Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day celebrations have just taken place in many parts the globe. The Irish and the Irish-at-heart dressed up in green attires, celebrated their culture in parades and festivals, and some even attended church services.
But mostly, the holiday has become an excuse to consume large amounts of alcohol. Just so we are clear, I am certainly not condemning the consumption of alcohol (In fact, I would be probably be kicked out of Canada if I was, and maybe lose all my friends).
But this holiday made me wonder if we actually know what Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day is all about, or how this celebration started in the first place.
I was recently hanging out with a friend of mine at a pub in 亚洲天堂 Lake (I can assure you none of us were consuming large amounts of alcohol, so don鈥檛 believe the rumours, and don鈥檛 watch that You Tube video of us). My friend and I started talking about the meaning of holidays when we realized that we did not know why people celebrated Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day. We then asked one of the bartenders, as well as the people around us, if they knew. And guess what, nobody else knew either (but some people don鈥檛 quite understand my accent, so that could have been part of it).
We all know that we have to wear green and celebrate the Irish culture, but does anyone know why?
We were intrigued, so we did a quick Google search. We finally discovered that March 17 commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, as well as the heritage and culture of the Irish. The date also marks the death date of Saint Patrick. But who was Saint Patrick and what did he do for the Irish people?
Also known as the Apostle of Ireland, Saint Patrick was born in Britain around 460AD. While many of his life鈥檚 details were lost to folklore, it is believed that Saint Patrick was captured when he was 14 years old and taken to Ireland where he spent six years in slavery herding sheep, and during that time he supposedly became enlightened or 鈥渇ound God.鈥� According to tradition, Patrick returned to Ireland to convert the pagan Irish to Christianity.
The symbol of the shamrock used for Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day comes from the story of Saint Patrick using the shamrock to illustrate the Holy Trinity. The three-leafed plant coincided with the pagan religion鈥檚 sanctity of the number three and is the reason for the green colour we all wear on Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day. The shamrock also became the national flower of Ireland.
My friend and I started wondering about all the other holidays we celebrate but maybe don鈥檛 quite understand its meaning.
Think of Valentine鈥檚 Day for example. Do you know why this holiday came to be?
According to the legend, Saint Valentine of Rome was imprisoned for performing weddings for soldiers who were forbidden to marry, and for ministering to Christians, who were persecuted under the Roman Empire.
While we kept researching, we found out that there is even a meaning for Boxing Day! My skeptical mind thought this holiday was created strictly for commercial purposes. In fact, there are a few different theories as to the exact origin of this holiday. My favourite one, however, is that servants who worked on Christmas Day were given the next day off and presented with gift boxes from their employers.
Therefore, a holiday was created after Christmas so that servants could also have a chance to celebrate it.
I am well aware that Google could鈥檝e told you all I just said, but how often do we stop to research about the meaning of holidays? I hope you had a great Saint Patrick鈥檚 Day!
