Gospel & Reflection for the Feast of St. Patrick – Principal Patron of Ireland.
Mt. 13:24-32
Jesus put a parable before the crowds,
‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this,” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.’”
He put another parable before them:
‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air can come and shelter in its branches.’
Reflection
Friends, I approach St. Patrick’s Day with a mixture of apprehension and uncertainty.
Just what St. Patrick’s Day is now about is getting difficult to define, year by year. There was a time when it was clearly about our culture and identity, and how central to them, mixed deep within our very DNA, was our Catholic faith. It was so simple and so clear. Not any longer. It seems now to be an uneasy mix of tourism and promotion, of caricature and commerce. Faith has little to do with it and even poor old St. Patrick himself, if he makes a guest appearance anywhere, he is often an object of fun, treated more like a leprechaun rather than a Saint.
So, as buildings and landmarks are illumined green across the world, as green dye is added to rivers, and as parades and revelry raise the spirits, I personally feel a sense of frustration and loss. That great Apostle to Ireland and the faith he brought us, it seems to get buried deeper every year; the secular replacing the sacred.
However, my cynicism got a swift, strong, and timely kick a few days ago as I listened to ‘Liveline.’
You may have heard it and how callers were getting in touch to complain about the National Transport Authority of Ireland and the poster they were displaying on our public transport system promoting St. Patrick’s day. The problem with the poster was that the NTA used a four-leafed clover instead of the three leafed Shamrock. Embarrassingly, but obviously not for the NTA, they admitted in a press release that they intentionally got rid of the shamrock, opting for the four-leafed clover because it was more “internationally recognised” and appealing.
Callers felt that this was a pushing aside, a corporate whitewashing of one of our important national symbols because of its clear connection to Christianity. They were crystal clear: the shamrock was a distinctly Irish symbol and that it was used by St. Patrick to explain the nature of the Holy Trinity. It should not be replaced by a ‘good luck’ symbol or any other symbol. They strongly argued that it should be valued for what it is and for what it was historically and spiritually used for, without embarrassment.
It seems there is a bit of religion still in the house!
But when we do look closer, when I look closer, it is obvious to see that faith and Christianity have not gone anywhere. Many try to bury it deep, but that is only helping it to grow. They are gaining strength, momentum, and importance once again. In an era where everything is considered relative, people are searching all the more for certainty, truth, and hope. Many are coming to see that only in God are they found. Only in God is our heart’s desire fulfilled, and only with God are we loved by Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Your presence today and every weekend points to this truth about God. Community endeavour, charity support, the many daily acts of kindness that people do acknowledges the realisation that there is more to life that just the self and we are responding to the call to serve others as Christ did. Peoples search for meaning, purpose and authenticity points to the stirring of the Holy Spirit within us, moving us gently and purposely onward, more than do passing emotions and fads. Catholicism is where you encounter and have a true and meaningful relationship with the Triune God.
It was with this promise of relationship, that St. Patrick won Ireland for God. He did not bamboozle people with complex philosophy or theology. He spoke clearly of how he found God in the trauma of slavery and in the loneliness and darkness of isolation. He witnessed to how his relationship with God strengthened and reassured him in those experiences, and how it then inspired him to be God’s servant in the very land that held him captive.
As God’s apostle, he used the small, humble shamrock to explain the mystery that is God and His relationship to us as three in one. His Breastplate – his self-penned prayer – reminds us of how that mystery interacts with us – ‘Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me.’
Friends, like the small but mighty shamrock, like Patrick himself, may be proud and living witnesses of God. Let us reclaim and proclaim our faith not just on this day but every day. Our faith is much more than good luck – it is a reliable relationship with God who loved us yesterday, loves us today, who loves us always.
St. Patrick and all saints of Ireland, Pray for us.
Fr. Richard
