{Guest Post} Grow: St. Patrick's Day- A Short History (+ Recommended Resources)

Today's guest post comes from MaryAnn... a good friend of ours who is a mother of two young boys. She also wrote a post awhile back, do you remember? It was the marshmallow snowman activity.  We're thankful that she agreed to post again!

As my son, Aaron, watched me take down our Valentine’s Day decorations, he asked me what holiday we would be celebrating next.  I told him that Saint Patrick’s Day is the next holiday coming up, but that I didn’t have any decorations for it.  “Mommy, you need to go to the store and buy some!” was his response.  I probably will not rush out to purchase leprechauns and clovers, but it did get me thinking about what I want my children to know about Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.  (As well as the fact that McDonalds will be serving their oh-so-delicious shamrock shake – I have got to get one of those!)

Patrick lived in England, the very edge of the Roman Empire, during the fourth century.  While there are many legends about him, we do know that he was kidnapped from him home in England at the age of 16, and brought to Ireland where he was put to work as a slave.  Patrick cared for his master’s herds for six years, and during this time his faith in God grew.  Patrick was sustained through hours of prayer every day, growing closer to God.  Six years later he escaped from slavery, after hearing a voice from God tell him there was a ship waiting to bring him back home.

Reunited with his family, Patrick began training in the Catholic Church.  After several years, he again felt that God was specifically leading him, this time to return to Ireland to tell the people about God.  Now a Bishop, Patrick went back to Ireland and told the Irish people of God’s love for them.  Many accepted his message, and he became famous throughout the land.

There are two things that impress me the most about Saint Patrick’s incredible life – the things I want to make sure my children understand. The first is that Patrick responded to hardship with prayer and faith in God.  Sometimes I think I’ve really got problems in my life (hello, potty training!), but none of them compare to being kidnapped and put to work as a slave!  God was with Patrick and strengthened him, and since the Bible tells me that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13.8), I know that I can depend on him.  The second thing I want my kids to notice is that Patrick showed such great love to people he could have considered enemies.  He didn’t hold a grudge against these people, but instead followed God’s leading and spent the rest of his life sharing God’s love with them.  In my mind, these things are a whole lot more important than any “chasing all the snakes out” event that may (or may not) have occurred.

There are a few resources I found to help me interest my children in this story.  It was hard to find books at the library that were actually about Saint Patrick, but these two were pretty good. 

Patrick: Patron Saint of Ireland by Tomie dePaola, and St. Patrick’s Day by Gail Gibbons

You can also find a very funny and surprisingly accurate Veggie Tales movie about Saint Patrick by searching YouTube for “Veggie Tales Saint Patrick" or just watch the video below :).

One of the children’s books I read about Saint Patrick’s Day stated that everyone can celebrate Ireland’s history because on that day “we are all a little Irish”.  It made me think that maybe as Christians we are “all a little Irish”, because a few centuries after Saint Patrick spread Christianity through Ireland, the Vikings destroyed monasteries and churches throughout England and the rest of Europe. However, they did not reach Ireland, and so the copying of the scriptures and the teaching of God’s word continued, with Ireland eventually sending missionaries out to the rest of Europe to remind them of God’s love.

Hope these resources help as you teach your kids about St. Patrick's Day- I know they've helped me, so thanks Maryann!