Greetings, Whitesburg UMC, on this dreary Friday afternoon!
Sunday is St. Patrick’s Day! And no, before you ask……….we won’t be changing the paraments in the Sanctuary from purple to green!!!!! But feel to wear it! Or not. St. Patrick’s special day is one of those days that is of great importance to some and little or none to others! I know a guy who gathers with his friends every year without fail for food and green beer at their traditional table at the Irish Pub here in town. My niece lives in Savannah and always shares on Facebook the morning mass they attend, the parade news, the pictures of her house filled with guests (it looks like so much fun)! I never had fun like that. But I do remember as a child being told I had to wear green so I wouldn’t get pinched. St. Patrick is cool! It is said he got rid of all the snakes in Ireland. Not sure that’s true, but it is not something just anyone can put on a resume!
But, there is a deeper story – one from which we can all learn. The first time Patrick was in Ireland, it was not his choice. Born in Britain, he was kidnapped when he was 16 by Irish raiders and taken to the Emerald Isle where he was sold to the king as a slave. For six long years, he was forced to be a sheep herder in the hills – a hard slave life, as you can imagine. But all through the difficulty and his deep homesickness, Patrick not only kept his Christian faith, but nurtured and cared for it so that it grew stronger. He finally found a way to escape Ireland, and after traveling 200 miles, he made his way to a ship that would carry him home.
Back in Britain, he trained for the priesthood and believed that all his experiences had been ordained by God for some purpose. In a dream he heard voices telling him they needed him – calling him to come and live among them. But, here’s the thing: the voices were not British voices. They were Irish voices! So he went back to Ireland, to the very people who had stolen those 6 years from him and had treated him so poorly. It was the right thing to do. The God thing. He wound up changing their hearts and leading them to the love of Christ Jesus. He would eventually become their patron Saint!
Wearing green and drinking green beer and going to the parade and wearing silly costumes is always going to be a part of the day. But I love the idea of adding this other lesson: the lesson of choosing love over hate…… the lesson of the victory of forgiveness! St. Patrick is pretty cool!
Grace and Peace,
Rev. Martha Dye