ST. Patrick Quotes
"I, Patrick, a sinner.."
His
Confession Full text can be found below.
"I am Patrick,
yes a sinner and indeed untaught; yet I am established here in Ireland where I
profess myself bishop. I am certain in my heart that 'all that I am,' I have
received from God. So I live among barbarous tribes, a stranger and exile for
the love of God."
"If I have any worth, it is to
live my life for God so as to teach these peoples; even though some of them
still look down on me." A Letter to the Soldiers of
Coroticus
"In short, I am a slave in Christ to this
faraway people for the indescribable glory of 'everlasting life which is in
Jesus Christ our Lord.'" A Letter to the Soldiers of
Coroticus
The BREASTPLATE of Saint Patrick
I bind myself today, -
To the power of God to guide me,
The might of God to uphold me,
The wisdom of God to teach me,
The eye of God to watch over me,
The ear of God to bear me,
The Word of God to speak for me,
The hand of God to protect me,
The way of God to lie before me,
The shield of God to shelter me,
The host of God to defend me
Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ within me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ at my right, Christ at my left,
Christ in breadth, Christ in length, Christ in height
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks to me,
Christ in the eye of every man that sees me,
Christ in the ear of every man who hears me -
Salvation is the Lord's,
Salvation is the Lord's,
Salvation is Christ's,
Let thy salvation, 0 Lord, be ever with us.
(The Tripartite Life of Saint Patrick - edited and translated by
Whitley Stokes, London, 1887)
Below is a newer and more complete translation of Patrick's "Breastplate."
“I bind to myself today
The strong power of the invocation of the Trinity;
The faith of the Trinity in unity;
The Creator of the elements.
“I bind to myself today,
The power of the incarnation of Christ
With that of His baptism;
The power of His crucifixion
With that of His burial;
The power of the resurrection
With (THAT OF) the ascension;
The power of His coming
To the sentence of judgment...
“I bind to myself today,
The power of God to guide me,
The might of God to uphold me,
The wisdom of God to teach me,
The eye of God to watch over me,
The ear of God to hear me,
The Word of God to give me speech,
The hand of God to protect me,
The way of God to prevent me,
The shield of God to 8helter me,
The host of God to defend me, —
Against the snares of demons
Against the temptations of vices,
Against the lusts of nature,
Against everyone who would injure me
Whether far or near,
Whet her few or with many.
“I have set around me all these powers, -
Against every hostile, savage power
Directed against my body and my soul;
Against the incantations of false prophets,
Against the black laws of heathenism,
Against the false laws of heresy,
Against the deceits of idolatry,
Against the spells of women, and smiths, and Druids.
Against all knowledge that blinds the soul of man.
“Christ protect me today,
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wound,
That I may receive abundant reward.
Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ within me,
Chri8t beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ at my right hand, Christ at my left,
Christ in the fort (when I am at home),
Christ in the chariot-seat (when I travel),
Christ in the ship (when I sail).
Of the Lord is salvation;
Christ is salvation;
With us ever be
Thy salvation, 0 Lord!
“Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks to me;
Christ in every eye that sees ‘me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.”
(H. A. Ironside, The Real St. Patrick, Loizeaux
Brothers, New York, Pp. 13 - 14)
St. Patrick's Confession
I, Patrick, a sinner, a most simple countryman, the least of all the faithful
and most contemptible to many, had for father the deacon Calpurnius, son of the
late Potitus, a presbyter, of the settlement of Bannaven Taburniae; he had a
small villa nearby where I was taken captive. I was at that time about sixteen
years of age. I did not, indeed, know the true God; and I was taken into
captivity in Ireland with many thousands of people, according to our deserts,
for quite drawn away from God, we did not keep his precepts, nor were we
obedient to our presbyters who used to remind us of our salvation. And the Lord
brought down on us the fury of his being and scattered us among many nations,
even to the ends of the earth, where I, in my smallness, am now to be found
among foreigners.
And there the Lord opened my mind to an awareness of my unbelief, in order that,
even so late, I might remember my transgressions and turn with all my heart to
the Lord my God, who had regard for my insignificance and pitied my youth and
ignorance. And he watched over me before I knew him, and before I learned sense
or even distinguished between good and evil, and he protected me, and consoled
me as a father would his son.
