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"Take
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§ The Legacy of the True Historical Patrick
by Richard Bennett |
Patrick
was born in the year 373[2][2]
in a town on the River Clyde in Roman Britain, now a part of
“before I
was humbled I was like a stone lying in deep mire, and He that is mighty came
and in His mercy raised me up and, indeed, lifted me high up and placed me on
top of the wall. And from there I ought
to shout out in gratitude to the Lord for His great favours in this world and
for ever, that the mind of man cannot measure.”[4][4]
Patrick,
like so many of the godly men of history, found God’s favor in the riches of
the grace of Christ. This was the theme
echoing throughout the testimony of Patrick, in his own words “I am greatly
God’s debtor, because he granted me so much grace.”[5][5]
He then grew in the grace of
God. Having believed on “the only
begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth,” [6][6]
he directly received “of his fullness…grace for grace.”[7][7] In his own words,
“More and
more did the love of God, and my fear of Him and faith increase, and my spirit
was moved so that in a day [I said] from one up to a hundred prayers, and in
the night a like number; besides I used to stay out in the forests and on the
mountain and I would wake up before daylight to pray in the snow, in icy
coldness, in rain, and I used to feel neither ill nor any slothfulness,
because, as I now see, the Spirit was burning in me at that time.”[8][8]
Patrick relates how,
after six years, he escaped and after a difficult journey on land and sea
returned to his people in
Like the
Apostle Paul, he received a clear and personal call from the Lord to preach the
Gospel in the land of his former captivity.
He described his call in these words,
“I saw a
man whose name was Victoricus coming as if from Ireland with innumerable
letters, and he gave me one of them, and I read the beginning of the
letter: ‘The Voice of the Irish’, and as
I was reading the beginning of the letter I seemed at that moment to hear the
voice of those who were beside the forest of Foclut which is near the western
sea, and they were crying as if with one voice:
‘We beg you, holy youth, that you shall come and shall walk again among
us.’ And I was stung intensely in my
heart so that I could read no more, and thus I awoke. Thanks be to God, because after so many years
the Lord bestowed on them according to their cry”[10][10]
He speaks
of being called again in dream another night, but makes it clear how he
interpreted what was happening by the Scriptures. He wrote, “‘Likewise the Spirit helps us
in our weakness; for we know not how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit
Himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for utterance.’” And again, “‘The Lord our advocate intercedes
for us.’” Thus, Patrick relies on
Scripture to understand his experience and to see that it was the Lord Himself
who was calling him. In his own
words, “‘He who gave his life for you, He it is who speaks within you.’”[11][11] He understood that Christ Jesus, who had died
for his sins, was the One who was calling him to work as an evangelist in the
very island where he had been held captive.
A second historical document from Patrick’s own hand is his letter to
Coroticus. In it he explains his
assignment from God to a foreign nation for the glory of eternal life that is
in Christ Jesus. His own words are the
following, “Thus I am a servant in Christ to a foreign nation for the
unspeakable glory of life everlasting which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”[12][12] This is a major factor in understanding
Patrick. He knew himself as a sinner and
found salvation where only sinners find it, “in Christ Jesus our Lord.”[13][13] The first words of his testimony read, “I,
Patrick, a sinner, a most simple countryman, the least of all the faithful and
most contemptible to many.” Likewise, in
the beginning of his letter to Coroticus he states, “I, Patrick, a sinner,
unlearned, resident in
Patrick, the
Christian Evangelist, being about 30 years old and together with some brothers
in the Lord, set out for
The work of Patrick and his associates in
“I am greatly God’s debtor, because he granted me
so much grace, that through me many people would be reborn in God, and soon
after confirmed, that clergy would be ordained everywhere for them, and the
masses lately come to belief, whom the Lord drew from the ends of the
earth. As He once promised through His
prophets: ‘To you shall the nations come
from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Our fathers have inherited naught
but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit.’ And again, ‘I have set you to be a light
for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the uttermost ends of the
earth.’ And I wish to wait then for
His promise which is never unfulfilled, just as it is promised in the Gospel.”[17][17]
He wrote of baptizing many thousands of believers after they had
professed faith.[18][18]
He also wrote about anxious journeys, difficulties, and
disappointments. He combated the powers
of darkness in the priesthood of the Druids.
