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After the dead of winter, Saint Patrick’s Day is a welcome sign of spring, a day for wearing of the green, for the Irish and non-Irish alike. It’s a celebration of the Emerald Isle patron saint.
The story of Saint Patrick’s Day goes back to fifth century Britain, where a sixteen-yearold boy Maewyn Succat was kidnapped by Irish marauders. He remained a shepherd slave in Ireland for six years until a vision directed him to escape. Back home in Britain, Succat had another vision, backening him to help the people in Ireland. So he took his vows as a priest, adopted the Christian name Patrick, and in 432 AD returned to Ireland on a mission. In his
autobiography The Confesso, Patrick wrote about converting the Irish to Christianity while building schools and monasteries along Ireland North and West coast.

One popular myth has Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland. The truth is, there were never snakes on the island. This is probably a metaphor for Patrick cleansing the island of paganism. So why does the holiday fall on March 17th ? Supposedly it’s the day Patrick died on 461 AD. Since then, Irish Christians have marked the anniversary as a holiday. Beginning in the Middle Ages, Irish Catholics would close shops and attend church to honor the feast of Saint Patrick and it was time to celebrate. Saint Patrick’s day falls within lent, the season before Easter when Catholics give up their vices as penance. The feast of Saint Patrick was a one-day reprieve when Irish men could down a pint or two of ale. This custom really took off.

(Modifié par AUBERT Damien. Écrit initialement le vendredi 13 mai 2011, 11:13)