Therefore, indeed, I cannot keep silent, nor would it be proper, so many favours
and graces has the Lord deigned to bestow on me in the land of my captivity. For
after chastisement from God, and recognizing him, our way to repay him is to
exalt him and confess his wonders before every nation under heaven:
For there is no other God, nor ever was before, nor shall be hereafter, but God
the Father, unbegotten and without beginning, in whom all things began, whose
are all things, as we have been taught; and his son Jesus Christ, who manifestly
always existed with the Father, before the beginning of time in the spirit with
the Father, indescribably begotten before all things, and all things visible and
invisible were made by him. He was made man, conquered death and was received
into Heaven, to the Father who gave him all power over every name in Heaven and
on Earth and in Hell, so that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord and God, in whom we believe. And we look to his imminent coming again, the
judge of the living and the dead, who will render to each according to his
deeds. And he poured out his Holy Spirit on us in abundance, the gift and pledge
of immortality, which makes the believers and the obedient into sons of God and
co-heirs of Christ who is revealed, and we worship one God in the Trinity of
holy name.
He himself said through the prophet: "Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will
deliver you, and you shall glorify me [Psalm 50:15]." And again: "It is right to
reveal and publish abroad the works of God."
I am imperfect in many things, nevertheless I want my brethren and kinsfolk to
know my nature so that they may be able to perceive my soul's desire.
I am not ignorant of what is said of my Lord in the Psalm: "You destroy those
who speak a lie [Psalm 5:6]." And again: "A lying mouth deals death to the
soul." And likewise the Lord says in the Gospel: "On the day of judgment men
shall render account for every idle word they utter [Matthew 12:36]."
So it is that I should mightily fear, with terror and trembling, this judgment
on the day when no one shall be able to steal away or hide, but each and all
shall render account for even our smallest sins before the judgment seat of
Christ the Lord.
And therefore for some time I have thought of writing, but I have hesitated
until now, for truly, I feared to expose myself to the criticism of men, because
I have not studied like others, who have assimilated both Law and the Holy
Scriptures equally and have never changed their idiom since their infancy, but
instead were always learning it increasingly, to perfection, while my idiom and
language have been translated into a foreign tongue. So it is easy to prove from
a sample of my writing, my ability in rhetoric and the extent of my preparation
and knowledge, for as it is said, "wisdom shall be recognized in speech, and in
understanding, and in knowledge and in the learning of truth."
But why make excuses close to the truth, especially when now I am presuming to
try to grasp in my old age what I did not gain in my youth because my sins
prevented me from making what I had read my own? But who will believe me, even
though I should say it again? A young man, almost a beardless boy, I was taken
captive before I knew what I should desire and what I should shun. So,
consequently, today I feel ashamed and I am mightily afraid to expose my
ignorance, because, [I am not] eloquent, with a small vocabulary, I am unable to
explain as the spirit is eager to do and as the soul and the mind indicate.
But had it been given to me as to others, in gratitude I should not have kept
silent, and if it should appear that I put myself before others, with my
ignorance and my slower speech, in truth, it is written: "The tongue of the
stammerers shall speak rapidly and distinctly [Isaiah 32:4]." How much harder
must we try to attain it, we of whom it is said: "You are an epistle of Christ
in greeting to the ends of the earth... written on your hearts, not with ink but
with the Spirit of the living God [2 Corinthians 3:3]." And again, the Spirit
witnessed that the rustic life was created by the Most High.
I am, then, first of all, countrified, an exile, evidently unlearned, one who is
not able to see into the future, but I know for certain, that before I was
humbled I was like a stone lying in deep mire, and he that is mighty came and in
his mercy raised me up and, indeed, lifted me high up and placed me on top of
the wall. And from there I ought to shout out in gratitude to the Lord for his
great favors in this world and for ever, that the mind of man cannot measure.
Therefore be amazed, you great and small who fear God, and you men of God,
eloquent speakers, listen and contemplate. Who was it summoned me, a fool, from
the midst of those who appear wise and learned in the law and powerful in
rhetoric and in all things? Me, truly wretched in this world, he inspired before
others that I could be-- if I would-- such a one who, with fear and reverence,
and faithfully, without complaint, would come to the people to whom the love of
Christ brought me and gave me in my lifetime, if I should be worthy, to serve
them truly and with humility.
