Kerrville Global Methodist Church Worship Center 94 Coronado Drive Kerrville TX

Why Do We Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?

Faith Family,

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as we wind down the first quarter of 2026. I continue to give thanks to our gracious God for putting you all in our lives. Your faithfulness and your enthusiasm fill my heart with joy and helps complete my hope in Christ. Every day I look forward to serving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ alongside each of you and growing in our discipleship journey together. I pray as God has continued blessings us, may we continue to be a blessing to others.

What a Sunday! What a celebration of Consecration as our Conference Superintendent Bishop Leah Hidde Gregory led the service and preached an inspiring Word. The Mid-Texas Conference is blessed to have such a Christ-like Leader.

As we begin our week, we know that the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day is among us. Do we fully understand why we celebrate such a day? First, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on the 17th of March because that is the day of his death. Secondly, it is a global celebration because of his missionary work throughout. It was brought to the Americas when Irish immigrants found their way to the United States. The color green is because of Ireland’s nickname “The Emerald Isle.”

St. Patrick was kidnapped from Britain by Irish raiders as a young boy. Enslaved for years in Ireland, eventually St. Patrick became a Christian named Milchu as he tended flocks in the region of County Antrim. While in captivity, St. Patrick believed God wanted him to escape and he did. He found refuge in a monastery and eventually returned to his family.

He had a vision that transformed his life. He heard voices of those in Ireland desperate for his return. He saw this as a divine calling, at the age of 40 plus, St. Patrick returned to Ireland. During thirty years of missionary work, St. Patrick encountered several pagan communities, including those who embraced Druidism. Druidism is an ancient religion that flourished among Celtic societies before Christianity arrived. It was organized with three groups: Bards, Vates, and Druids that functioned a priests, magicians, philosophers, and fortune-tellers. The Druids had the ear of the governmental leadership and would have the most to lose if Christianity was accepted into these communities. During this time, he was able to incorporate cultural symbols like the shamrock into Christian teaching to illustrate the Trinity. Eventually St. Patrick is said to have converted over 135,000 people and established 300 churches.

There is a “prayer” that has been taken out of an ancient hymn called “St. Patrick’s Breastplate” although there has been no evidence of this being specifically connected to St. Patrick. The prayer reads:

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, and in me. Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left. Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down. Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me. Christ in every eye that sees me, and Christ in every ear that hears me.” (St. Patricks Breastplate)

This prayer, whether contributed to or associated with St. Patrick was one that could explain why St. Patrick was able to accomplish what he accomplished in history. 

So, when you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with wearing green, and pinching those who do not have green, remember this day is about a man who faced tragic circumstances, and yet trusted in God, and was led by Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit to change history. It began in his own back yard, but the ripple went beyond.

Friends, we change the world for Christ, one life at a time, in our own context, and the ripple will be everlasting. 

I pray your continued journey in 2026 to be an Acts 2 Church will be found with limited stress and an abundance of peace and joy.

Have a blessed Week!

Pastor Frank