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"In His law he meditates day and night" Psalm 1:2
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Saint Patrick
Volume 13, Number 2
Wayne Burger |
March 16, 2008 |
Meditating on the Word
"In His law he meditates day and night" Psalm 1:2
"Meditating on the Word," edited by Wayne Burger, is a work of the Columbine church of Christ, 7453 S. Zephyr Ct., Littleton, Colorado, 80128. E-mail: burgpreach@prolynx.com -- Suggested topics are welcomed.
Vol. 13 No. 2 March 16, 2008
Since tomorrow is “St. Patrick’s Day and so many people are celebrating it, I thought it might be helpful if we understood something about St. Patrick. Below are some facts about him, and then an explanation and correction.
Saint Patrick
He was born in 389 AD into a middle class family in the village of Bonnaventa in western England. He was the son of a deacon and grandson of a priest, thus he grew up in a “Christian” family. He received only a modest education, which later caused some church leaders to be reluctant to send him as a missionary. When he decided to be a missionary he studied so faithfully that he could quote most of the Bible from memory.
At the age of sixteen (405) he was captured by “Scot” (Irish) raiders (Pirates) and taken to Ireland where for six years he served as a herder of pigs. It was during these six years that he was “converted” and went from indifference to intense piety. He spoke about getting up each morning before dawn to go out and pray no matter what the weather condition was. After six years he was able to escape and made his way back to England.
He would have gladly remained in England had he not had a dream one night in which the babies of Ireland pleaded with him to come back to their country and tell them about Christ. But, first he had to learn the Bible better so he went to a monastery in Lerins, off the southern coast of France. Next he went to Auxerre, France and studied religion under Saint Germanus, a French bishop.
Because of his lack of earlier education some of his religious superiors were reluctant to send him as a missionary, but in 431 when Palladius, the first Irish missionary bishop died, Pope Celestine I then sent Patrick to Ireland. Thus, in 432 he was ordained a missionary bishop by Bishop Germanus of Auxerre, and he began his work in Ireland where he worked until his death in 461.
Ireland was a very pagan society when Patrick arrived. He first tried to convert the king, but failed, but did obtain full freedom for his mission work. Supposedly, he had many battles with druids, magicians, and wizards. In his book Confessions he wrote that twelve times during his work his life was in danger. Once he and his companions were captured and held captive fourteen days and threatened with death.
Although there are all kinds of traditions, legends, and supposed miracles that led to conversions, it was probably his character and devoted life that converted the nation of Ireland. It is said that he established 300 churches and baptized 120,000 people during his years in Ireland.
Because of his work among the Irish, the Catholic Church set aside a day in which he was to be honored. That day is March 17 which was his feast day.
Truth from Error
As one thinks about St. Patrick, one needs to keep in mind several important truths. Even though history speaks of him as a missionary for “the church” and establishing “churches” throughout Ireland, that church would be the Roman Catholic Church, not the church that one reads about in the New Testament.
The church that Jesus promised to establish came into existence in 33 AD in the city of Jerusalem as is recorded in Acts 2. The apostles and prophets foretold that there would be a departure from truth and that other “churches” would be established (Acts 20:28-31; I Timothy 4:1-5; II Timothy 4:1-5; II Peter 2:1-3; II Thessalonians 2:1-13). Those departures from truth started early in the second century and continued until there appeared to be only one church, which was the apostate church, better known later as the Roman Catholic Church.
Christians endured a great deal of persecution during the second century. The worst of the persecution came between 302-311 AD. In 311 “The Edict of Toleration” was passed which basically said that Christianity would be tolerated. Constantine won a significant battle and became the Roman ruler in 313. At that time he passed “The Edict of Milan” in which Christianity, basically, became the state religion. But, by this time, the religion that had come to be accepted as the “church” looked very little like the church one reads about in the New Testament. (I believe that the true church was still in existence, but would have been very small and insignificant in terms of church history.) Thus, the church that was recognized by Constantine, was not the true New Testament church, but was rather the apostate church. That church later came to be known as the Roman Catholic Church. It became the dominant church until the Protestant Reformation Movement in the 16th century. Thus, the church that Patrick established, was not the true church, but was that apostate church.
Catholics Not Christians
It is true that when Patrick went to Ireland it was a very pagan country. But, when Patrick converted them from their paganism, he converted them to Catholicism, not to Christ or New Testament Christianity. These were Catholic, not Christians. Even though at this time it was still the practice to baptize by immersion, it still was not scriptural baptism. It was not for the forgiveness of sins and therefore, not an acceptable baptism in God’s sight.
Saint
Patrick was declared by the Catholic Church to be a “Saint,” but again, even though it is a biblical word, it is not defined in a biblical way. A Saint in the Catholic Church has to go through a process and be declared a Saint by the Roman Catholic Church. A person is declared a Saint because he was someone greater than other Christians. Being declared a Saint has to be done after the person has been dead for a number of years.
According to the Bible, any and all Christians are saints and they are called saints while they are alive, not declared to be saints by the church after their death. Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome and called them, “saints” Romans 1:7. When he wrote the church in Corinth Paul said, “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours” I Corinthians 1:2. Thus, both in Rome and in Corinth, Paul wrote letters to living Christians and called them “saints.”
Give Preference to One Another in Honor
Paul told the Christians in Rome to, “give preference to one another in honor” Romans 12:10. We ought to honor others rather than seeking honor for ourselves. Thus, today, Christians, and sometimes the church as a whole, often gives honor to one who has served well. There is a fine line between giving someone honor and recognizing him for the good works he has done, and bestowing an honor which goes too far.
It seems that when the Catholic Church bestows such honors as they have on Patrick and others whom they declare to be saints, they have gone too far. First, they set them above others, not just in the work that they did, but in making the word “saint” a title of exaltation. God condemns exalting some above others in that way (Matthew 23:8-11).
God has not commanded us to set aside one day as a special day that is to be kept as a religious holiday, in fact He condemns such days (Galatians 4:9-10). The only day that God has established for Christians to honor is Sunday, the Lord’s Day. He hasn’t even commanded us to honor the day of Christ’s birth or even the day of His resurrection. We honor Christ by assembling on the Lord’s Day to observe the Lord’s Supper. In no other way has God commanded Christians to honor Christ. Since that is true with Christ, surely it is just as true with special days to honor so-called “Saints.”
Wayne Burger
Next week we’ll examine Easter
Interesting Facts about the Bible
It was written by about 40 writers over a period of about 1,600 years from 1500 BC to 100 AD.
All that Homer had to say has been told in 20 modern languages.
Shakespeare’s works have been translated into 40 languages.
Tolstoy’s works have been translated into 60 languages.
Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress has been translated into 118 languages.
All or part of the Bible has been translated into more than 1,100 languages and dialects.
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