According, therefore, to the measure of one's faith in the Trinity, one should
proceed without holding back from danger to make known the gift of God and
everlasting consolation, to spread God's name everywhere with confidence and
without fear, in order to leave behind, after my death, foundations for my
brethren and sons whom I baptized in the Lord in so many thousands.
And I was not worthy, nor was I such that the Lord should grant his humble
servant this, that after hardships and such great trials, after captivity, after
many years, he should give me so much favour with these people, a thing which in
the time of my youth I neither hoped for nor imagined.
But after I reached Hibernia I used to pasture the flock each day and I used to
pray many times a day. More and more did the love of God, and my fear of him and
faith increase, and my spirit was moved so that in a day [I said] from one up to
a hundred prayers, and in the night a like number; besides I used to stay out in
the forests and on the mountain and I would wake up before daylight to pray in
the snow, in icy coldness, in rain, and I used to feel neither ill nor any
slothfulness, because, as I now see, the Spirit was burning in me at that time.
And it was there of course that one night in my sleep I heard a voice saying to
me: "You do well to fast: soon you will depart for your home country." And
again, a very short time later, there was a voice prophesying: "Behold, your
ship is ready." And it was not close by, but, as it happened, two hundred miles
away, where I had never been nor knew any person. And shortly thereafter I
turned about and fled from the man with whom I had been for six years, and I
came, by the power of God who directed my route to advantage (and I was afraid
of nothing), until I reached that ship.
And on the same day that I arrived, the ship was setting out from the place, and
I said that I had not the wherewithal to sail with them; and the steersman was
displeased and replied in anger, sharply: "By no means attempt to go with us."
Hearing this I left them to go to the hut where I was staying, and on the way I
began to pray, and before the prayer was finished I heard one of them shouting
loudly after me: "Come quickly because the men are calling you." And immediately
I went back to them and they started to say to me: "Come, because we are
admitting you out of good faith; make friendship with us in any way you wish."
(And so, on that day, I refused to suck the breasts of these men from fear of
God, but nevertheless I had hopes that they would come to faith in Jesus Christ,
because they were barbarians.) And for this I continued with them, and forthwith
we put to sea.
And after three days we reached land, and for twenty-eight days journeyed
through uninhabited country, and the food ran out and hunger overtook them; and
one day the steersman began saying: "Why is it, Christian? You say your God is
great and all-powerful; then why can you not pray for us? For we may perish of
hunger; it is unlikely indeed that we shall ever see another human being." In
fact, I said to them, confidently: "Be converted by faith with all your heart to
my Lord God, because nothing is impossible for him, so that today he will send
food for you on your road, until you be sated, because everywhere he abounds."
And with God's help this came to pass; and behold, a herd of swine appeared on
the road before our eyes, and they slew many of them, and remained there for two
nights, and they were full of their meat and well restored, for many of them had
fainted and would otherwise have been left half dead by the wayside. And after
this they gave the utmost thanks to God, and I was esteemed in their eyes, and
from that day they had food abundantly. They discovered wild honey, besides, and
they offered a share to me, and one of them said: "It is a sacrifice." Thanks be
to God, I tasted none of it.
The very same night while I was sleeping Satan attacked me violently, as I will
remember as long as I shall be in this body; and there fell on top of me as it
were, a huge rock, and not one of my members had any force. But from whence did
it come to me, ignorant in the spirit, to call upon Elijah? And meanwhile I saw
the sun rising in the sky, and while I was crying out "Elijah, Elijah" with all
my might, lo, the brilliance of that sun fell upon me and immediately shook me
free of all the weight; and I believe that I was aided by Christ my Lord, and
that his Spirit then was crying out for me, and I hope that it will be so in the
day of my affliction, just as it says in the Gospel: "In that hour", the Lord
declares, "it is not you who speaks but the Spirit of your Father speaking in
you [Matthew 10:20]."
And a second time, after many years, I was taken captive. On the first night I
accordingly remained with my captors, but I heard a divine prophecy, saying to
me: "You shall be with them for two months." So it happened. On the sixtieth
night the Lord delivered me from their hands.
On the journey he provided us with food and fire and dry weather every day,
until on the tenth day we came upon people. As I mentioned above, we had
journeyed through an unpopulated country for twenty-eight days, and in fact the
night that we came upon people we had no food.
