by David Pascoe
Chaplain, Primary Children’s Hospital
What’s with all the Saints? No, I don’t mean the Latter-day ones who made their home here in 1847. I mean the ones that show up on the calendar this time of year. St. Valentine’s Day. St. Patrick’s Day. What are we to make of these antiquated, sanctified characters that find their way to the greeting card and candy aisles in our grocery stores?
There was a time long ago when our calendar was full of saints: men and women down the ages whose lives (and deaths) were examples of faith. For example, January 20th was St. Sebastian, who miraculously survived being shot by dozens of arrows. February 3 was St. Blaise, who saved a child choking on a fish bone and became the one to pray to for a cure for a sore throat. There was St. Catherine on November 25, who was tortured by being tied to a wheel (hence the Catherine Wheel fireworks that spin as they burn). July 25 was St. Christopher, who became the patron saint of travelers. October 4 was St. Francis of Assisi, who could talk to the animals long before Doctor Dolittle. And so on, and so on, every day throughout the whole year. Very few have survived in 21st century American culture.
I grew up in Great Britain, where every country has its patron saint. March 1 is St. David’s Day, the patron saint of Wales. The English have St. George (who killed the dragon) on April 23. The Scots have St. Andrew’s Day on November 30. And the Irish have the most celebrated saint of all, St. Patrick, whose day is celebrated on March 17th.
It’s a shame that such an amazing individual as Patrick has become reduced to shamrocks, leprechauns and pots of gold at the ends of rainbows. Patrick was a man of drive, energy and vision – a real person from the 5th century who recorded this life in a book he called his Confessions. What a life he lived! He was captured by pirates as a boy and made a slave in Ireland, forced to herd his master’s pigs. Woken by a dream, he escaped on a ship, studied to become a Christian, then years later prompted by another dream, returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary. In the days before comic book Super Heroes, tales of Patrick’s miraculous powers must have enlivened many a cold night around the fireplace.
So is there anything of value for us beyond the shamrocks and green beer on St. Patrick’s Day? Certainly, a story of individual courage in the face of great adversity. Also, a firm belief in a mission of infinite value. And a deep faith in a Higher Power. Outside the realm of religion, these same principles inspired the American colonists who rose up against King George in 1776. They inspired those African Americans who crossed the bridge at Selma, Alabama, 50 years ago. Those same principles sustain parents I meet every day in our hospital. They also inspire the staff I work alongside, who often put in long, tiring hours fueled by their courage, their conviction, and their faith.
To all of you on St. Patrick’s Day:
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
– Irish Blessing
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