St. Patrick's Day – March 17th

Mar 17, 202318 min read

Saint Patrick's Day (Irish Lá Fhéile Pádraig) commemorates the Irish Bishop Patrick, who lived in the 5th century and is believed to be the first Christian missionary in Ireland. He is the patron and national saint of Ireland (Éire). Here you can find out how St. Patrick's Day is celebrated in Ireland and what traces the saint left behind in Styria 1,500 years after his lifetime.

St. Patrick banishes the serpents from the island of Ireland; in the background a typical Irish round tower*

St. Patrick's Life

According to his own testimony, Patrick (385-461) was born Maewyn Succat in Banna Venta Berniae in Roman Britain - according to another tradition in Scotland. His father Calpurnius was an official of the Roman occupying power and was later ordained a deacon; his grandfather was a priest. At the age of 15 he was kidnapped by Celtic warriors from his father's estate near the village of Bannauem Taburniae and taken to Ireland as a slave. According to tradition, he had to look after the sheep of the chief Maelchu/Miluic on Mount Slieve Mish – today's Slemish. During this time Patrick learned the Irish language.

Left to right: Mount Slemish (Ir. Sliabh Mis) is the remains of an extinct volcano near Ballymena in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Its height is 437 m. Its special appearance - its upper part is very steep and rugged in contrast to the flat fields in the foothills and the surrounding area - dominates the landscape for several kilometers in all directions. According to tradition, Saint Patrick found his connection to God here after being enslaved as a youth, brought to this area and tending flocks on the Slemish. Centre: Croagh Patrick (Irish: Cruach Phádraig) is a 764 meter high mountain in County Mayo in the west of the Republic of Ireland. He has the nickname The Reek (Hiberno-English for heaps). Croagh Patrick has been a place of pilgrimage in honour of Saint Patrick for hundreds of years. In 441, the patron saint of Ireland climbed this mountain, fasted there for 40 days and built a chapel. According to legend, he threw a bell down one side of the mountain and drove all the snakes from the island of Ireland. The place where the bell is said to have landed is a U-shaped valley. It was formed during the Ice Age and empties into Clew Bay. Right: Lough Derg, to which St. Patrick Caoránach is said to have banished the sea monsters, lies in the lower reaches of the River Shannon.

After six years he heard in a dream the promise that he would soon find his way home on a ship and should then announce the good news to the Irish. He then fled with the plan to return to the island as a missionary. He is said to have walked more than 200 kilometers to Wexford. Patricius lived as a monk in France and Italy. Despite initial resistance from his superiors, he went to Ireland in 432 and was appointed to succeed the first bishop, Palladius. Under the protection of the kings, he Christianized the island and built up an ecclesiastical organization. The local Celtic priests and teachers (druids) were hostile to him. Nevertheless, he made Ireland the proverbial "Island of Saints". The inhabitants associate many of the country's springs and stones with their patron.

The cult of St. Patricius/Patrick was widespread in Europe and came to America and Australia with Irish emigrants. In Ireland and Australia, St. Partrick's Day is a public holiday.

Depictions show him as a blessing bishop. Attributes are the shamrock - because the saint used it to explain the doctrine of the Trinity - snakes, which according to legend he drove out of the island, and fire.

St. Patrick is the patron saint of miners, cooperage, barbers, blacksmiths and cattle.

Depictions of St. Patrick; From left to right: Giovanni Battista Tiepolo: Patrick preaches, 1746, in the Municipal Museums in Padua; St. Patrick drives out the snakes; Stained glass window of St. Patrick from Saint Patrick's Catholic Church, Junction City, Ohio, United States; St. Patrick depicted on a contemporary deck of cards.

Legends of St. Patrick

In the legends he is known by different names: Succat was his name from birth. Corthirthiac he was called while serving in the House of Druids, Magonus, "famous" and finally Patricius after his ordination.

The St. Patrick's Legend

Legend has it that St. Patrick was tempted by the devil on a pilgrimage at Croagh Patrick. For his refusal to be tempted, God rewarded him with a wish. Patrick asked that the Irish be spared the horrors of Judgment Day and allow himself to judge his flock. Thus was born the legend that Ireland will sink into the sea seven years before Judgment Day.

