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Saint Patrick

Saint Patrick

c. 385 – c. 461

Missionary to Ireland

Kidnapped, enslaved, then returned to Ireland as a missionary

Biography

Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop, the foremost patron saint of Ireland. Kidnapped by Irish raiders at age 16, he spent six years in captivity as a shepherd. After escaping and returning to Britain, he felt called by God to return to Ireland as a missionary, where he spent decades evangelizing the pagan Irish.

Faith & Testimony

Patrick's own writings — his 'Confession' and 'Letter to Coroticus' — reveal a man of deep, simple faith who attributed everything to God's grace. He wrote: 'I am greatly God's debtor, because he granted me so much grace, that through me many people would be reborn in God.' Pre-Reformation, his theology was essentially orthodox Christian.

Sources