March 17, 2015
St. Patrick’s Day

“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions just as I handed them on to you.”
1 Corinthians 11:1-2

“Saint Patrick’s Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (Irish: Lá Fhéile Pádraig, “the Day of the Festival of Patrick”), is a cultural and religious celebration occurring annually on 17 March, the death date of the most commonly-recognized patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick (c. AD 385–461). When he was about 16, he was captured from his home in Great Britain by Irish Pirates, and taken as a slave to Ireland, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to northern and western Ireland. In later life, he served as an ordained bishop, but little is known about the places where he worked. By the seventh century, he had already come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.” Wikipedia.org

It is interesting how our secular society can turn a religious holiday into a secular shadow of its former self. In many college towns and on many a college campus, the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day has nothing to do with his ministry, and everything to do with drinking any alcohol that can be turned green. It literally has become a day that local residents and police dread. For the country of Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a day of national celebration. Saint Patrick’s Day has been a holy day of obligation for Roman Catholics in Ireland in the past. It is also a feast day in the Church of Ireland, with the secular celebration held on March 17. In 1903 Ireland made it an official public holiday. The question I would ask today is, besides wearing something green, what will you do to remember St. Patrick and his ministry?

We are to be imitators of Christ. We can also be imitators of those who were imitators of Christ – like our man St. Patrick. We are part of a great cloud of witnesses who have gone on before us – and as people of faith we actually carry on their legacy. I do not want my participation in this great cloud of witnesses to be simply wearing green. Instead, I can live in the manner that St. Patrick did – to not give up in the face of danger and difficulty – to witness to my faith no matter where I am – to persevere in difficult surroundings. Whether it is St. Patrick, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Peter, or St. Matthias, remember, Martin Luther said we are all saints – we are simultaneously saint and sinner – we carry on the priesthood of all believers. Today, yes, wear your green, but don’t forget to live out your faith.

Pastor Dave