On the Evangelization and Re-Evangelization of Ireland

Just as Italy needs a new Peter, Spain a new James, Germany a new Boniface, France a new Denis, and England a new Augustine, Ireland is in need of a new Patrick.

The ruins of Bective Abby, a Cistercian abbey on the River Boyne in Bective, County Meath, Ireland. (Jonathan Bowers | Unsplash.com)

Today millions around the world celebrate the feast of one of the Church’s greatest sons, the “Apostle of Ireland” St. Patrick. The revelry that so characterizes the day is rooted more in cultural pride than anything else. Little is remembered of St. Patrick. He drove the snakes out of Ireland, entered contests to the death with the pagan Druids and used the shamrock to explain the the Trinity. Besides these pious tales, however, rarely is anything more known about him. Which is a shame, for the true story of his labors to convert Ireland is more compelling than the later medieval legends. The saint’s two short letters: Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus and Confession make for good reading on this feast day to best come to know his captivating story, which is from start to finish a divine adventure.

But this St. Patrick’s Day is not like the others. It is the first since last spring’s referendum, in which 66.4% of the Irish population voted to legalize abortion, leaving us to wonder, have the snakes returned to Ireland? This appalling result epitomizes the rapid decline of the Church in a land Pope Saint Paul VI once called “the most Catholic country in the world” and Pope Saint John Paul II once lauded as “semper fidelis”—always faithful.

As the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Patrick today, are we left with the sad conclusion that the work of the “Apostle of Ireland” has been undone?

In many ways the answer is simply “Yes.” The Church’s own failings in the child sexual abuse crisis have played no small part in this. The structure of the Church that Patrick built up remains, but the soul of the nation is far from God. It held out longer than most, but Ireland must now be added to the list. Just as Italy needs a new Peter, Spain a new James, Germany a new Boniface, France a new Denis, and England a new Augustine, Ireland is in need of a new Patrick to re-evangelize this once great Catholic nation. As we pray for this on today’s feast, let us take both insight and inspiration from how the Gospel took hold of Ireland in the first place.

Traditionally, today’s saint has been credited with converting the entire Irish race from paganism in the very short period between 432 and 461. This is, however, not quite the case. Even lesser known than the actual glories of Patrick’s missionary endeavors is the Christian presence on the island that preceded him.

Christianity arrived on the shores of Ireland probably in the fourth or early fifth century through the trading links that existed with Britain and Gaul. British captives seized by Irish raiders are another possible means for the arrival of Christianity on the island, as in the famous case of Patrick himself. At the time, Christianity only really took root in the south of Ireland. In the medieval period, there was a dispute between the See of Armagh in Ulster to the north and the local churches of Munster to the south. Armagh claimed supremacy over the other churches on the island as the primatial see due to its having been established first by Patrick himself. Local churches to the south were resistant to this claim, particularly in response to the financial obligations imposed upon them as a subordinate church. They countered by claiming their own missionary founders arrived before Patrick and thus, Armagh did not have priority over them. Tales of the miracles and wonders worked by Ailbe, Declán, Ibar and Ciarán—the four pre-Patrician saints of Munster derive from this period amid the dispute.

The first recorded missionary to Ireland was the bishop, St. Palladius from Auxerre in Gaul. He was an archdeacon of Pope Celestine, and was assigned to assist with the Church’s mission in combating the Pelagian heresy in Britain. When a letter arrived on Pope Celestine’s desk from a group of Christians in Ireland requesting a bishop for themselves, Palladius was thought to be a good candidate. It was an opportunity for the Pope to ensure an anti-Pelagian bishop was rooted in Ireland in case that heresy began to flow into the country across the Irish Sea.

In 431 Pope Celestine sent him on a mission to “the Irish believing in Christ”. Thus, we know for sure that Patrick was not even the first bishop to set foot on Irish soil, nevermind the the first Christian. Palladius was ordained a bishop and sent. Though little is known of his mission, all the Irish annals agree in their account that it was a failure. It is said he was banished by the King of Leinster and forced to return to Britain. The early medieval Irish historian and monk Muirchú relates: “The wild men of Ireland would not listen to his preaching nor did he himself wish to remain in a foreign land. He decided to return to Celestine, but after crossing the Irish Sea, died in Britain during his journey home.” (The above information on the arrival of Christianity in Ireland and quotations were taken from Philip Freeman’s 2004 book St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography).