Another legend has it that Patrick rid Ireland of a plague of snakes, not just with the power of his words but with the help of his crosier and a bell. In 441, the patron saint of Ireland climbed Mount Croagh Patrick, fasted there for 40 days and built a chapel. According to legend, he threw a bell down one side of the mountain and drove all the snakes from the island of Ireland.

St. Patrick and the Shannon Serpent

When St. Patrick arrived in Ireland it was a time before records were written. Many stories of St. Patrick were passed by word of mouth and are now known as myths and legends.

The last snake in Ireland is just one of the many stories passed down from generation to generation.

After destroying worship of the pagan god Crom Cruach and driving all serpents out of Ireland, St. Patrick traveled to the River Shannon in present-day County Leitrim.

To cross the Shannon, St. Patrick approached a small ford. However, he and his followers were stopped by a giant snake, an Oilliphéist** named Caoránach. This surprises everyone as they believed that St. Patrick had already banished all snakes from Ireland.

The locals believed that the snake had climbed up the Shannon from the sea and they were very afraid of it.

The serpent's body was twice as thick as that of a great oak tree, blacker than the hounds of hell, and its two large eyes were red as blood. When the great snake moved, huge swells were created in the river, causing the water to become muddy for miles. Many people had disappeared at the ford over the years, with people believing they had fallen victim to the monster snake.

As St. Patrick approached the snake, his companions warned him of the danger, but the saint was not afraid. St. Patrick caught the snake with his staff and chained it to three points on the banks of the River Shannon. Here the serpent would remain bound until the Last Judgment.

Locals believe that the devil took the form of the snake to stop St. Patrick in Ireland and that it would appear every seven years. According to another legend, the monster was banished to Lough Derg.

**The Oilliphéist (Irish: ollphéist, from Irish oll "great" and péist "worm, fabulous beast, monster, reptile") is a sea serpent-like beast in Irish mythology and folklore. The Oilliphéist is a sea monster in Irish folklore. Resembling a large serpent or dragon, it is rumored to inhabit several rivers and lakes across Ireland. It has been believed that the Oilliphéist legend actually inspired belief in the Loch Ness Monster. Many legends in Ireland are about saints and heroes fighting against them. Perhaps the most famous Oilliphéist is Caoránach, who was banished to Lough Derg by Saint Patrick. After devouring most of the local cattle, Caoránach was killed by a hero named Conan, and her blood turned the rocks on the lake shore red.

St. Patrick's Day Celebrations

This day is celebrated with many customs. In Ireland, the Emerald Isle, parades are held and a shamrock, which is considered the symbol of the country, is attached to the robe. The holiday is mainly celebrated in the Catholic and Anglican Churches. If it falls during Holy Week, the official celebrations are postponed. Between 1927 and 1961 the consumption of alcohol was forbidden. Today, however, the festive day is important for pubs and breweries, as the amount of Guinness beer sold has tripled compared to normal days. Green, the color of Ireland, also features internationally on the day of its national saint. On St. Patrick's Day, pubs dye their beer green, rivers get food coloring. There are also parades and processions. Sights are given green outdoor lighting, in Vienna for the first time in 2012 the Burgtheater. Vienna has also been celebrating the day publicly since 2005, which was previously only the case in various pubs.

All green: from left to right: street parade on St. Patrick's Day in Dublin; Center: The Chicago River, which shines in brilliant shades of emerald green. The history of St. Patrick's Day in Chicago dates back more than 175 years. The Irish Parade in Chicago was first held in 1843 and became an official city event in the 1950s. Dying the Chicago River began in 1962 and quickly became one of Chicago's most famous events; Right: Vienna's Burgtheater shines in green on St. Patrick's Day.

The shamrock (Irish seamróg, dt. "young clover") is the unofficial national symbol of Ireland, a three-leaf specimen of the clover species white clover (Irish seamair bhán), red clover (Irish seamair dhearg) or thread clover (Irish seamair bhuí). The official national symbol is the harp.