And after a few years I was again in Britain with my parents, and they welcomed
me as a son, and asked me, in faith, that after the great tribulations I had
endured I should not go any where else away from them. And, of course, there, in
a vision of the night, I saw a man whose name was Victoricus coming as if from
Hibernia with innumerable letters, and he gave me one of them, and I read the
beginning of the letter: "The Voice of the Hibernians", and as I was reading the
beginning of the letter I seemed at that moment to hear the voice of those who
were beside the forest of Foclut which is near the western sea, and they were
crying as if with one voice: "We beg you, holy youth, that you shall come and
shall walk again among us." And I was stung intensely in my heart so that I
could read no more, and thus I awoke. Thanks be to God, because after so many
years the Lord bestowed on them according to their cry.
And another night-- God knows, I do not, whether within me or beside me-- most
words which I heard and could not understand, except at the end of the speech it
was represented thus: "He who gave his life for you, he it is who speaks within
you." And thus I awoke, joyful.
And on a second occasion I saw Him praying within me, and I was as it were,
inside my own body , and I heard Him above me-- that is, above my inner self. He
was praying powerfully with sighs. And in the course of this I was astonished
and wondering, and I pondered who it could be who was praying within me. But at
the end of the prayer it was revealed to me that it was the Spirit. And so I
awoke and remembered the Apostle's words: "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our
weakness; for we know not how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit Himself
intercedes for us with sighs too deep for utterance [Romans 8:26]." And again:
"The Lord our advocate intercedes for us [Romans 8:27]."
And then I was attacked by a goodly number of my elders, who [mentioned] my sins
against my arduous episcopate. That day in particular I was mightily upset, and
might have fallen here and for ever; but the Lord generously spared me, a
convert, and an alien, for his name's sake, and he came powerfully to my
assistance in that state of being trampled down. I pray God that it shall not be
held against them as a sin that I fell truly into disgrace and scandal.
They brought up against me after thirty years an occurrence I had confessed
before becoming a deacon. On account of the anxiety in my sorrowful mind, I laid
before my close friend what I had perpetrated on a day-- nay, rather in one
hour-- in my boyhood because I was not yet proof against sin. God knows-- I do
not-- whether I was fifteen years old at the time, and I did not then believe in
the living God, nor had I believed, since my infancy; but I remained in death
and unbelief until I was severely rebuked, and in truth I was humbled every day
by hunger and nakedness.
On the other hand, I did not proceed to Hibernia of my own accord until I was
almost giving up, but through this I was corrected by the Lord, and he prepared
me so that today I should be what was once far from me, in order that I should
have the care of-- or rather, I should be concerned for-- the salvation of
others, when at that time, still, I was only concerned for myself.
Therefore, on that day when I was rebuked, as I have just mentioned, I saw in a
vision of the night a document before my face, without honour, and meanwhile I
heard a divine prophecy, saying to me: "We have seen with displeasure the face
of the chosen one divested of name." And he did not say "You have seen with
displeasure", but "We have seen with displeasure" (as if He included Himself) .
He said then: "He who touches you, touches the apple of my eye."
For that reason, I give thanks to him who strengthened me in all things, so that
I should not be hindered in my setting out and also in my work which I was
taught by Christ my Lord; but more, from that state of affairs I felt, within
me, no little courage, and vindicated my faith before God and man.
Hence, therefore, I say boldly that my conscience is clear now and hereafter.
God is my witness that I have not lied in these words to you.
But rather, I am grieved for my very close friend, that because of him we
deserved to hear such a prophecy. The one to whom I entrusted my soul! And I
found out from a goodly number of brethren, before the case was made in my
defense (in which I did not take part, nor was I in Britain, nor was it pleaded
by me), that in my absence he would fight in my behalf. Besides, he told me
himself: "See, the rank of bishop goes to you"-- of which I was not worthy. But
how did it come to him, shortly afterwards, to disgrace me publicly, in the
presence of all, good and bad, because previously, gladly and of his own free
will, he pardoned me, as did the Lord, who is greater than all?
I have said enough. But all the same, I ought not to conceal God's gift which he
lavished on us in the land of my captivity, for then I sought him resolutely,
and I found him there, and he preserved me from all evils (as I believe) through
the in-dwelling of his Spirit, which works in me to this day. Again, boldly, but
God knows, if this had been made known to me by man, I might, perhaps, have kept
silent for the love of Christ.