He was immediately replaced by Patrick whose mission to Ireland began in 432. Perhaps Patrick met with success because he knew Ireland well, and understood its people, language, and customs from his time in captivity there as a youth.

Patrick devised a successful and settled strategy in his mission to the Irish. Whenever he entered a district he would first present himself to the local king and give him gifts in accord with the proper Celtic custom. He would request two favors which were usually granted: a title to a plot of land to build a church and permission to preach the Gospel to the locals. Though the kings were reticent to embrace Christianity lest the social order which was favorable to them be disrupted, their children were eager to learn. As Patrick recounts in his Confession:

How wonderful it is that here in Ireland a people who never had any knowledge of God—who until now have worshipped idols and impure things—have recently became a people of the Lord and are now called children of God. You can see the sons and daughters of Irish kings have become brothers and virgins for Christ…But many of them do this against the wishes of their parents. Indeed, their families sometimes punish them cruelly and make all sorts of horrible accusations against them. Still, the number of such virgins who have chosen this new life continues to grow so that I can’t keep track of them all.

Patrick was willing to risk death at the hands of his enemies the Druids and travel to what was then considered the ends of the earth to win the souls of the Irish for Christ:

For your sake, my Irish Christians, I traveled everywhere among great dangers. I even went to the most remote parts of the island—places at the very edge of the world, places no one had ever been before—to baptize and ordain clergy and confirm people in the faith. I did it all, with the help of God, gladly and joyfully for your sake.

All this laid the groundwork for the mass conversion of the Irish as Patrick relates having personally baptized “countless converts”.

The church founded by Patrick had three distinct characteristics: it was Celtic, monastic, and missionary. The native Celtic culture was transformed by the Gospel from within without being eradicated. By the 500s monastic foundations had spread throughout the country. Though intended as secluded places of prayer, they soon become the object of the patronage of the kings and the wealthy and people were drawn to build settlements around them and they became centers of economy and learning. From the monasteries came missionaries: first to the pagan Picts of Scotland and later to the barbarian tribes settling in the ruins of the Roman provinces of northern Europe. The two most famous of these missionaries, St. Columba (or Colm Cille), established the famous monastery at Iona of the western Scottish coast in 563, and St. Columbanus, who made it as far as Lombardy in Italy where he is buried at Bobbio Abbey.

It is for theses reasons that Ireland is known as the land of “Saints and Scholars” as their production of books and missionaries was a source of light in the dark period of early medieval history when the Roman Empire fell to pagan tribes.

God knows what the future holds for Ireland. There is still faith on the island despite the common impression there is nothing left in light of last year’s abortion referendum. There are still more practicing Catholics than in most western European countries. Could God’s rightful place at the center of Irish society be restored and this small country once again become a light to the nations?

I think this work will have to be built off the foundation of two currents: the pro-life movement and monasticism. Just think of what the pro-life movement has meant to the Church in our own country since Roe v. Wade in 1973. The horror of abortion has jolted many of the lukewarm into a fervent practice of the Faith, and the Church’s pro-life witness has inspired many conversions. A similar effect could happen in Ireland. But, as our Lord says, a demon such as this can only be cast out by “prayer and fasting” (Matt 17:21). The evangelization or re-evangelization of any society must be rooted in prayer and penance offered to God. I am greatly impressed by the new monastic foundation of Silverstream Priory in Co. Meath, which was established in 2012. After so many Irish priests and monks were sent to the ends of the earth as missionaries, American monks have now come to Ireland to “return the favor” by starting a fresh work for the good of the Church there. These monks are dedicated to ceaseless prayer before the Blessed Sacrament in a spirit of reparation. Their numbers are growing rapidly, which is a sign of great hope.

Through the intercession of St. Patrick, may the work of re-evangelization return Ireland and all of the Christian West back to it its greatest legacy, the Catholic Faith.


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About Father Seán Connolly 71 Articles
Father Seán Connolly is a priest of the Archdiocese of New York. Ordained in 2015, he has an undergraduate degree in the Classics from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts as well as a Bachelor of Sacred Theology, Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in Theology from Saint Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, New York. In addition to his parochial duties, he writes for The Catholic World Report, The National Catholic Register and The Wanderer.