He relied on Christ Jesus and the glorious Holy Spirit given to convict
people of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He understood grace to be entirely from God
when he declared,
“I, alone, can do nothing unless He Himself
vouchsafes it to me. But let Him search
my heart and [my] nature, for I crave enough for it, even too much, and I am
ready for Him to grant me that I drink of His chalice, as He has granted to
others who love him. Therefore may it
never befall me to be separated by my God from His people whom He has won in
this most remote land. I pray God that
He gives me perseverance, and that He will deign that I should be a faithful
witness for His sake right up to the time of my passing.”[19][19]
Over the course of
60 years, Patrick went the length and breadth of
The clarity of the
Gospel message cherished by Patrick and those who worked with him was to live
on for many years after him. There were many famous missionaries like Patrick
such as Columba and his companions who set out for Scotland in 563. Then there was Columbanus with his companions
that went to evangelize France and Germany in 612. Kilian and the brothers that accompanied him
went as missionaries to Franconia and Wurzburg in 680. Forannan and twelve brothers with him set out
to bring the Gospel to the Belgian frontier in 970.[20][20]
For more than six hundred years,
Irish missionaries carried the Gospel with the same truthfulness as
Patrick’s to Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy and beyond. Darkness covered Europe in the ninth and
tenth centuries. The Dark Ages had begun
and the Roman Church, having gained rulership through intrigue and persecution,
now held most of Europe in her iron grip.
Even so, in those dark centuries, the Irish missionaries continued to
spread the true Gospel, seed which for centuries to come would bear much good
fruit all across Europe.
With the coming of the Danes in the
ninth century, however, the Celtic Church in Ireland began to loose its
Biblical clarity. Further, Papal Rome
began to unleash military power to bring Ireland under her control. This began with the decree of Pope Adrian IV
issued to King Henry II of England in 1155.
The Pope authorized the invasion of Ireland and sent the king a ring of
investiture as Lord of Ireland, calling upon the monarch to, “to extirpate the
vices that have there taken root, [in Ireland]…saving to St. Peter and the holy
Roman Church the annual pension of one penny from each house.”[21][21]
King Henry carried
out the designs of the Papacy in 1171 and with a strong military force subdued
the whole Irish nation. He received from
every Archbishop and Bishop, at the Synod of Cashel in 1172 charters whereby
they confirmed the Kingdom of Ireland to him and his heirs. The King sent a transcript of these charters
to Pope Alexander III, who, according to the letters of the Archbishops and
Bishops, was extremely gratified by the extension of his dominion, and in 1172
issued a bull confirming the Papal decree of Pope Adrian. Further rulings were sent from Rome to Henry
II and to the princes and nobles of Ireland, and to the bishops of Ireland to
establish the hierarchy over the people and pastors and enjoin obedience of
both Ireland and England to the Papal throne.
The
heartbeat and the soul of Patrick was the Gospel of Christ. He wrote in his testimony,
“I am
imperfect in many things, nevertheless, I want my brethren and kinsfolk to know
my nature so that they may be able to perceive my soul’s desire. I am not ignorant of what is said of my Lord
in the Psalm: ‘You destroy those who speak a lie and a lying mouth deals death
to the soul.’ Likewise the Lord says in
the Gospel, ‘In the day of judgment, men shall render an account for every idle
word they utter’’ So it is that I should fear mightily, with terror and
trembling, this judgment on the day when no one shall be able to steal away or
hide, but each one shall render account for even our smallest sins before the
judgment seat of Christ.”[22][22]
These words of
Patrick are as a prophetic trumpet of the Lord.
It is most serious to steal the legacy from the people of the nation,
particularly when that heritage was life and light in Christ Jesus! Many Irish have grown up engrossed in the
rites and rituals of Roman Catholicism.
Many of us, turning from those dead things and having drunk deeply of
the Biblical grace of God that is in Christ Jesus,
now want to stand on Patrick’s words, “no one shall be able to steal
away or hide, but each one shall render account for even our smallest sins
before the judgment seat of Christ.” To
publish abroad the Gospel of God’s chosen in Christ “before the
foundation of the world”[23][23] is our longing now, as it was Patrick’s
then. The
wonder of Patrick’s life was simply God’s grace in Christ Jesus. The divine call to the true Gospel went forth
from Ireland for more than 600 years. Just as
Patrick expected the power of God’s grace to overcome the priesthood of the
Druids, we now stand for the same Biblical Gospel that he preached to
evangelize even those in the Catholic priesthood and hierarchy. The battle is the Lord’s and the victory will
be His. “Fear
not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the
kingdom.”[24][24] In the legacy of Patrick, we pray
Christ words, “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be
with me where I am.”[25][25] The frightening words of the Lord ring in the
ears of those who spend their lives in man-made religion, “Not every one
that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he
that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.”[26][26]
No person by merely acknowledging
Christ through a priesthood and sacraments shall have any part with God in Him,
but only the one who does the will of His Father. The Lord made the will of the Father
abundantly clear when He said, “this is the work of God, that ye believe on
him whom he hath sent.”[27][27] “Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not
your hearts….”[28][28] As Christ Jesus’ Gospel stands, so also
is His call on your life. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the word of God.”[29][29] Believe on Him alone for, “this is the record, that God hath
given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that
hath not the Son of God hath not life.”[30][30] Then you will stand where before you Patrick stood immoveable,
and this is how it will be for all eternity.
