Happy St. Patrick's Day! I used to celebrate St. Patrick's Day each year at my elementary school, St. Matthew's School. It was the one day the administration allowed us kids to forego our regular uniform and wear something else, as long as it was green. It was also a celebration day for half of the school which was Irish, the other Italian half received their day later in the year, Columbus Day. And then there was me, not only the sole Korean, but the sole Asian. This made for some fun times, and not so fun times, but that's another story.
I never really knew who Patrick was. I just knew that my friends would break out their "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" buttons, their shamrock pins, their leprechaun and pot of gold cookies. They would tell me that they were eating corned beef and cabbage that evening. That didn't seem all that special since I ate cabbage (granted, the fermented spicy kind) virtually every night. St. Paddy's Day was a day for the Irish, but I wore green in those days. Why not? It allowed me to wear something different for a change.
But little did I know that St. Patrick, or the Britton Patricius which was his real name, was a man who was dramatically converted to Christianity and risked life and limb for the sake of the gospel. In Patrick's day, Ireland, and really the whole British Isles, was not a nation at all, but a constantly changing landscape of so-called barbarians constantly at war with one another. Many were fiercely opposed to Christ and his gospel. And for this Britton slave who almost lost his life, to return as a follower of Christ to the land that almost took his life, is a testimony of the gospel and its power to truly change the world (Romans 1:16).
St. Patrick's Day is worth celebrating, whether one is Irish or not. As I type this, I am wearing my green shorts.. I just hope to continue Patrick's true legacy, not his love of Ireland which was undeniable, but ultimately, the love of his life, the advancement of Jesus' kingdom and His gospel.
I never really knew who Patrick was. I just knew that my friends would break out their "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" buttons, their shamrock pins, their leprechaun and pot of gold cookies. They would tell me that they were eating corned beef and cabbage that evening. That didn't seem all that special since I ate cabbage (granted, the fermented spicy kind) virtually every night. St. Paddy's Day was a day for the Irish, but I wore green in those days. Why not? It allowed me to wear something different for a change.
But little did I know that St. Patrick, or the Britton Patricius which was his real name, was a man who was dramatically converted to Christianity and risked life and limb for the sake of the gospel. In Patrick's day, Ireland, and really the whole British Isles, was not a nation at all, but a constantly changing landscape of so-called barbarians constantly at war with one another. Many were fiercely opposed to Christ and his gospel. And for this Britton slave who almost lost his life, to return as a follower of Christ to the land that almost took his life, is a testimony of the gospel and its power to truly change the world (Romans 1:16).
St. Patrick's Day is worth celebrating, whether one is Irish or not. As I type this, I am wearing my green shorts.. I just hope to continue Patrick's true legacy, not his love of Ireland which was undeniable, but ultimately, the love of his life, the advancement of Jesus' kingdom and His gospel.