11 Comments

  1. What a great article about St.Patrick and the early history of the Church in Ireland! I appreciate the historical context and the mention of the ancient Irish saints. I thank God for St. Patrick’s work to convert the people of Ireland, as I can probably trace my faith back to his efforts and for that I am forever grateful! It is so heartbreaking that Ireland is welcoming abortion to their land, especially at this late stage when we can see the devastating effects of legal abortion after over 40 years in this country. There is no pretending that the unborn child is just a clump of cells, as science and for example ultrasound technology has shown us otherwise. To champion abortion at this point in time is to be on the wrong side of history and humanity. “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” Jesus, protect and save the unborn. We pray for the conversion of America’s heart and Ireland’s heart for the end of abortion. St. Patrick pray for us! Our Lady of Knock pray for us! Thank you Father Sean for this appropriate homage to St. Patrick in honor of his feast day.

  2. May St. Patrick join our prayers with his, and ask The Most High to give us the grace witness to the Gospel, in every place in which our forebears once lived, and believed.

    Thank you Father Connolly, and May Christ surround you, as he surrounded St. Patrick.

    Happy Feast of St. Patrick.

  3. Thank you Father, for this article. Wonderful reflection on the feast day of this holy saint. . I pray as you say in your opening, for more Holy saints to rise up, through God’s grace. St Patrick. Ora pro nobis!

  4. Father, for what its worth, I think you’ve identified something in your article that is so absolutely imperative for the restoration of the Christian faith in the west that has been almost completely overlooked; monasticism. The years following the Council have seen so much devastation that its hard to pick where even to begin, but, priests and bishops of good will who want to see to the salvation of souls and the good of the Church can begin with 1) restoring the ancient liturgy and 2) building monasteries.

    Without the latter, you and all your brother priests labor without the spiritual cover and vitality that a community of pray-ers brings to those who work for the harvest.

    Every single diocese in the world should – must – have the old Mass at its heart as well as a community of those who are dedicated to God in prayer, unceasingly imploring Him for His grace and mercy.

  5. St. Patrick is one of my favorite saints, not only because of being Irish, but because of the qualities that can be found expressed in his Confessions. He mentions that when he was taken as a slave to Ireland to tend sheep and goats on the hills, he prayed 100 times during the day and 100 times at night and the love of God grew strong in his heart. His great missionary spirit perdured not only during the Dark Ages when there were more monasteries of Irish origin than Benedictine ones, but it was characteristic of the Church in Ireland up to the middle of the 20th century. For the most part, the ex-British colonies in Africa were evangelized by Irish priests. When I was an adolescent in the 1960s, Ireland had 7000 missionaries abroad and a population of some 3.5 million Catholics. We also cannot forget the large number of martyrs in the 16th and 17th centuries due to Protestant persecution, although only 17 have been beatified due to insufficient data on many of those who never made it to the altars, but were authentic martyrs.
    Although some two thirds of those who voted favored killing unborn babies, it should also be noted that only two thirds of the possible voters bothered to vote. Also, despite the tremenendous one sided propaganda financed by globalists such as George Soros, there were many truly devoted people who sacrificed themselves a great deal to get the pro-life message out. I think there is also a possible pro-life constituency among those who didn’t vote.
    Another problem is the extraordinary low number of seminarians, only 6 entering seminaries last year in a country that traditionally had a surplus of vocations. The bishops and the clergy have failed in many ways.
    It seems to me that many Irish people hold the naive notion that practically every evil that exists or has existed in Ireland has been the fault of the Catholic Church. So, we have had the attacks on nuns who ran laundries, others who ran orphanages, which belonged to the Sate at an historical period of great poverty in Ireland, and the rest of the world. We ought not to forget the level of destitution that existed among 90% of the population all over the world before the 20th century. The press in Ireland is probably even worse than in America.

  6. Very good blog you have here but I was wanting to know if you knew
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  7. My Mother’s family came from Dublin at the turn of the century. At that time there was the remnants of the potato famine of 1855. Ireland was
    “the most Catholic country in the world” and Pope Saint John Paul II once lauded as “semper fidelis”—always faithful. They were most faithful grandma had 16 children three of which died at birth. She nearly dies also. She once told us that even a pregnant married person could not enter the main entrance of the church. They had to use a side door to receive absolution from the priest. That was the epitome of a theologically controlled, “faithful”, country. I won’t go into the horrors of the Magdalene laundries.

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