User:Nicknack009/Saint Patrick
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saint Patrick (Latin: Patricius; Irish: Pádraig [ˈpˠaːd̪ˠɾˠəɟ]) was a 5th-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, along with Saints Brigit and Columba. He is also venerated in the Anglican Communion, the Old Catholic Church, and in the Orthodox Church as Equal-to-the-Apostles and The Enlightener of Ireland.[1]
- My proposed rewrite of the article, in progress
The dates of Patrick's life cannot be fixed with certainty but, on a widespread interpretation, he was active as a missionary in Ireland during the second half of the fifth century.[2] Early medieval tradition credits him with being the first bishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland.
According to the Confessio of Patrick, when he was about 16, he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Great Britain, and taken as a slave to Ireland, looking after animals, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to northern and western Ireland. In later life he served as a bishop, but little is known about the places where he worked. By the seventh century he had already come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick's Day is observed on 17 March, which is said to be the date of his death.[3] It is celebrated inside and outside Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday. In the dioceses of Ireland, it is both a solemnity and a holy day of obligation; it is also a celebration of Ireland itself.