The Most Ancient Lives of Saint Patrick Part 10

CHAPTER XI.

_How the Fort was Cleansed._

On a certain promontory overhanging the aforementioned town of Empthor was erected a fort, the ruins of whose walls may yet be traced. And the governor thereof had reduced the nurse of Saint Patrick under the yoke of slavery, and compelled her to be a servant unto him. And among other servile works enjoined to her, he had commanded her to clean with shovels all the offices within the fort, and to carry forth the soil from the stables. But the woman, having an ingenuous mind, and understanding that all power was from G.o.d, and that all things were ordained of G.o.d, made of her necessity a virtue, and patiently bore the servitude imposed on her. Then the boy Patrick, compa.s.sionating his nurse's affliction, besought the Lord that he would vouchsafe to set her free from the labor of this servile work; and behold, as he prayed, all the dwelling-places therein were cleansed without an human hand, and neither within nor without could any remains of the soil be found.

And the governor and all who saw or heard this miracle marvelled; and the nurse was released from slavery through the merits of her foster-child. Nor is this miracle beheld only at stated seasons, or once in every year; for even to this day does it appear to be continued. And the dwellers and the neighbors bear witness that if within the precincts of the fort as many cattle as the place could hold were gathered to abide there together, not even the least portion of soil could therein be found. And the place, being in the Valley of Clud, is called in the language of that people Dunbreatan--that is, the Mountain of the Britons; and the miracle cannot be unknown to those who desire to be informed thereof, inasmuch as so often it is published abroad by all the dwellers in that country.

CHAPTER XII.

_Of the Religious Conversation of Saint Patrick._

And the boy Patrick grew up precious in the sight of the Lord, in the old age of wisdom, and in the ripeness of virtue. And the number of his merits multiplied beyond the number of his years; the affluence of all holy charities overflowed in the breast of the boy, and all the virtues met together made their dwelling in his youthful body.

Entering, therefore, and going forward in the slippery paths of youth, he held his feet from falling, and the garment that nature had woven for him, unknowing of a stain, he preserved whole, abiding a virgin in the flesh and in the spirit. And although the divine unction had taught him above all, the fit time being now come, he was sent from his parents to be instructed in sacred learning. Therefore he applied his mind to the study of letters, but chiefly to psalms and to hymns and to spiritual songs, and retaining them in his memory, and continually singing them to the Lord; so that even from the flower of his first youth he was daily wont to sing devoutly unto G.o.d the whole psaltery, and from the vial of his most pure heart to pour forth the odor of many prayers. Thus wearing out his tender body in fastings, in many watchings, and in the pious exercise of holy labors, he offered up himself a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to G.o.d; and thus pa.s.sing his days in the flesh, against the flesh, and above the flesh, in his conversation he represented an angel.

CHAPTER XIII.

