Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop, widely recognized as the 'Apostle of Ireland' and the primary patron saint of the country. His life and works are shrouded in some uncertainty, but it is generally accepted that he played a pivotal role in the spread of Christianity across Ireland during a time when pagan beliefs were prevalent. Although he was never formally canonized, his influence is acknowledged across various Christian denominations, including the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, where he is celebrated as an Enlightener of Ireland. Born in Britain, Patrick was kidnapped by Irish pirates at the age of sixteen and taken to Ireland as a slave, where he spent six years herding animals. After escaping back to his family, he felt a calling to return to Ireland as a cleric. His autobiographical work, the Confessio, details his spiritual journey and missionary efforts. He is traditionally credited with converting many Irish people to Christianity and is often associated with the legend of using a shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity. By the seventh century, he had already been venerated as a saint, solidifying his legacy as a key figure in Irish history and culture, and his feast day on March 17 continues to be celebrated worldwide.
Famous Quotes
View all 11 quotes“Christ with me,Christ before me,Christ behind me,Christ in me,Christ beneath me,Christ above me,Christ on my right,Christ on my left,Christ when I lie down,Christ when I sit down,Christ when I arise,Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,Christ in every eye that sees me,Christ in every ear that hears me.””
“Give me liberty or give me death."[From a speech given at Saint John's Church in Richmond, Virginia on March 23, 1775 to the Virginia House of Burgesses; as first published in print in 1817 in William Wirt's .]””
“We are familiar with people who seek out solitude: penitents, failures, saints, or prophets. They retreat to deserts, preferably, where they live on locusts and honey. Others, however, live in caves or cells on remote islands; some-more spectacularly-squat in cages mounted high atop poles swaying in the breeze. They do this to be nearer God. Their solitude is a self-moritification by which they do penance. They act in the belief that they are living a life pleasing to God. Or they wait months, years, for their solitude to be broken by some divine message that they hope then speedily to broadcast among mankind.Grenouille's case was nothing of the sort. There was not the least notion of God in his head. He was not doing penance or wating for some supernatural inspiration. He had withdrawn solely for his own pleasure, only to be near to himself. No longer distracted by anything external, he basked in his own existence and found it splendid. He lay in his stony crypt like his own corpse, hardly breathing, his heart hardly beating-and yet lived as intensively and dissolutely as ever a rake lived in the wide world outside.””
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