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things
are become new.”[31][31] “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not
partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” §
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[1][1] The
Confession of Patrick, http://irelandnow.com/legends/confession.html,
1/29/03, p. 1.
[2][2] “According to the best authorities,
Patrick was born about A.D. 373; and Lanigan has adduced good evidence to prove
that he died in A.D. 465 (Apud Lanigan, vol. iv. p. 112). The Book of Armagh furnishes corroborative
evidence of the same fact. It says,
‘From the passion of Christ to the death of Patrick there were 436 years.’ The crucifixion took place about A.D. 30; and
adding these thirty years to the 436 that intervened between the crucifixion
and the death of Patrick, we arrive at A.D. 466 as the year of his demise. Traditions of the highest authority attest
that he spent sixty years in preaching the Gospel to the Scoto-Irish.” From,
“St. Patrick: Apostle of Ireland” in History of the Scottish Nation by J.A.
Wylie (London: Hamilton, Adams & Co.
Andrew Elliot, Edinburgh 1886) Vol. II, Ch 9.
[3][3] The Confession of Patrick, p. 2.
[4][4] Ibid., p. 2.
[5][5] Ibid., p. 5.
[6][6] John 1:14.
[7][7] John 1:16.
[8][8] The Confession of Patrick, p. 2.
[9][9] The Confession of Patrick, p. 3.
[10][10] Ibid., p 3.
[11][11] Ibid., p. 3.
[12][12][ Letter
to Coroticus, http://prayerfoundation.org/st_patricks_letter_to_coroticus.htm 1/30/03, p. 2.
[13][13] “…that I may win Christ, and be found
in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which
is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith..”
Philippians 3:8-9
[14][14] “The Church affirms that for believers
the sacraments of the New Covenant are necessary for salvation.” (italic in the original). Catechism
of the Catholic Church, Second ed., (United States Catholic Conference,
1997) Para. 1129.
[15][15] The historian, J A Wylie goes to great lengths
of demonstrate the fact that Patrick came to Ireland to evangelise in 405. Among others, he quotes Dr. Killen as saying
“‘Its [i.e., this fact] claims to have been acknowledged by the best critics of
all denominations,’ by Usher, Ware, Tillemont, Lanigan, and Neander….He [Dr.
Killen] thinks that Patrick arrived in Ireland immediately after the death of
Nial, or Nial of the Nine Hostages, in the year 405.’” From “St Patrick: Apostle of Ireland” by J.A. Wylie in History
of the Scottish Nation, Vol. II, Ch. 13, endnote No. 4.
[16][16] Philip Schaff, History of the Christian
Church, Vol. 4, Ch. 2, Sect. 14, “The Conversion of Ireland”.
[17][17] The Confession of Patrick, p. 5.
[18][18] Ibid., p. 2.
[19][19] Ibid p 8
[20][20] For a more complete list, see Philip Schaff, History of the
Christian Church, Vol. 4, Ch. 2, “Conversion of Northern and Western
Barbarians”, Sect. 15, “The Irish Church after St. Patrick. The Missionary Period”.
[21][21] The full text of the Papal Bull of Pope Adrian
IV that empowered king Henry II to conquer and subdue Christian churches to
Rome can be read at: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/medieval/bullad.htm
2/1/2003
[22][22] The
Confession of Patrick,
p. 8.
[23][23] Ephesians 1:4
[24][24] Luke 12:32
[25][25] John 17:24
[26][26] Matthew 7:21
[27][27] John 6:29
[28][28] Hebrews 3:7, 8
[29][29] Romans 10:17
[30][30] 1 John 5:11-12
[31][31] II Corinthians 5:17