Welcome to the green pastures of Ireland and Happy St. Patrick's Day!Funny thing is, that they say everyone is Irish on this day and celebrations around the United States are filled with green beer, corned beef and cabbage and being sure to dress up in green.
So how much of the celebration is Irish and how much American?
Where do we start? Saint Patrick's Day is a holy day as well as a holiday for Ireland. It is a celebration in honor of a Christian missionary who was born Maewyn Succat some time around 385 AD to a Roman nobleman. Yes, at this time the Green Isle was under Roman rule. After his village was attacked, Maewyn was captured and sold into slavery at the age of 16. After six years he escaped to France (known at that time as Gaul). During his twelve years following he studied under St. Germain, the bishop of Auxerre. When his studies were completed, he returned to Ireland and took the name of St. Patrick, after his baptismal name Patricius. St. Patrick believed it was his calling to convert Pagans to Christianity. He was very successful in his thirty year endeavour and is credited for converting the Irish population to Catholicism. St. Patrick died on March 17th, 461 AD.
The very first St. Patrick's Parade in the United States was held on March 17, 1762 in New York City. It was organized by Irish American soldiers serving in the English military.
Corned Beef & Cabbage is not Irish but a food adopted by the Americans.
A customary meal in Ireland would be Ham or Bacon with cabbage.
In years past, St. Patrick's Day was considered a holy day and all pubs were closed.
Green beer is an American travesty, no Irishman worth his salt would ruin a good ale.
The wearing of green is also another American idea. Any real Irishman will tell you the wearing of green is not a good idea. The color green is considered unlucky in Ireland.
