As we focus on the Irish celebration of St. Patrick’s Day let’s take a moment to share how St. Patrick used the shamrock to teach people about God. Holding up a Shamrock, he challenged them, “Is this on leaf or three?” Inevitably people replied that if was both, prompting St. Patrick to draw an analogy that so too, is God: one God in three persons- The Holy Trinity.
Part of the Deal
Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, spread Christianity in the fifth century, helping people abandon pagan rites. One day he was baptizing new converts, including the chief of a fierce warrior person into the rushing river. As he baptized the chief, he inadvertenly pressed his staff down firmly on the chief’s foot.
The chief uttered not a word of complaint, but as he stepped back onto the bank, people noticed he was limping. Patrick apologized, asking, “Why did you not cry out when I struck your foot?”
The chief replied, “I remember you telling us about the nails in the cross. I thought pain was part of the baptism.- Homiletics
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