish Society. New York City hosted its first St. Patrick's Day parade in 1762 and the Fifth Avenue parade is now the most famous and largest.

Wearing of the green and pinning shamrock on clothing to honor their heritage became popular in America on St. Patrick's Day, a salute to the Emerald Isle and the saint.

And Corned beef and cabbage? Not so Irish. The Brits had long prepared tough cuts of beef by curing it with a brine of corns (or grains) of salt. Though the Irish had a traditional dish of boiled bacon and cabbage, upon immigrating to the colonies, they readily took to the corned beef. Here's an authentic way to prepare corned beef from Colonial Table that looks delicious!

My favorite Irish tradition is in the form of this blessing. The author is unknown, but some attribute it to St. Patrick:

May the road rise to meet you, 
May the wind be always at your back, 
May the sun shine warm upon your face, 
May the rains fall soft upon your fields, 
And, until we meet again, 
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

Do you have a favorite Irish tradition? Where did it originate?

Rebecca DeMarino's debut novel, A PLACE IN HIS HEART, is set in Colonial America in the 17th century. It releases June 3rd from Revell.

The Irish, The Scots and the Scotch-Irish

Throughout the 1600s, the English government encouraged the move of lowland Scots, Welsh and the northern English–Protestants all—to “Ulster Plantation” in the north of Ireland, in the hopes of some influence and balance over the independent, Catholic Irish. In Scotland, Highlanders and Lowland Scots were also leery of each other, separated by many cultural ideas as well as religion over multiple centuries. Indeed, all British history is spattered with the blood of religious animosity—quite obvious in the Tudor period.
 

From "Free Printable Maps.com"  here is today's United Kingdom.

Starting around 1718, large scale numbers of Scotch-Irish left northern Ireland for the new world. (At this time, they referred to themselves as Irish, but the term changed to Scotch-Irish when, a century later Catholic Irish Immigration began to surge, heightened during the famous Potato Famine in the 1840s.)  The Scotch-Irish Protestants settled well in North America, flourishing in their new freedoms and kept the traditions of strong work ethic and education. But few welcomed their Catholic peers from Scotland and Ireland with open arms. The Irish were one of the most poorly treated immigrant groups ‘welcomed’ to the new world, due in part to the earlier establishment of their Protestant countrymen.

Back home in 18th century Scotland, the north still held to its ways of clan society and the wearing of kilts until these practices were made illegal after the failed Jacobite Rebellion (the hope of putting a Catholic King back on the throne and disposing of the Protestant one) in 1745. Tartan was banned and families were forced off their own land, branded traitors to the English King. It wasn’t until 1782, almost 40 years later, that King George reinstated the right for Highlanders to wear Tartan—no doubt, a purely political move.   

Ironically, all Scots regiments serving in the British Army were outfitted in kilts throughout this time.

The Scotch Irish in America comprised 40% of the Continental Army. Not surprising, when their immigration numbers are estimated at 25-40,000 in the 18^th century. Most welcomed the chance to fight against Britain, or more specifically the English King. Even so, many leaned toward the Tory side and moved to a more loyal Canada.

Around the turn of the 19th century, the continued policy of ‘The Scottish Clearances’ included both northern Catholics and lowland Protestants and flamed a surprising new alignment of nationalism between the two based on little more than hatred of the English.

Those early 19^th century abuses sent a huge number of Gaelic speaking Catholics to the Cape Breton area of Nova Scotia, mid-Atlantic America, and North Carolina in particular. Many settled north of Lake Ontario and made up the Glengarry district whose men formed one of the toughest British regiments to fight in the War of 1812.

Many North Americans don’t understand the significant influence of these two Celtic countries on our histories, or the unsettled religious history. An estimated 27 million Americans are descendants of those Protestant Scotch-Irish alone! Thankfully, the "new world" eventually allowed old animosities to fade enough that Catholics and Protestants today prefer to celebrate a combined Celtic heritage.

The Scotland of today is more united under the ideal of the independent Scot--represented by the Highlander, the wearing of Tartans, the kilt, and renewed interest in the Gaelic language, and as always, their hesitance to be ruled from beyond their border. (Ironically, it was Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's love of the land and its wild history that prompted a resurgence in the use of the kilt and tartan!)

In Northern Ireland (remember it is part of the United Kingdom and not the same as the country of Ireland!) those referred to in North America as the Scotch-Irish are called Ulster Irish, or more loosely, ‘the Orange’. Unfortunately, the city of Belfast in Northern Ireland became synonymous with the animosity between Catholics and Protestants. Those same Scotch-Irish and Irish who left for the new world found its ‘melting-pot’ mindset brought them more easily to reconciliation.

So that's just a wee bit of the Celtic history shared by many of us in the 'new world. I hope you've enjoyed it or learned something new. What's your tie to this particular emigration? If none, what surprises you most about their history?

For myself, I have yet to find any ancestry outside of Great Britain. It's not a big place geographically but bursts with fascinating history.

