Saint Patrickis the Patron Saint of Ireland, but around 385 CE he was born in Cymru (Wales) and named Maewyn. Maewyn wasn't known for his great scholarship, indeed he almost didn't become bishop of Ireland because he was considered under educated!
Maewyn was a good Cymru Pagan until events beyond his control led him into the Church and the fame he later achieved. When Maewyn was 16 years young his village was raided by Irish marauders and he was sold into slavery. After six years however he escaped and fled to Gaul. There he studied in the monastery under Saint Germain (the bishop of Auxerre) for twelve years. During his training Maewyn embraced the Roman Catholic faith and began converting other Pagans to his new found religion.
Maewyn requested a transfer to Ireland so as to convert to the Pagans there to the Church (arguably in revenge for his having been enslaved by them). His request was declined however and Saint Palladius was appointed instead. Two years later Palladius was transferred to Scotland and then Patrick, as Maewyn was came to be known (the Church often renamed people whose names hinted of their non-Catholic past), was appointed the second bishop to Ireland.
Patrick was very successful as a bishop and had "a silver tongue." He managed to convince many Pagans that Jesus had actually been prophesied by their own ancient traditions; thus as good Celts they were honor bound to embrace his Church! Sheer genius! Many Celts still believe this and hold it as a matter ethnic pride.
The Pagans of the Misty Isles had many ancient legions about the "Once and Future King" that predated the Church and its Sangreal (Holy Grael) Mysteries, but these had nothing to do with the coming of Jesus anymore than the Jewish prophecies did. Their traditions were effectively utilized however and Ireland soon fell to the Papal Church will relative ease.
This doesn't mean there was not opposition however! The Druids were convinced that Patrick was a fraud who was deceiving the Irish by citing these traditions out of context. They opposed him doggedly. On several occasions they placed the missionary cleric in prison, but each time he managed to escape and hence his fame grew among the populace. As the victors write the histories, many of Maewyn's exploits and escapes are coated with myth and legion that those who are interested in the Mysteries of the Sangreal and the coming Merovingian (or Meroving) King are Wise to consider.
In time of course "Saint Patrick" established several churches, chapels, schools, and monasteries throughout the country and squelched the indigenous faith of the people to the point that today the old Irish religion of the Misty Isles appears to be virtually non-existent.
As the Pagans of the Isles fell before the onslaught of the Roman Church amazing stories arose about Bishop Patrick. In many of these stories one can see glimpses of the earlier Pagan beliefs as if the tellers, believing the Old Religion would one day arise from the ashes of the Church, embedded pointers and hints to aid in the reemergence of the Old Ways. The Churches and traditions of the Isles are replete with examples of this underground Pagan conviction. This can be a most fascinating and surprisingly relevant study now that Christianity is on the decline!
We are told for instance that Patrick raised the dead, that once he gave a sermon on a hilltop so powerful that it drove all the snakes from Ireland! His life spawned many such stories. But, what do such tales really conceal? Who or what are these "dead" whom he raised? What can we learn from "the hill" and "the snakes?" There is much grist for the mill in Maewyn's mythologies for those with informed/intuitive determination!
Likewise with the Shamrock. It is commonly believed that Saint Patrick used the three leafed shamrock to explain the notion of the Christian Trinity to the astonishment of the people. This was just another "pointer however." The significance of the shamrock, with its emerald color and ancient triune mysteries, were not lost on the mystically informed Pagans! They utilized this universal Pagan symbol long before the Church embraced the Pagan teaching of the three-fold unity!
While most people today don't understand the mystical significances of the Pagan "Law of the Three," portrayed by the Three Leafed Clover according to the Irish Pagans, some still do. When these Pagans publicly display this image on Maewyn's Feast Day (i.e. Saint Patrick's Day) they are not referencing the Christian Trinity! The Old Ways survived in hiding and remain concealed but present in our day. The Old Religion never completely died in the Misty Isles. Indeed, according to many of the historically connected Pagans, through a series of unfortunate recastings, the Old Ways are even now witnessing the demise of the Church and will again reign supreme, even as the old Celtic Seers foretold.
After thirty years of effective ministry Maewyn/Patrick retired to County Down and on March 17th, the day known as Saint Patrick's Day. According to the Pagans, Maewyn left his body and continues his sojourn, as must we all.
In 1762 New Yorkers celebrated the first Saint Patrick's Day Parade. Originally it was observed by Irish veterans in the English army, however soon other New World Irish folk joined in and eventually it was declared that on this day "Everyone is at least a wee bit Irish!" Today, on this one day, it common to see African Irish, Asian Irish, Jewish Irish, even English Irish swilling pints of green ale and eating corned beef. It is ironic that a man who so fiercely opposed Paganism and insisted on Christian propriety should be the father of a holiday dedicated to drunken revelry that would make any Welsh or Irish Pagan proud. The Feast of Maewyn is a hedonist celebration that is second only to another Roman Catholic holiday for its spirit of hedonistic abandon, Mardi Gras (and its Fat Tuesday), only without the bothersome Ash Wednesday repentance!
It may also be argued, given the long standing claim that the first century Jew Joseph of Arimathea retired to the Misty Isles, that there could be a wee spot of Purim involved as well!
In Ireland the feast is also honored, but historically the pubs were ordered closed on this day and there was no green beer or ale available! Saint Patrick's Day was supposed to be a day for pious reflection and re-dedication of oneself to Christian purity and piety! But its Pagan followers pushed the feast beyond that. The Pagan elements have been increasing since the 1970's and around 1995 the Irish government began pushing the holiday for the tourist dollars. Today over a million people party hardy in Dublin each year in honor of the pious, tea totaling Welsh Saint!
It seems that Catholic Irish piety isn't what it once was! The Church is clearly in decline everywhere.
It appears "the Snakes" are again finding a welcoming environment in Ireland!
The official Church sanctioned color for Saint Patrick is blue, not green, however due to the amount of rainfall (said to symbolize the blessings of the gods on the land) green is the observed color. Ireland is green year round and hence (in part) is known as the Emerald Isle. It is for this reason that those "who wear the green" are said to be blessed, especially on Saint Patrick's Day.
But Beware!
If you don't "Wear the Green" on this day the goblin's may pinch your bum!
