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Learn about the life and legends of St. Patrick. Read how he brought Christianity to Ireland and how you can celebrate St. Patrick's Day with stories and activities. Also, learn about the history the Celts and Celtic spirituality, and send St. Patrick e-cards.

Seasonal Features
St. Patrick

Send a St. Patrick’s Day e-Greeting!

The St. Patrick You Never Knew
from St. Anthony Messenger
He didn’t chase the snakes out of Ireland and he may never have plucked a shamrock to teach the mystery of the Trinity. Yet, St. Patrick well deserves to be honored by the people of Ireland—and by downtrodden and excluded people everywhere.

Retreat with the Real St. Patrick
from A Retreat With Patrick: Discovering God In All
Discover the simple teaching of St. Patrick, his historical context and his journey through Celtic spirituality.

Journey Into Celtic Spirituality
from St. Anthony Messenger
Learn about the history of the Celts and Celtic spirituality in Ireland, the symbolism of Celtic art, music and literature and the influence of Celtic Christianity in the modern world.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day as a Family
from St. Anthony Messenger
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by learning the legends associated with this Catholic saint, learning about other Irish saints and participating in St. Patrick’s Day activities.

From Slave to Saint: St. Patrick
from American Catholic Radio
Listen to or download an audio clip on St. Patrick provided by American Catholic Radio.

St. Patrick: A Man of Action, Rock-Hard Faith
from Saint of the Day
Read and listen to the story of St. Patrick. Learn about this humble and courageous Catholic saint who brought Christianity to Ireland.

The Real St. Patrick
from Friar Jack’s E-spirations
Examine the real story of St. Patrick, full of adventure, faith and grace, beyond the mythic and cultural trappings of snakes, shamrocks, green beer and corned beef and cabbage.

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Rose Philippine Duchesne: Born in Grenoble, France, of a family that was among the new rich, Philippine learned political skills from her father and a love of the poor from her mother. The dominant feature of her temperament was a strong and dauntless will, which became the material—and the battlefield—of her holiness. She entered the convent at 19 and remained despite their opposition. As the French Revolution broke, the convent was closed, and she began taking care of the poor and sick, opened a school for street urchins and risked her life helping priests in the underground. <p>When the situation cooled, she personally rented her old convent, now a shambles, and tried to revive its religious life. The spirit was gone, and soon there were only four nuns left. They joined the infant Society of the Sacred Heart, whose young superior, St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, would be her lifelong friend. In a short time Philippine was a superior and supervisor of the novitiate and a school. But her ambition, since hearing tales of missionary work in Louisiana as a little girl, was to go to America and work among the Indians. At 49, she thought this would be her work. With four nuns, she spent 11 weeks at sea en route to New Orleans, and seven weeks more on the Mississippi to St. Louis. She then met one of the many disappointments of her life. The bishop had no place for them to live and work among Native Americans. Instead, he sent her to what she sadly called "the remotest village in the U.S.," St. Charles, Missouri. With characteristic drive and courage, she founded the first free school for girls west of the Mississippi. </p><p>It was a mistake. Though she was as hardy as any of the pioneer women in the wagons rolling west, cold and hunger drove them out—to Florissant, Missouri, where she founded the first Catholic Indian school, adding others in the territory. "In her first decade in America, Mother Duchesne suffered practically every hardship the frontier had to offer, except the threat of Indian massacre—poor lodging, shortages of food, drinking water, fuel and money, forest fires and blazing chimneys, the vagaries of the Missouri climate, cramped living quarters and the privation of all privacy, and the crude manners of children reared in rough surroundings and with only the slightest training in courtesy" (Louise Callan, R.S.C.J., <i>Philippine Duchesne</i>). </p><p>Finally, at 72, in poor health and retired, she got her lifelong wish. A mission was founded at Sugar Creek, Kansas, among the Potawatomi. She was taken along. Though she could not learn their language, they soon named her "Woman-Who-Prays-Always." While others taught, she prayed. Legend has it that Native American children sneaked behind her as she knelt and sprinkled bits of paper on her habit, and came back hours later to find them undisturbed. She died in 1852 at the age of 83.</p> What should I do about my son’s Jewish wedding? O Wisdom of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love: Come to teach us the path of knowledge!

 
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DVD! The World of St. Francis
The World of St. Francis: Past, Present and Future includes three programs on the life, times and influence of St. Francis.

 
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Thanksgiving
In America, Thanksgiving is one of the rare times when religion and civics intersect. Let us always give thanks and praise ...



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