St. Patrick is one of the Catholic Church’s most famous saints. His story is one of deep personal faithfulness, which led him to the edge of the known world where he evangelized the whole of Ireland.

Patrick was born in 389 to parents who were Roman officials helping to govern far-flung colonies of the Roman empire in the British Isles. He was kidnapped when he was a teenager and sold as a slave to a chieftain in Ireland, where he tended sheep. He would spend his days in the mountains, and he came to rely on God through prayer.

He would even stay late in the wilderness to continue his prayer. “Constantly I used to pray in the daytime. Love of God … increased more and more, and my faith grew and my spirit was stirred up,” he wrote. “I prayed in the woods and on the mountain, even before dawn. I felt no hurt from the snow or ice or rain."

After six years of servitude, he heard voices in a dream that told him to prepare for a difficult journey. He took the dream as a sign and ran away from his captors, covering 200 miles to reach the coast of Ireland. There, he joined a ship that was headed for the European mainland.

The ship reached land in a desolate place and Patrick and the sailors wandered for months, looking for civilization. At one point, they ran out of provisions and were on the brink of starvation. The sailors ridiculed Patrick for being a Christian who believed in a loving God, who apparently was allowing him to die of starvation.

“Turn in good faith and with all your heart to the Lord my God, to whom nothing is impossible,” Patrick replied, “that this day God may send you food in your journey until you are satisfied, for God has abundance everywhere.” A herd of pigs suddenly appeared and the party had more than enough to eat.

They finally reached safety, and Patrick was eventually reunited with his family. They were overjoyed at his return and tried to make him promise to stay with them. Patrick was touched by the people he had come to know in Ireland, however, and voices returned to his dreams, telling him, “We beg you, holy youth, to come and walk among us once more.”

Patrick resolved to follow this call and left home. He first studied at several monasteries and was ordained a priest, and then a bishop, before being sent as a missionary to Ireland because of his knowledge of the language and customs of the people there.

As he began his ministry in Ireland, Patrick returned to the mountain on which he used to pray as a young shepherd, where he fasted and prayed for 40 days. There he had a vision of the vast multitude of holy people that this land would produce, thanks to his efforts, and this vision gave him consolation and strength to face the many difficulties and challenges ahead.

In Ireland, Patrick made his way among the different clans and kingdoms, confronting paganism. He asked the leaders of Ireland to come together at Tara, the ancient seat of power on the island. There, he preached the Gospel and overcame the signs and magic of the druid pagan priests with the story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Historical records confirm that some agreement was made there that allowed Patrick to continue his preaching.

The high king of Ireland was not converted, but members of his household were, which afforded Patrick some protection. Still, he faced much opposition and many threats to his life.

“Daily I expect either a violent death or to be robbed and reduced to slavery or the occurrence of some such calamity,” he wrote. “I have cast myself into the hands of the almighty God, for God rules everything. As the prophet says, ‘Cast your care upon the Lord, and God will sustain you.’”

At one point, his chariot driver, St. Odhran, was assassinated by a spear intended for Patrick.

Thanks to Patrick’s evangelization the Gospel spread through Ireland rapidly. He overthrew local idols and built churches on those spots, and he gathered many followers and helpers around him. In 444, a cathedral was erected in Armagh, and that became a center of learning and the primary place of leadership for the Church in Ireland.

People who came into contact with Patrick had a deep impression that he cared for them and loved God intensely. In about 30 years, Patrick converted the whole of Ireland to Christianity, baptizing and confirming thousands. Ireland became known as the “land of the saints” and its monasteries saved much of Europe’s learning during the Dark Ages—all thanks to Patrick.

Patrick died on this date and was buried where he built his first church in Ireland. Our featured image today shows him depicted in stained glass in the special collections reading room in the Hesburgh Library. The other stained glass window and statue are from Dillon Hall. St. Patrick’s relics rest in the reliquary chapel.

St. Patrick, apostle of Ireland—pray for us!