Thus I give untiring thanks to God who kept me faithful in the day of my
temptation, so that today I may confidently offer my soul as a living sacrifice
for Christ my Lord; who am I, Lord? or, rather, what is my calling? that you
appeared to me in so great a divine quality, so that today among the barbarians
I might constantly exalt and magnify your name in whatever place I should be,
and not only in good fortune, but even in affliction? So that whatever befalls
me, be it good or bad, I should accept it equally, and give thanks always to God
who revealed to me that I might trust in him, implicitly and forever, and who
will encourage me so that, ignorant, and in the last days, I may dare to
undertake so devout and so wonderful a work; so that I might imitate one of
those whom, once, long ago, the Lord already pre-ordained to be heralds of his
Gospel to witness to all peoples to the ends of the earth. So are we seeing, and
so it is fulfilled; behold, we are witnesses because the Gospel has been
preached as far as the places beyond which no man lives.
But it is tedious to describe in detail all my labours one by one. I will tell
briefly how our most holy God frequently delivered me, from slavery, and from
the twelve trials with which my soul was threatened, from man traps as well, and
from things I am not able to put into words. I would not cause offense to
readers, but I have God as witness who knew all things even before they
happened, that, though I was a poor ignorant waif, still he gave me abundant
warnings through divine prophecy.
Whence came to me this wisdom which was not my own, I who neither knew the
number of days nor had knowledge of God? Whence came the so great and so
healthful gift of knowing or rather loving God, though I should lose homeland
and family.
And many gifts were offered to me with weeping and tears, and I offended them,
and also went against the wishes of a good number of my elders; but guided by
God, I neither agreed with them nor deferred to them, not by my own grace but by
God who is victorious in me and withstands them all, so that I might come to the
Irish people to preach the Gospel and endure insults from unbelievers; that I
might hear scandal of my travels, and endure many persecutions to the extent of
prison; and so that I might give up my free birthright for the advantage of
others, and if I should be worthy, I am ready [to relinquish] even my life
without hesitation; and most willingly for His name. And I choose to devote it
to him even unto death, if God grant it to me.
I am greatly God's debtor, because he granted me so much grace, that through me
many people would be reborn in God, and soon after confirmed, and that clergy
would be ordained everywhere for them, the masses lately come to belief, whom
the Lord drew from the ends of the earth, just as he once promised through his
prophets: "To you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth, and shall
say, Our fathers have inherited naught but lies, worthless things in which there
is no profit [Jeremiah 16:19]." And again: "I have set you to be a light for the
Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the uttermost ends of the earth [Acts
13:47]."
And I wish to wait then for his promise which is never unfulfilled, just as it
is promised in the Gospel: "Many shall come from east and west and shall sit at
table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob [Matthew 8:11]." Just as we believe that
believers will come from all the world.
So for that reason one should, in fact, fish well and diligently, just as the
Lord foretells and teaches, saying, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of
men [Matthew 4:19]," and again through the prophets: "Behold, I am sending forth
many fishers and hunters, says the Lord [Jeremiah 16:16]," et cetera. So it
behooved us to spread our nets, that a vast multitude and throng might be caught
for God, and so there might be clergy everywhere who baptized and exhorted a
needy and desirous people. Just as the Lord says in the Gospel, admonishing and
instructing: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always to the end
of time [Matthew 28:19]." And again he says: "Go forth into the world and preach
the Gospel to all creation. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but
he who does not believe shall be condemned [Mark 16:15]." And again: "This
Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached throughout the whole world as a witness
to all nations; and then the end of the world shall come [Matthew 24:14]." And
likewise the Lord foretells through the prophet: "And it shall come to pass in
the last days (sayeth the Lord) that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions
and your old men shall dream dreams; yea, and on my menservants and my
maidservants in those days I will pour out my Spirit and they shall prophesy
[Joel 2:28]." And in Hosea he says: "Those who are not my people I will call my
people, and those not beloved I will call my beloved, and in the very place
where it was said to them, You are not my people, they will be called Sons of
the living God [Hosea 1:10]."
So, how is it that in Hibernia, where they never had any knowledge of God but,
always, until now, cherished idols and unclean things, they are lately become a
people of the Lord, and are called children of God; the sons of the Irish and
the daughters of the chieftains are to be seen as monks and virgins of Christ.
