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Five Myths About St. Patrick (and His Day When We Swill Green Beer)
Raise a pint
St. Patrick is one of the most famous saints in history, in no small part because his lifelong ministry gave us an excuse 1600 years later to get totally hammered on green beer every March 17th. Though he is known as the Apostle of Ireland, he was actually born in Scotland in 387, the child of Romans living in Britain, and at 14 was captured by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland as a slave-shepherd.
Patrick escaped six years later, entered the priesthood, and ultimately returned to Ireland as a bishop. He and his disciples preached throughout the island, converting both common people and tribal chieftains and building churches. He remained in Ireland until his death on March 17, 461.
Those are the basic facts about St. Patrick. There are, however, considerably more myths and legends both about him and the day we now celebrate in his honor. Let’s look at a few of them.
1. Patrick was Irish. I already debunked this common myth in the first paragraph, but it bears repeating. The saint most associated with the Emerald Isle was actually both a Scot (by birth) and a Roman (by lineage). His love of the Irish and his ministry among them is indisputable, but he wasn’t actually Irish.