ST. PATRICK British Patron Saint of Ireland

ST. PATRICK

British Patron Saint of Ireland

One March day at church, about fifteen years ago, I was introduced to a prayer attributed to Saint Patrick. Having Irish ancestors, I had some basic knowledge about the Irish patron saint. But I was so moved by the prayer, I decided to do some more research on this iconic and legendary character.

Did you know that St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is not Irish?  

He was born in Roman Britain to aristocratic parents around 385 A.D. Even though his father was a deacon and other members of his family were clergy, the family was not particularly religious. At the age of sixteen, he was captured by Irish pirates who took him to Ireland, probably around County Mayo, and sold him into slavery. While there he was assigned to tend sheep. It was during that period in relative isolation that his prayer life developed and he began to believe that his captivity may well have been part of God’s plan. He began to dream that he was to free the Irish people from their druid beliefs and to share the gospel of Christ with them. After six years, Patrick believed he heard from God that he was to escape and make his way back to Britain. When he had walked the two hundred miles to the Irish coast, God gave him another revelation; that he would return to Ireland as a missionary. 

Window in Gloucester Cathedral
St. Patrick being taught by St. Germain

He was reunited with his family in England briefly before departing for France where he would remain for fifteen years. In France he entered the priesthood and studied under the missionary St. Germain. However, he never lost sight of his dream of returning to Ireland to spread “The Good News”. 

Around 431, Patrick was consecrated Bishop of the Irish and returned to the island of his captivity. While he initially experienced some resistance, Patrick eventually convinced the Druids to abandon their belief system that kept them enslaved and convinced them to find freedom in Christ. He built up the church in Ireland, establishing monasteries and organizing the land into dioceses. Patrick died March 17, 461 in Saul, County Down, Ireland where he is said to be buried. 

Did you know that St. Patrick did not introduce Christianity to Ireland?  He was not the first Christian missionary, but he was the most successful.

Did you know that St. Patrick did not chase the snakes out of Ireland?  That’s the stuff of legends. However, if the snake is a symbol of paganism, St. Patrick can be credited as removing paganism from Ireland and converting it to Christianity. 

Do you know what the association is between St. Patrick and the shamrock?  St. Patrick used the shamrock, a common clover, as a metaphor to teach the Irish people about the Trinity.

Do you know when St. Patrick’s Day was celebrated in the colonies? St. Patrick's Day was first celebrated as a Catholic Holy Day in the U.S. in Boston in 1737. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was not in Ireland, but in Boston in 1762 when Irish soldiers serving in the British army marched in New York to honor their Irish heritage.

As the Irish migrated, more people became familiar with the remarkable story of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland and St. Patrick’s Day remains a Holy Day in the Roman Catholic, and some Protestant denominations. For many throughout the world, St. Patrick’s Day is a secular holiday, celebrated with parades, traditional Irish meals and all sorts of festivities.

Celtic Cross

ST. PATRICK’S PRAYER

I rise today in the power's strength, invoking the Trinity

believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.

I rise today in the power of Christ's birth and baptism,

in the power of his crucifixion and burial,

in the power of his rising and ascending,

in the power of his descending and judging.

I rise today in the power of the love of cherubim,

in the obedience of angels and service of archangels,

in hope of rising to receive the reward,

in the prayers of patriarchs, in the predictions of the prophets,

in the preaching of apostles, in the faith of confessors,

in the innocence of holy virgins, in the deeds of the righteous.

I rise today in heaven's might, in sun's brightness,

in moon's radiance, in fire's glory,

in lightning's quickness, in wind's swiftness,

in sea's depth, in earth's stability, in rock's fixity.

I rise today with the power of God to pilot me,

God's strength to sustain me, God's wisdom to guide me,

God's eye to look ahead for me, God's ear to hear me,

God's word to speak for me, God's hand to protect me,

God's way before me, God's shield to defend me,

God's host to deliver me,

  from snares of devils, from evil temptations,

from nature's failings, from all who wish to harm me,

  far or near, alone and in a crowd.

Around me I gather today all these powers against every cruel and merciless force

to attack my body and soul, against the charms of false prophets,

the black laws of paganism,

the false laws of heretics, the deceptions of idolatry,

against spells cast by women, smiths, and druids,

and all unlawful knowledge that harms the body and soul.

May Christ protect me today

against poison and burning, against drowning and wounding,

so that I may have abundant reward;

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me;

Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me;

Christ to the right of me, Christ to the left of me;

Christ in my lying, Christ in my sitting, Christ in my rising;

Christ in the heart of all who think of me,

Christ on the tongue of all who speak to me,

Christ in the eye of all who see me,

Christ in the ear of all who hear me.

I rise today in power's strength, invoking the Trinity,

believing in threeness, confessing the oneness, of creation's Creator.

For to the Lord belongs salvation, and to the Lord belongs salvation

and to Christ belongs salvation.

May your salvation, Lord, be with us always.