Patrick was born along the west coast of Roman Britain. His father, Calpur-nius, was a Roman citizen and a deacon. His mother, Concessa, gave their child the Latin name Patricius. Being the son of a deacon, Patrick was brought up a Christian, with the sense that Rome was the spiritual and cultural center of the universe.

When Patrick was a teenager, a group of Irish raiders attacked his family's estate. His parents were not home at the time, but Patrick, along with many of his family's servants, was taken hostage and forced to live in Ireland as a slave.

It can be difficult to appreciate how rugged Ireland was when Patrick was forcefully taken there. The land was wild, travel was extremely difficult, and Christianity existed only in small pockets. Many locals still worshiped the sun. The druids, an ancient Celtic priesthood, practiced rites involving oak and mistletoe, as well as — it is thought — human sacrifice.

Although Patrick must have been profoundly disoriented by all that he saw and experienced in Ireland, his master was kind and Patrick served him for six years.

During that time he experienced profound spiritual transformation. In his sleep, he heard a voice telling him, “Thou doest well to fast; thou shalt soon return to thy native land.” Patrick believed the voice and began planning his escape. He made his way safely across the country to the east coast town of Wicklow. Trading vessels were about to set sail. Patrick approached one and was taken aboard as a crewman.

Neither the nationality nor race of the crew is known, but Patrick says they were heathen. After sailing for three days, the ship landed along the shore of an unnamed country. They then made their way on foot through a “desert” for nearly a month.

Figure 6-3: St. Patrick

The crew ran out of food. One of the men told Patrick that they were going to starve, and asked if Patrick's God could save them. Patrick replied, “Nothing is impossible to the Lord my God. Turn to him truly, that he may send you food in your path this day till ye are filled, for he has plenty in all places.” Soon a drove of pigs appeared on the road, and the hungry crewmen killed enough to eat for days.

Scholars believe the boat landed along the southwest coast of Gaul, perhaps at what is now Bordeaux. The group supposedly traversed Gaul and then headed into Italy. It was probably in Italy that Patrick freed himself from the crew. He longed to return home to Britain. Along the way he spent several years at a cloister. When he finally reached home, he was greeted warmly.

He then studied at a monastery in Britain (or Gaul) and was ordained around 417 — although some scholars say Patrick never became an “officially” ordained priest. A series of powerful dreams then tugged him back toward the land of his enslavement. In one of the dreams, a man he knew from Ireland named Victoricus appeared to him holding multiple letters. He handed one, entitled “The Voice of the Irish,” to Patrick. Patrick opened the letter only to hear voices calling out to him, “Holy boy, we beg you to come and walk among us once more.”

About 10 years after he became a priest, he may have become a bishop. He eventually surrendered to the dreams and returned to Ireland. Although he sought to bring Christianity to the native people, his approach was respectful. He integrated aspects of the people's native religions into the Christianity he shared with them, superimposing the sun on the cross to create the Celtic cross — a perfect merging of natural symbol and religious faith.

Patrick spent 30 fruitful years in Ireland. He established a network of churches and monasteries throughout the country, all with native clergy. He worked to raise the standards of learning and in general to bring Ireland in line with other “progressive” countries that were allied with Rome. Despite all of his successes, Patrick suffered for his own lack of education, which was likely interrupted by his six years of slavery. He was always aware that his Latin was “rustic” and not quite up to par.

No one is quite sure where Patrick died or where he is buried, but his legacy lives on. His feast day of March 17 continues to be celebrated in Ireland, America, Canada, and Australia. Celebrations have also been reported in Singapore, Russia, and Japan. Although St. Patrick's feast day was historically a religious celebration, the feast falls during Lent, and was so significant in Ireland that fasting requirements were lifted for that day, perhaps giving rise to the celebratory character of the feast.

Patrick left two written works: The Confession, written when he was close to death and which serves as the chief source of biographical data, and Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus, in which he denounced the killing of a group of Irish Christians by marauding Christian Welshmen.