_How Saint Patrick was Carried into Ireland._

As, according to the testimony of Holy Writ, the furnace tries gold and the fire of tribulation proves the just, so did the hour of his trial draw near to Patrick, that he might the more provedly receive the crown of life. For when the ill.u.s.trious boy had perl.u.s.trated three l.u.s.tres, already attaining his sixteenth year, he was, with many of his countrymen, seized by the pirates who were ravaging those borders, and was made captive and carried into Ireland, and was there sold as a slave to a certain pagan prince named Milcho, who reigned in the northern part of the island, even at the same age in which Joseph is recorded to have been sold into Egypt. But Joseph, being sold as a slave, and being after his humiliation exalted, received power and dominion over all Egypt. Patrick, after his servitude and his affliction, obtained the primacy of the especial and spiritual dominion of Ireland. Joseph refreshed with corn the Egyptians oppressed by famine; Patrick, in process of time, fed with the salutary food of the Christian faith the Irish peris.h.i.+ng under idolatry. To each was affliction sent for the profit of his soul, as is the flail to the grain, the furnace to the gold, the file to the iron, the wine-press to the grape, and the oil-press to the olive. Therefore it was that Patrick, at the command of the forementioned prince, was appointed to the care of the swine, and under his care the herd became fruitful and exceedingly multiplied. From whence it may well be learned that as the master's substance is often increased and improved by the attention of a diligent and fortunate servant or steward, so, on the other hand, is it reduced and injured under an idle or unprosperous hand. But the holy youth, heartily embracing in his soul the judgments of the Lord, made of his necessity a virtue, and, having in his office of a swineherd obtained solitude, worked out his own salvation. For he abode in the mountains, and in the woods, and in the caves of the wilderness, and having leisure for prayer, and knowing how kind was the Lord, freely and more freely did he pour forth the incense of his supplications in the presence of the Most High; and an hundred times in the day and an hundred times in the night did he on his bended knees adore his Creator, and often did he pray for a long time fasting, and, nouris.h.i.+ng himself with the roots of herbs and with the lightest food, did he mortify his members which were stretched upon the earth. Nor him could heat, nor cold, nor snow, nor hail, nor ice, nor any other inclemency of the air compel from his spiritual exercises. Therefore went he forward daily increasing and confirming himself more strong in the faith and love of Christ Jesus; and the more weak and infirm he appeared, so much the steadier and more powerful was he in fulfilling the commands of the Lord.

CHAPTER XIV.

_Of Milcho's Dream, and of its Interpretation._

And Milcho beheld a vision in the night; and behold, Patrick entered his palace as all on fire, and the flames issuing from his mouth, and from his nose, and from his eyes, and from his ears, seemed to burn him. But Milcho repelled from himself the flaming hair of the boy, nor did it prevail to touch him any nearer; but the flame, being spread, turned aside to the right, and, catching on his two little daughters who were lying in one bed, burned them even to ashes; then the south wind, blowing strongly, dispersed their ashes over many parts of Ireland. And Milcho, awaking, meditated with himself on his couch what prodigy might this remote vision portend. On the morrow, Patrick being called before him, he declared unto him his dream, entreating and abjuring him that if he knew he would unfold its interpretation. And Patrick, being filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit, answered unto Milcho: "The fire which thou sawest to issue from me is the faith of the Holy Trinity, with which I am entirely illumined, and which I shall endeavor to preach unto thee; but my speech will find in thee no place, for thou wilt, in the blindness of thine heart, repel from thee the light of the divine grace, and thou wilt die in the darkness of thy unbelief; but thy daughters shall at my preaching believe in the true G.o.d, and, all the days of their lives serving G.o.d in holiness and in justice, shall, in a pious end, rest in the Lord; and their ashes, that is, their relics, the Lord revealing them and making of them signs, shall be carried into many places through Ireland, and shall give the blessing of health to many who are infirm; and thy dream is true, and its interpretation is true, and all shall be fulfilled in due time."

Thus having said, Patrick departed to his accustomed labor; and all these things happened unto Milcho and unto his daughters even as Patrick had foretold.

CHAPTER XV.