From left to right: Shamrock; Coat of Arms of the Republic of Ireland; Irish euro coin

Culinary on St. Patrick's Day

In Ireland, St. Patrick's Day is of course associated with culinary delights. One of the most important dishes is traditionally Irish brown bread - and of course Guinness beer or green coloured beer.

Irish Brown Soda Bread

Many monasteries in Ireland used to be almost self-sufficient. The monks grew their own wheat, which was then baked into bread to feed both the community and the poor. People flock to the monasteries in their hundreds to eat bread and drink tea at the guest house. This was free, but a small donation of one's own funds should be left. The Cistercian Abbey at Mount St. Joseph in Roscrea keeps this tradition alive to this day.

In ancient Irish literature there are many references to hermits and monks fasting on barley bread and water on weekdays and feasting on wheat bread, salmon and ale on Sundays and feast days.

The warm and homely smell of brown soda bread from the kitchen has nourished and cheered countless generations of Irish people after a hard day's work on the fields and moors. It's a simple Irish bread.

Occasionally a small fist of finely ground rolled oats, a few raisins, 1 egg, or 2 tablespoons butter are added for a richer flavor.

Recipe*** and ingredients for two loaves of bread

4 cups brown whole wheat flour (preferably stone-ground)

4 cups flour

3 level teaspoons of salt

2 level teaspoons baking powder, sifted

3 cups sour milk or buttermilk

Preparation

Mix the dry ingredients together. Make a well in the center and add most of the soured milk or buttermilk all at once. Working away from the center, mix by hand, adding more milk if necessary. The dough should be soft but not sticky. Turn out onto a floured board and knead lightly, then form into a loaf (slightly flattened to about 2cm deep). Place on a baking sheet. Mark with a deep cross and bake in a hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the bread is done and sounds hollow when tapped.

**Irish Round Towers

The always free-standing, slender round tower (Irish: cloigtheach) of Iro-Scottish church buildings is one of Ireland's historic landmarks. There are still 65 towers of this type out of a possible 120 that were built on the island. Some are almost complete, many only survive as a stump. Outside of the Isle of Ireland there are only three such round towers left today, one on the Isle of Man and two in Scotland.

Records point to the earliest towers from AD 919 (Castledermot). They were still being built up to AD 1238 (Timahoe in County Laois, and Kildare), but their peak was in the 11th and 12th centuries. They were always built near a church.

Towers that are still intact today rise from 22.90 m (Turlough) to 34.90 m (Kilmacduagh) and have a circumference of 12 to 18 metres. They have a conical cap. In some cases, such as Kildare or Kilkenny, this was replaced by battlements in later centuries. Its entrance is typically 3 m high (except for Scattery Island) and points roughly towards the neighboring church. Small windows (rectangular or rounded) let light into the interior. Under the roof, four or more windows are evenly spaced around the perimeter. The stairs and the mezzanines in the tower were made of wood. No traces of them have survived.

The Irish word for these towers is cloigtheach, meaning 'bell house'. It can be assumed that in Ireland, too, bells were rung from the upper windows in the past.

George Petrie published his studies of ancient Irish sources in 1845, according to which they were not only bell towers but also stores for the monastic treasures - bells, crosses and books. The towers, whose entrances were usually a few meters above the ground (dromiskin), were climbed on the inside using wooden stairs or ladders. The connections of these stairs were found during excavations. They have such entrances in common with a number of early medieval escape and defense towers in other countries. Also, they could have been signal towers. Due to their construction, however, the Irish towers acted like a fireplace in a fire, in which everything quickly burned to ashes. According to tradition, monks and kings also died in the flames.

What connects us in Styria with Ireland?

It shouldn't come as a surprise if we feel drawn to Celtic-Irish customs and culture, especially in Styria. Like Ireland, Styria is a Celtic homeland (Kingdom Noricum). Styria and Ireland also share the color green - Ireland is referred to as the green island and Styria as the green heart of Austria.

Just as the Irish differ from the British a little in their leisurely character, the Austrians are also said to have a certain leisureliness compared to the Germans.

