[Faith-talk] Good Night Message for Saturday, March 16, 2013

[Paul]

Well, it's that time of day again folks, time for us here in the Eastern part of our continent to consider preparations to retire for the night and to also prepare our minds and hearts for the Lord's Day tomorrow.  You in Australia and New Zealand already have had this, and I pray that you got a good word from the Lord as imparted to you by your pastors and/or Sunday school teachers.  More importantly though, I pray that you and your felllow congregants will apply what you have heard and learned to your individual lives as the gracious Holy Spirit enables.

Well, here in the U.S. and possibly even in other countries, tomorrow is Saint Patrick's Day, and in honor of this we have an article written by Leslie B. Flynn for the American Tract Society simply entitled "Saint Patrick," rendered as follows:

Come St. Patrick's Day, I'll be wearing green myself because my name is Flynn.  My grandfather came from Ireland, so it's no wonder I'm more than a little interested in St. Patrick.  How about you?

First of all, did you know that St. Patrick was not an Irishman? He was not born in Ireland.  His parents were Britons, and he was born in Scotland near Dumbarton on the Clyde River.

Did you also know that he did not drive the snakes from the Emerald Isle? That is pure folklore which has grown up around St. Patrick's legend.  Even more surprising, did you know that he is not even a saint? At least, he is not in the technical sense of the Roman Catholic Church because he has never been canonized officially.  According to one encyclopedia, St. Patrick "passes as a saint merely by popular approval."

Another surprising poin is that, in Ireland, St. Patrick is claimed by the Protestants as well as the Catholics.  In fact, there are several Protestant churches in Ireland called after St. Patrick.  At Saul, there is the St. Patrick Memorial Church.  Not far away is Downpatrick Cathedral, a Protestant Episcopal Church, where visitors are shown a simple gravestone inscribed, "Patric," reputed grave of the apostle of Ireland.  And right in Dublin, the largest Protestant church is called St. Patrick's Cathedral.

All of this points to the fact that, as March 17 approaches, with all of its joyful celebrating, it makes good sense to ask just what is the truth about St. Patrick? In the past thousand years, the real Patrick has almost been lost under an avalanche of romance, tradition, myth, legend and folklore.  There are, however, three documents generally considered as having come from St. Patrick's pen.  They are his confessions, his letter to Corticus and his poem, or hymn, known as "The Breastplate." These offer some clues to the true Patrick.

>From his confessions, we learn that at the age of 16 he was captured by a band of Irish pirates who sold him to a Druid chieftain who reigned in the north of Ireland.

Until his captivity in Ireland, Patrick had no real experience of God and salvation.  Here are his own words:  "I was sixteen, and knew not the true God, but in that strange land, the Lord opened my unbelieving eyes, and I was converted." Looking back on his boyhood, Patrick saw in his captivity a just punishment for his ungodliness, for until then he had paid no attention to the admonition of his parents.  Now he realized that God, in His mercy, let his captivity take place so as to lead him in a new and better life.  With the sufferings of exile had come understanding of the Gospel and salvation in Christ.

Finally, after six years, he escaped from Ireland and, completing a torturous journey over sea and land, returned to his people in Britain.

Though his parents and friends tried to persuade Patrick never to go back, the love of God burned in his heart for the people of Ireland, so he returned to the Emerald Isle, bearing God's message of salvation.  As a result, thousands turned to Christ.  Says one historian, the thrilling story of Christianity's entrance into Ireland and its phenomenal growth under Patrick ranks him as a great and judicious missionary pioneer, perhaps second only to Paul of Tarsus.

When penning his letter to Corticus to protest the raid of a cruel king who had taken some Christians captive, Patrick wrote, "I confess that I am a bishop anointed by God in Ireland.  Most surely, I deem that from God I have received what I am and so I dwell in the midst of barbarians, a stranger and an exile for the love of God." Thus, he was an enthusiastic missionary who loved the souls of men.

>From ancient documents we discover that St. Patrick paid great honor to the Bible.  One writer says he knew much of the Bible from memory.  In fact, Patrick is often said to have been a man of one book.  He never appeals to the authority of creed or ecclesiastical leaders or counsel, but in his extant writings, brief as they are, no fewer than 113 passages of Scripture are either quoted or mentioned.  On the other hand, he makes no mention of the many church practices of many ecclesiastical groups today.  Someone has commented that, with his constant emphasis on the Bible, Patrick sounds like a fifth-century Billy Graham proclaiming, "The Bible says," the Bible says."

No matter what the legends about him may say, therefore, the truth is that Patrick acknowledged himself as a sinner and found salvation where all sinners find it, in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Consequently, whether or not Patrick was an Irishman matters very little.  The same is true whether or not you are Irish, as wonderful as that may be.  The one thing that counts is whether or not you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior as Patrick did so long ago.  If so, St. Patrick's Day and every day will be a happy day for you!

And there you have Leslie's article for today.  Hope you enjoyed reading it.

Additional comments about St. Patrick not found in this article:  His Latin name was probably Patricius, and his Irish Gaelic name was Padraig, though please don't ask me to pronounce that Gaelic name.  Also, he was not the first Patrick or Patricius.  In a book entitled "Great Women of the Christian Faith" available from Christian Record Services for the Blind, on the chapter about Monica, the mother of Augustine, it is said that Augustine's father was also named Patricius.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, throughout this night or day and especially in these last days in which we live.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul