Saint Patrick & the Irish Missionary Movement
Today, let’s talk about the legacy of Irish Christianity. Solomon’s Porch Christian Church is a Historically-rooted church. It is one of our 7 Core Values . It means we take the time to honor our fathers and mothers when we can, as well as sing their songs and pray their prayers along side our own in worship. Monday, being the drunken row we call St Patrick’s Day, it is always fun to set the record straight on the man. The truth is we know very little about Patrick. We have only two letters written by his hand. However, his tale of salvation while enslaved, after being taken captive by pirates as a teen from the coast of England is well known. So are his escape guided by God, his later education, ordination, and return to Ireland as a missionary.
The Legacy of Irish Christianity: Redeeming Celtic Culture
Patrick’s zeal for Christ kicked off the missionary legacy of Irish Christianity with a movement that would later re-Christianize Western Europe as Irish monks in small boats called coracles braved the icy North Atlantic Sea. In Irish culture there are pub songs about men who are called “rovers.” A most famous example is “The Wild Rover.” They were men who roamed around drinking. We would call it wanderlust. We would call them hobos. However, the Irish church has stories about a different set of rovers, rovers for Christ. God redeemed the Irish tradition of roving and turned them into missionaries. Their work in Europe from 500-700 is one of the most successful missionary movements in the history of the Church. Patrick’s initial mission in Ireland alone spawned more than 1200 places bearing the name Circ (Church) within the first 200 years of Christianity’s arrival on the island.
Pictured above is a coracle or small Irish boat
Courageous Missionaries: The Legacy of Irish Christianity
When the Western Roman Empire fell (Rome), Europe fell with it. When it did, it descended back into pagan worship. The legacy of Irish Christianity is that they were the missionaries that won Europe back to Christ. Thomas Cahill’s book called “How The Irish Saved Civilization” tells the tale. There are also other famous Celtic Christian missionaries like Aiden and Columba with legacies all their own.
Celtic Christian history was suppressed for many years by the Roman Catholic Church. It brought them to heel under the Latin boot in the later Middle Ages. If you are not familiar with Celtic Christianity, it was quite distinct from Latin Christianity because it developed in isolation. Their mystic tradition is more rooted in biblical Christian meditation than the Latin West, which mostly descended into gnostic self-flagellation (imposed suffering) of the kind we see in Martin Luther and the Augustinian monasteries of his day.
The Celtic Knot is three petals interwoven together that are bound together by an unbroken circle. It communicates the Trinity.
Trinitarianism: The Legacy of Irish Christianity
If any people ever loved the Trinity it was the Celts. They were obsessed with the number three before Christianity ever arrived. When it did they embraced the Trinitarian Faith with gusto. Patrick closes his famous prayer from his breastplate with an invocation to the Triune God:
I arise today through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through a belief in the Threeness, through a confession of the Oneness, of the Creator of creation.
Go forth in the same zealous love for He Who is Three in One, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the same in substance, equal in power, and glory. May he redeem the American culture through the missionary work of her Church. Finally, may He raise up some new missionaries with the same spirit as St. Patrick, to be ministers of grace for the land of their captivity too.
Thanks For Stopping By
If you are not a member at SPCC what comes after this section may not mean much to you. However, I always write a little piece at the front of this missive on Wednesdays so don’t be shy, go ahead and SUBSCRIBE. Every little encouragement helps. I write at least three pieces a week: On Monday I write on prayer setting the tone for the week. Then, on Wednesday I write on worship to encourage us towards Lord’s Day. Fridays I drop a series from our Memory & Meditation Verses. We are memorizing Psalm 22:1-15 as a congregation through Good Friday, so our Fridays will consist of remembering the crucifixion and applying it to our lives. Tomorrow morning (03.20.25) our lessons from the Shorter Catechism will begin to splash down every Thursday. They are video talks given by yours truly. If you do not want to look at my ugly mug–and who could blame you– they will soon be turned into blogs too. Look for WSC Q. 1 tomorrow morning, IF you SUBSCRIBE.
Sermon
This week Pastor Jeremy will be taking an another pass through Acts 21:17-26 after Basil’s excellent treatment. Thanks Basil for the hard work. This week we will explore things Moral, Circumstantial, and Indifferent in light of “Paul’s Consecrating Himself in the Temple.” We will also introduce through historical theology, some practical uses the Church has made of vows of consecration and social covenanting.
March Memory & Meditation
Memory & Meditation Verses for this week are Psalm 22:4-6. These verse begin our memorization of Psalm 22:1-15 together as we look toward the crucifixion.
Read our Latest Blog Series, Forsaken For Us All Part 1. They will be based on Psalm 22:1-15 in one way or another.
You can also read our previous blog Series, Christ, His Church, & Marriage Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 based on Ephesians 5:22-33.
March Catechism Questions
Westminster Shorter Catechism: Questions 1-6
Reminder that Questions 1-5 which were our WSC Catechism Questions for last month can be presented before any member of the Consistory during lunch this week.
Lord’s Day Meal
Yes Sirs & Mams
Psalms & Hymns of Worship
Psalm 56:1-4 (Irish) & Hymn- Sacred Head Now Wounded
Psalm 55:16-19 Tune: Martyrs & Hymn- Christ Be All Around Me
No Midweek Worship
Our NEXT Midweek Worship is in TWO WEEKS on 03.26.25. Pizza arrives at the Pickens home beginning @ 6:15 pm. First we will begin the Opus Dei promptly @ 7 pm, then we will have our Catechism Lesson & Prayer. We will webcast to the Zoom Prayer Room. The Catechism Lesson will come from Question 7-8 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism.
Join Us for Worship
Finally, come and worship with us on the Lord’s Day. We also meet on three Wednesday evenings a month for Catechism Lesson & Prayer. Another Visit our Homepage or What We Believe for more information. Find us on Google Maps or watch our sermons on Youtube.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord!
Pastor Jeremy
“The Creation is quite like a spacious and splendid house, provided and filled with the most exquisite, and at the same time, the most abundant furnishings. Everything in it tells of God.” – John Calvin
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