Irish Pubs

How popular Ireland is in Styria can be measured, for example, by how many Irish pubs there are in Styria and how well they hold up in terms of gastronomy. In Graz alone there are ten Irish pubs and another eleven pub-like establishments. The Flann O'Brien Original Irish Pub, for example, has been around since 1998, and O'Carolan's Irish Pub is the oldest Irish Pub in Graz.

The casual and convivial atmosphere, live music and most importantly the beer make pubs a perennial favorite in gastronomy.

The word "pub" comes from public house, which means a public house that was open to everyone. Irish beers such as stout (e.g. Guinness, Murphy's brands) and reddish ale (e.g. Kilkenny brand), cider and whiskey are commonly served in pubs.

In 1635 there were 1,180 public houses in Dublin alone, which then had around 4,000 families, most of which sold home-brewed beer.

Music and communication are part of the Irish pub culture. In Ireland, a pub is not only a central meeting place for talking and making music, but also an essential part of social life, also across generations. In addition, a number of different dishes are usually offered ("pub food").

Many pubs, including those outside of Ireland, typically feature live music with musicians of various styles (Irish and Scottish folk, occasionally rock, reggae, etc.) as well as open stage nights where guests bring their instruments and play music together and can sing. Karaoke and quizzes have also found their way into Irish pubs.

With emigration from Ireland (e.g. during the great potato blight of 1845-1848) Irish culture spread and with it Irish pubs. Irish public holidays (Saint Patrick's Day, Halloween) are celebrated in Irish pubs around the world.

And we Styrians also like this conviviality!

Ireland and Styria - Connected in Catholic Faith

Ireland is one of the few countries in the north that has remained Catholic like Styria.

The Christianization of Central Europe took place through monks of the Iro-Scottish Church ("Iro-Scottish Mission"); it happened in two phases, first between the 6th and 8th centuries and then in the 11th century. Ireland thus played a very special role in the spread of Christianity in western and central Europe. When the papacy in Rome experienced such a decline in the early Middle Ages that it had lost all formative power in constant conflict with the rulers, messengers of the faith came from Ireland and Scotland and proselytized the Germanic and Celtic peoples. Even before the creation of western monasticism by St. Benedict, there were monasteries in Ireland whose origins can probably be explained by the influence of the Egyptian Desert Fathers of the East. Equipped with a handwritten Bible and often carrying a bell, they came and preached and baptized. They were still commonly referred to as "Scots" in the High Middle Ages. Familiar names such as St. Columban, St. Gallus, St. Boniface appear there, surrounded by legends, working miracles and blessing people forsaken by God and Church.

Worship of Irish Saints in Styria

Due to his deeds and miracle work, Saint Patrick received patronage over many different sectors in Ireland, with the agricultural aspect (healing sick cows or reviving dead cows) in particular prevailing in Austria. Thus in two eighteenth-century litanies he is cited both as a patron against storms, damage to fields, conflagrations and cattle plagues, but also, interestingly enough, as redeemer of souls from purgatory and helper of the dying - probably an echo of the saint's purgatory show, a popular one in Ireland element of his life. However, the Austrian Patrick cult only developed in the 17th century, especially in Styria, Burgenland and Lower Austria. There are earlier approaches to worship through Virgil in Salzburg, which can still be seen today on dedicatory inscriptions.

Brotherhood in Prayer between Styrian and Irish Friars in the Middle Ages

Prayer fraternities are associations of similar communities of monasteries, abbeys and foundations. From time immemorial it has made itself felt in religious communities, in such a way that they declared themselves united in good works and prayers during life and in death. The prayer fraternity (societas fraternitatis) point beyond the individual monastery and united the monks of different monasteries with each other. The inter-monastic prayer community was primarily responsible for commemorating the dead (memoria) for the deceased monks of the connected monasteries.

