"The Life of St. Patrick" by Sophie Brown

I was putting my 8-year-old daughter to bed last night when she blurted out, "Daddy, you wanna hear the story of St. Patrick?" So while tucking her in I said, "Sure. Tell me about St. Patrick." Here's what she said ... all in one breath:

Once there was a boy who lived in England with his family. Then there was a war and the bad guys won. And every single English boy was taken away to Ireland to be someone's slave. Patrick was one of them. In Ireland, they worshiped false idols. But Patrick's master wasn't cruel to him. But still, when he grew up, he escaped and went back to England. Later, he went back to Ireland as a missionary. And once when he was trying to explain the Trinity to someone, he looked down and saw a three-leaf clover. He picked it up and said, "This leaf represents the Father; this one the Son; and this one the Holy Ghost." And he spread the gospel all over Ireland.

That's about right. But if you'd like a little more detail on the life of St. Patrick, here's a quick read from Christianity Today.

Still, I enjoyed Sophie's best.

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Once there was a boy who lived in England with his family. Then there was a war and the bad guys won. And every single English boy was taken away to Ireland to be someone's slave. Patrick was one of them. In Ireland, they worshiped false idols. But Patrick's master wasn't cruel to him. But still, when he grew up, he escaped and went back to England. Later, he went back to Ireland as a missionary. And once when he was trying to explain the Trinity to someone, he looked down and saw a three-leaf clover. He picked it up and said, "This leaf represents the Father; this one the Son; and this one the Holy Ghost." And he spread the gospel all over Ireland.

That's about right. But if you'd like a little more detail on the life of St. Patrick, here's a quick read from Christianity Today.

Still, I enjoyed Sophie's best.

Comments

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1. kaj said the following at 3:58 PM on Mar 17:

If St. Patrick were alive today, I wonder how he'd feel about all the hedonistic drunkenness that goes on "in his honor?"

That aside, I applaud the early Celtic Christians, those untainted by paganism. They produced artistic masterpieces such as the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels, and influenced Christian musicians such as Iona.

2. Andrew R. (aka Canadian Boy) said the following at 6:26 PM on Mar 17:

I prefer the dialogue I had with my minister during Youth Group, a few years back:

Minister: Nearly all holidays have some deep religious significance. For example, we celebrate St. Patrick's Day for the man who converted Ireland to Christianity.
Me: Bono?

3. Laura said the following at 6:35 PM on Mar 17:

Isn't a child's version of a tale absolutely precious! Working in child care, I hear so many stories of 'famous people' and there's no messing around, they just get straight to the heart of the matter in complete innocence. Thanks Motte - and thanks Sophie!

4. Jo said the following at 1:50 AM on Mar 18:

Haha, Laura's comment made me remember a conversation I had a long time ago with a 9 year old girl who was talking about Christmas being Jesus' birthday.

Me: How about you tell me the story of how Jesus was born?
Her (unimpressed): Don't you know it?

5. Matt said the following at 8:33 AM on Mar 18:

I like the story about the shamrock, whether it really happened or not. It reminds me of a funny time when I explained the Trinity to my five year old son. I must have done a horrible job because he said, "Oh, I see, I understand that... God three-in-one. You know what daddy, our dog Sammie is two-in-one." Again, what precious gifts children are. I didn't know we had a dog who was just one person of a single being. I learned something that day ;)

Thanks for the informative link.

6. kendra said the following at 8:53 PM on Mar 18:

I have been thinking lately along the same line as kaj in post 1. I live in residence at college and it is so sad to see how people have twisted the celebration of the gospel arriving in and spreading throughout Ireland into a time of drinking, partying, and more. I have been trying to spread the true background of this holiday to as many people as possible. I think that it's neat that St. Patrick's day ended up in the same week as Easter. It gives even more opportunities to share what Jesus did to save us from our sins.