Who was Saint Patrick?
Patrick grew up in Britain, where his father was a deacon. When he was about sixteen, raiders carried him off to Ireland, and he had to look after sheep on the cold hills. Far from home and lonely, Patrick began to pray, many times a day and many times a night, in snow, frost and rain.
After six years, he heard a voice in his sleep telling him a ship was ready. He walked a long way to the coast, found the ship and sailed home to his family. But later he dreamed that the people of Ireland were calling him, asking him to come back and walk among them.
Patrick studied, became a priest and then a bishop, and went back to Ireland. He traveled all over the island, baptized many people and ordained priests to care for them. An old story says he used a three-leaf shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity: one God in three Persons.
When is Saint Patrick’s feast day?
Saint Patrick’s feast day is March 17. It falls in Lent, but in Ireland it’s a great feast: families go to Mass, and many people wear a little shamrock.
Clara tells the whole story at bedtime, in the Little Prayer Stories app.Get the app →