The fraternity book of St. Gallen. Place of storage: Abbey archives of St. Gallen: StiASG, C3 B55. The book was mainly kept between the 9th and 11th centuries. The open page (A fol. 20r) (pag. 19) was written in or after the 12th century.****

In reports on the history of the Benedictine order and its branches (Salzburg 1912) one can read about the fraternization between the monastery of St. Peter in Salzburg and the monastery of Michaelbeuern:

Durch dieses Instrumentum, mittelst welchem Abt Rupert 
und der.Konvent von St. Peter dem Abt Albert und seinem 
Konvent in „Beuern“ seine Grüße entsendet, wird gegenseitig 
ausgemacht, daß bei der Anmeldung des Todes eines Mit- 
bruders Glockengeläute, Totenvigilien und die Feier von Meß- 
opfern stattzufinden habe. Diese Abmachung geschah ohne 
Angabe des Ortes am 23. April, dem St. Georgstag d. J. 1307.

The chart below shows a prayer fraternity certificate:

Abbot Georg, Prior Albert and the convent of the Michaelbeuern monastery (sancti Michaelis in Päwrn) conclude a prayer brotherhood with Abbot Heinrich and the convent of St. Veit and agree on the celebration of funeral masses and commemorations of the dead in the usual form as well as the entry of the deceased in the necrology ( martyrology) (1455).

Even in the rigors of various wars and enemy raids, the tradition of the prayer brotherhood was maintained. For example, in 1526 the Michaelbeuern monastery was exposed to the worst turmoil of the Peasants' War (Communications on the history of the Benedictine order and its branches (Salzburg 1912):

Immerhin aber zeigt es von einem getreuen Festhalten an der klö- 
sterlichen Tradition der Gebetsverbrüderung, daß trotz alledem 
und nach den Verlusten durch den kaum beendeten Bauern- 
krieg die Aussendung eines eigenen — gewiß auch mit Kosten 
verbundenen — Rotelboten zur Möglichkeit geworden ist.

The fraternity books provide information about the connections between the monasteries and are important for language research due to the abundance of old proper names. A large number, especially in France, have survived, although mostly only in fragments, of the Roteln of later times, through which news was given of the deaths of connected monasteries, and which were sometimes only provided with a receipt, sometimes even with longer poems.

Vorau Abbey and Patrick's Purgatory Monastery

The fact that the most important Irish saint, St. Patrick/Patritius, is equally venerated in Ireland and, of all places, in Vorau in Styria, is due to the fact that the East Styrian monastery of canons formed a prayer association with an Irish monastery in the Middle Ages. The place of pilgrimage St. Patrick's Purgatory near Lough Derg, Donegal, Ulster was administered by the Augustinian canons from the 12th century, who are also responsible for the cult of Patrick in Austria in Vorau Abbey.

Therefore, the name of the Irish patron and national saint St. Patrick ("Patritz") is still very popular in this part of Styria (the Vorau region).

The Vorau Abbey is nestled in the heart of the Joglland and goes back to the founding of Margrave Ottokar III. von Traungau (also: Margrave Ottokar von Steyr) and his wife Kunigunde in 1163 - out of gratitude for the birth of the long-awaited heir. Margrave Ottokar then handed over his Styrian possessions between Wechsel and Masenberg to Archbishop Eberhard I of Salzburg, who sent Augustinian canons from St. Rupert Cathedral to settle the area.

From left to right: Vorau Abbey in 1452; Centre: Detail from the "Idea" for the completion of the monastery complex by Provost Philipp Leisl (painted by Hackhofer in 1711); right: Vorau Abbey today.

The fraternal monastery of Patrick's Purgatory near Lough Derg in Ireland is about 2,200 kilometers (1,370 miles) from Vorau.

The walk from Vorau to Lough Derg takes 417 hours net walking time, the distance is about 2,200 kilometers and about 14,000 meters up the mountain and also about 14,000 meters down the valley, which lie at altitudes between 47 and 1,251 meters. If about 12-15 kilometers are walked daily, the walking time is about a month.

What efforts the friars took for their exchange is hardly imaginable today.

The monastery of St. Patrick's Purgatory is an ancient pilgrimage site on an island in Louch Derg (Station Island) in County Donegal, Ulster, Ireland. According to legend, the site dates back to the fifth century when Christ showed Saint Patrick a cave, sometimes referred to as a pit or well, which was an entrance to purgatory. Its importance in the Middle Ages is illustrated by the fact that it was mentioned in texts as early as 1185 and shown on maps from across Europe as early as the 15th century. It is the only Irish site shown on the Martin Behaim world map of 1492.

