St. Patrick was a Welsh or Romano-Briton youth captured, sold into slavery in Ireland, then miraculously brought back to his home. But because of visions he saw in his sleep, Patrick returned to Ireland, and this time, the former slave freed the island from the bondage of pagan lies. It took the faith that drove all snakes from Ireland to do so.
Patrick wrote parts of his own biography in his Confessio or Confession, so we can read his own personal recollection of his life-altering dream-vision. Interestingly, Patrick had multiple dream visions throughout his life, including one that instructed him on his escape from slavery in Ireland. But today, in honor of the “Apostle of Ireland’s” feast day, I want to focus on the vision wherein God gave Patrick his lifelong mission of converting Ireland, which, thanks to him, would become the keeper of Western civilization during the “Dark Ages” and the “Isle of Saints and Scholars.”
In Confession, Patrick writes about various trials and triumphs of his early life, and how he began his path toward the priesthood and eventually missionary work. After recounting a relatively brief recapture and his escape through divine aid, Patrick wrote, “A few years later I was again with my parents in Britain. They welcomed me as a son, and they pleaded with me that, after all the many tribulations I had undergone, I should never leave them again.”
But God willed it otherwise. Patrick recalled, “It was while I was there [with my parents] that I saw, in a vision in the night, a man whose name was Victoricus coming as it were from Ireland with so many letters they could not be counted. He gave me one of these, and I read the beginning of the letter, the voice of the Irish people.”
For our VIPs: 250 Years Ago, Americans Appealed to the ‘God of Armies.’ Our Military Needs Prayers Again.
Patrick went on:
While I was reading out the beginning of the letter, I thought I heard at that moment the voice of those who were beside the wood of Voclut, near the western sea. They called out as it were with one voice: “We beg you, holy boy, to come and walk again among us.” This touched my heart deeply, and I could not read any further; I woke up then. Thanks be to God, after many years the Lord granted them what they were calling for.
Soon after, Patrick had another message from God as he slept, reinforcing the fact that these were not mere dreams. “Another night – I do not know, God knows, whether it was within me or beside me – I heard authoritative words which I could hear but not understand, until at the end of the speech it became clear: ‘The one who gave his life for you, he it is who speaks in you’; and I awoke full of joy,” Patrick remembered. God had given him a mission to claim Ireland for Christ.
Pope Celestine I ordained Patrick a bishop and sent him to Ireland. The conversion of the Irish people did not exactly happen overnight, and Patrick had to endure many trials, including the aggressive opposition of pagan Druids, before he became successful. During one confrontation with the Druids, Patrick ordered all the snakes out of Ireland as proof of his God‘s omnipotence. There are no wild snakes in Ireland to this day.
For decades, Patrick traveled Ireland, converting thousands of people, introducing monastic life, and eventually establishing his episcopal seat at Armagh. The Bible says that faith can move mountains (Matthew 17:19), and Patrick had such faith that, based on his visions and his trust in God alone, he set out to claim an entire people for Christ.
Editor’s Note: Support and follow PJ Media’s coverage of holidays and other key news in this 250th year of America’s existence. Join PJ Media VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