And there was, besides, a most beautiful, blessed, native-born noble Irish woman
of adult age whom I baptized; and a few days later she had reason to come to us
to intimate that she had received a prophecy from a divine messenger [who]
advised her that she should become a virgin of Christ and she would draw nearer
to God. Thanks be to God, six days from then, opportunely and most eagerly, she
took the course that all virgins of God take, not with their fathers' consent
but enduring the persecutions and deceitful hindrances of their parents.
Notwithstanding that, their number increases, (we do not know the number of them
that are so reborn) besides the widows, and those who practice self-denial.
Those who are kept in slavery suffer the most. They endure terrors and constant
threats, but the Lord has given grace to many of his handmaidens, for even
though they are forbidden to do so, still they resolutely follow his example.
So it is that even if I should wish to separate from them in order to go to
Britain, and most willingly was I prepared to go to my homeland and kinsfolk--
and not only there, but as far as Gaul to visit the brethren there, so that I
might see the faces of the holy ones of my Lord, God knows how strongly I
desired this-- I am bound by the Spirit, who witnessed to me that if I did so he
would mark me out as guilty, and I fear to waste the labour that I began, and
not I, but Christ the Lord, who commanded me to come to be with them for the
rest of my life, if the Lord shall will it and shield me from every evil, so
that I may not sin before him.
So I hope that I did as I ought, but I do not trust myself as long as I am in
this mortal body, for he is strong who strives daily to turn me away from the
faith and true holiness to which I aspire until the end of my life for Christ my
Lord, but the hostile flesh is always dragging one down to death, that is, to
unlawful attractions. And I know in part why I did not lead a perfect life like
other believers, but I confess to my Lord and do not blush in his sight, because
I am not lying; from the time when I came to know him in my youth, the love of
God and fear of him increased in me, and right up until now, by God's favour, I
have kept the faith.
What is more, let anyone laugh and taunt if he so wishes. I am not keeping
silent, nor am I hiding the signs and wonders that were shown to me by the Lord
many years before they happened, who knew everything, even before the beginning
of time.
Thus, I should give thanks unceasingly to God, who frequently forgave my folly
and my negligence, in more than one instance so as not to be violently angry
with me, who am placed as his helper, and I did not easily assent to what had
been revealed to me, as the Spirit was urging; and the Lord took pity on me
thousands upon thousands of times, because he saw within me that I was prepared,
but that I was ignorant of what to do in view of my situation; because many were
trying to prevent this mission. They were talking among themselves behind my
back, and saying: "Why is this fellow throwing himself into danger among enemies
who know not God?" Not from malice, but having no liking for it; likewise, as I
myself can testify, they perceived my rusticity. And I was not quick to
recognize the grace that was then in me; I now know that I should have done so
earlier.
Now I have put it frankly to my brethren and co-workers, who have believed me
because of what I have foretold and still foretell to strengthen and reinforce
your faith. I wish only that you, too, would make greater and better efforts.
This will be my pride, for "a wise son makes a proud father [Proverbs 10:1;
15:20]."
You know, as God does, how I went about among you from my youth in the faith of
truth and in sincerity of heart. As well as to the heathen among whom I live, I
have shown them trust and always show them trust. God knows I did not cheat any
one of them, nor consider it, for the sake of God and his Church, lest I arouse
them and [cause] persecution for them and for all of us, and lest the Lord's
name be blasphemed because of me, for it is written: "Woe to the men through
whom the name of the Lord is blasphemed."
For even though I am ignorant in all things, nevertheless I attempted to
safeguard some and myself also. And I gave back again to my Christian brethren
and the virgins of Christ and the holy women the small unasked for gifts that
they used to give me or some of their ornaments which they used to throw on the
altar. And they would be offended with me because I did this. But in the hope of
eternity, I safeguarded myself carefully in all things, so that they might not
cheat me of my office of service on any pretext of dishonesty, and so that I
should not in the smallest way provide any occasion for defamation or
disparagement on the part of unbelievers.
What is more, when I baptized so many thousands of people, did I hope for even
half a jot from any of them? Tell me, and I will give it back to you. And when
the Lord ordained clergy everywhere by my humble means, and I freely conferred
office on them, if I asked any of them anywhere even for the price of one shoe,
say so to my face and I will give it back.