Map of Station Island and its Penitential Stations by Thomas Carve in 1666. "Caverna Purgatory" on the map is the location of the actual cave. Although the cave has been closed since October 25, 1632, several descriptions from early pilgrims survive. They called it a cave or a cellar or a closed pit. The entrance, which was kept closed and locked, was quite narrow: about 2 feet (0.6 m) wide and 3 feet (0.9 m) high. Once inside there was a short descent of about six steps. The cave was divided into two parts: the first was about 3 m long, probably with banked sides and only high enough to kneel in; After a curve there was another niche about 1.5 m long. The cave is probably an ancient structure, such as a basement, a place for storing crops and animals. However, the size of the cave makes this very unlikely. A much more plausible suggestion is that it was one of the ancient sweat lodges actually in use in Ireland well into the 20th century. The name "Purgatorium" may originally have been used here with its Latin meaning as a place of purification and detoxification - similar to a modern sauna; especially since the modern concept of "purgatory" as a place of punishment in the afterlife only became commonly used in the 13th century. The cave would then have been a place people went for physical or spiritual healing even before it was associated with St. Patrick in the 12th century as a place for strictly spiritual healing. At this point it should be noted that there should also be underground passages under the Vorau Abbey. The monastery is located just on the island in the lake (Lough Derg) to which St. Patrick is said to have banished the Oilliphéist!

Totenrotel (Dead Scrolls)

The memorial system (Rotelwesen) was a widespread instrument in the Middle Ages.

The Totenrotel was a written message of death from one monastic community to another. A rotel was a scroll of parchment wrapped around a wooden staff. Since being superseded by the Codex, such documents have been used almost exclusively in the liturgical sphere. The Totenrotel was such a scroll that was made once a year or on the death of a monk (since the 11th century usually only for dignitaries) and carried from monastery to monastery by a messenger, the rotularius or roligerus. In most cases this task seems to have been performed by a lay brother.

Monasteries have cultivated this network of prayer brotherhoods since the 9th century. As early as 855, it is reported how Radbod, an Alemanne and bishop of Utrecht, celebrated the festival of the patron saint in St. Gallen, and in the brotherhood.***** In later times, the sending of the Totenrotel was limited to central and western Europe, especially northern France, England, Belgium, Bavaria and Austria. A total of around 300 mediaeval dead snots have been preserved, ten times as many have been preserved from the early modern period.

The dead mules of the Middle Ages often circulated for years. At first they only contained a vita of the deceased in the actual death notice or encyclica, created by attaching parchments written on both sides at each station, so-called tituli, over time long (and difficult) scrolls: Die Totenrotel des Abbot Vitalis von Savigny († 1122) for example, in the course of two years of being carried by English and French monasteries, it reached a length of about 10 meters. Specimens of 30 meters in length are known to research.

Forerunners of the Totenroteln were the Mortuaries or breves called death lists, which were exchanged between two institutions. After the Roteln themselves were no longer shipped, the term "Rottel" remained in use for necrologists in codex format.

Under Emperor Joseph II (1780-1790) most monasteries, i.e. all contemplative orders, appeared useless. Insofar as they were not dissolved, the religious clergy were to work in pastoral care, in teaching or in nursing. As a result of the Josephine monastery reform, many monks had to leave the monastery and go to the parishes as pastors and chaplains. The strict order of communal prayer was relaxed. During this time, many old customs disappeared, as did the prayer fraternity.

Remains of Extensive Monastery Complexes in Ireland

There are significant remains of extensive monastic sites on Inishmore. The fact that they are now just ruins, like the "Seven Churches", is not due to neglect. In brutal campaigns, English rulers such as King Henry VIII and Oliver Cromwell persecuted the steadfast Catholics who did not want to submit to the new Anglican state church. The remains of these monasteries are still impressive today, as are the "Seven Churches".

Seven Churches, Galway, Ireland: Although only two of the ancient buildings on this site are actual churches, this was one of the earliest Irish pilgrimage sites. They were built in the 7th or 8th century and are located on the Irish island of Inishmore.