More, I spent for you so that they would receive me. And I went about among you,
and everywhere for your sake, in danger, and as far as the outermost regions
beyond which no one lived, and where no one had ever penetrated before, to
baptize or to ordain clergy or to confirm people. Conscientiously and gladly I
did all this work by God's gift for your salvation.
From time to time I gave rewards to the kings, as well as making payments to
their sons who travel with me; notwithstanding which, they seized me with my
companions, and that day most avidly desired to kill me. But my time had not yet
come. They plundered everything they found on us anyway, and fettered me in
irons; and on the fourteenth day the Lord freed me from their power, and
whatever they had of ours was given back to us for the sake of God on account of
the indispensable friends whom we had made before.
Also you know from experience how much I was paying to those who were
administering justice in all the regions, which I visited often. I estimate
truly that I distributed to them not less than the price of fifteen men, in
order that you should enjoy my company and I enjoy yours, always, in God. I do
not regret this nor do I regard it as enough. I am paying out still and I shall
pay out more. The Lord has the power to grant me that I may soon spend my own
self, for your souls.
Behold, I call on God as my witness upon my soul that I am not lying; nor would
I write to you for it to be an occasion for flattery or selfishness, nor hoping
for honour from any one of you. Sufficient is the honour which is not yet seen,
but in which the heart has confidence. He who made the promise is faithful; he
never lies.
But I see that even here and now, I have been exalted beyond measure by the
Lord, and I was not worthy that he should grant me this, while I know most
certainly that poverty and failure suit me better than wealth and delight (but
Christ the Lord was poor for our sakes; I certainly am wretched and unfortunate;
even if I wanted wealth I have no resources, nor is it my own estimation of
myself, for daily I expect to be murdered or betrayed or reduced to slavery if
the occasion arises. But I fear nothing, because of the promises of Heaven; for
I have cast myself into the hands of Almighty God, who reigns everywhere. As the
prophet says: "Cast your burden on the Lord and he will sustain you [Psalm
55:22]."
Behold now I commend my soul to God who is most faithful and for whom I perform
my mission in obscurity, but he is no respecter of persons and he chose me for
this service that I might be one of the least of his ministers.
For which reason I should make return for all that he returns me. But what
should I say, or what should I promise to my Lord, for I, alone, can do nothing
unless he himself vouchsafe it to me. But let him search my heart and nature,
for I crave enough for it, even too much, and I am ready for him to grant me
that I drink of his chalice, as he has granted to others who love him.
Therefore may it never befall me to be separated by my God from his people whom
he has won in this most remote land. I pray God that he gives me perseverance,
and that he will deign that I should be a faithful witness for his sake right up
to the time of my passing.
And if at any time I managed anything of good for the sake of my God whom I
love, I beg of him that he grant it to me to shed my blood for his name with
proselytes and captives, even should I be left unburied, or even were my
wretched body to be torn limb from limb by dogs or savage beasts, or were it to
be devoured by the birds of the air, I think, most surely, were this to have
happened to me, I had saved both my soul and my body. For beyond any doubt on
that day we shall rise again in the brightness of the sun, that is, in the glory
of Christ Jesus our Redeemer, as children of the living God and co-heirs of
Christ, made in his image; for we shall reign through him and for him and in
him.
For the sun we see rises each day for us at [his] command, but it will never
reign, neither will its splendor last, but all who worship it will come
wretchedly to punishment. We, on the other hand, shall not die, who believe in
and worship the true sun, Christ, who will never die, no more shall he die who
has done Christ's will, but will abide for ever just as Christ abides for ever,
who reigns with God the Father Almighty and with the Holy Spirit before the
beginning of time and now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Behold over and over again I would briefly set out the words of my confession. I
testify in truthfulness and gladness of heart before God and his holy angels
that I never had any reason, except the Gospel and his promises, ever to have
returned to that nation from which I had previously escaped with difficulty.
But I entreat those who believe in and fear God, whoever deigns to examine or
receive this document composed by the obviously unlearned sinner Patrick in
Hibernia, that nobody shall ever ascribe to my ignorance any trivial thing that
I achieved or may have expounded that was pleasing to God, but accept and truly
believe that it would have been the gift of God. And this is my confession
before I die.