_Of the Angel Victor appearing to Saint Patrick._

And six years had now pa.s.sed when, under the direction of the Lord, he had thoroughly learned the Irish tongue, and with prayers and with tears he unceasingly besought of G.o.d that he might be released from slavery and restored to his country. And on a certain day appeared unto him, while praying, an angel of the Lord, standing on the crag of an overhanging rock, and announcing that his prayers and his fastings had ascended as a memorial before G.o.d; and the angel added thereto that he should soon cast from his neck the yoke of servitude, and, after a prosperous voyage, return to his own parents. And the servant of G.o.d looked on the angel of G.o.d, and, conversing with him face to face familiarly, even as with a friend, asked who he was, and by what name was he called. And the heavenly messenger answered that he was the ministering spirit of the Lord, sent into the world to minister unto them who have the heritage of salvation; that he was called Victor, and especially deputed to the care of him, and he promised to be his helpmate and his a.s.sistant in doing all things. And although it is not needful that heavenly spirits should be called by human names, yet the angel, being beautifully clothed with an human form composed of the air, called himself Victor, for that he had received from Christ, the most victorious King, the power of vanquis.h.i.+ng and binding the powers of the air and the princes of darkness; who had also given to his servants made of the potter's clay the power of treading on serpents and scorpions, and of vanquis.h.i.+ng and bruising Satan. And in their mutual colloquy the angel showed unto Patrick an opening in the ground that had been delved up by the swine, and therein he directed him to look for gold with which he might redeem himself from the hands of his cruel master; and he added that a s.h.i.+p to carry him over to Britain was ready in a harbor two hundred miles distant, and which, by the divine will, could not have a favorable wind until he should arrive. And the vision of the angel, thus saying, disappeared, and his speech ended; and, as the inhabitants a.s.sert, the marks of his feet appear even to this day imprinted on the rock in the Mountain Mis, in the borders of Dalnardia; and an oratory is erected there in honor of St. Patrick, wherein the devotion of the faithful is wont to watch and pray.

CHAPTER XVI.

_How St. Patrick was Redeemed from Slavery._

And Patrick went to the place which the angel had pointed out unto him, and he found therein no small weight of gold. Wherefore he addressed for his ransom his hard and cruel master, and with the offering of the yellow metal induced his mind, greedy of gold, to grant unto him his freedom. Therefore, being by the aid of Mammon solemnly released from his servitude, he went his way rejoicing, and hastened toward the sea, desiring to return to his own country. But Milcho repented that he had dismissed a servant so very necessary unto him, and, falsifying his agreement, pursued Patrick that he might bring him back and reduce him to his former slavery, as Pharao pursued the Hebrews. But by the divine will, wandering both in his mind and in his course, he found not him whom he sought. Foiled, therefore, in his attempt, he returned with grief and with shame. And his sorrow was much increased, for that not only Patrick, having obtained his freedom, had escaped, but the gold which was the price of his freedom, on returning home, he found not. And with this the law accords; for to him who has served six years in slavery, the law directs that in the seventh year shall his freedom be restored.

CHAPTER XVII.

_How he Relieved those who were Peris.h.i.+ng of Hunger._

And Saint Patrick, guided by his angelic guide, came unto the sea, and he there found the s.h.i.+p that was to carry him to Britain, and a crew of heathens who were in the s.h.i.+p freely received him, and, hoisting their sails with a favorable wind, after three days they made land. And being come out of the s.h.i.+p, they found a region desert and inhabited of none, and they began to travel over the whole country for the s.p.a.ce of twenty-four days; and for the want of food in that fearful and wide solitude were they peris.h.i.+ng of hunger. And Patrick, through their whole journey, was preaching unto those pagans the Word of G.o.d, and disputing with them and persuading them unto the faith of the Holy Trinity and the kingdom of heaven; but they, even as the deaf adder that listens not to the voice of the charmer charming wisely, closed their ears against the Word of G.o.d until misery gave them understanding to hear. For hunger yet more heavily a.s.sailing and oppressing them, the greater part are said to have thus spoken: "Behold, O wors.h.i.+pper of Christ! how wretched are we with want and misery, and our eyes fail us for every need; now, therefore, implore for us thy G.o.d, whom thou describes! and exaltest as all-powerful, that His bounty may relieve us, and we will adore and glorify His greatness." And Saint Patrick answered unto them: "Believe in and confess the G.o.d who giveth food unto all flesh, and by whom, when He openeth His hand, ye shall be satisfied from His goodness." And he prayed earnestly, and behold, as he prayed for them, suddenly an herd of swine appeared, and they saw wild honey, and therewith they were sufficed even to fulness, nor from that day through their whole journey did ever a supply of food fail unto them. And this great miracle being seen, they all gave thanks unto G.o.d and held Saint Patrick in the highest reverence.

CHAPTER XVIII.

_Of his Fast continued for Twenty Days._

And all things succeeding prosperously, and their provision much abounding, these men soon forgot the Lord who had saved them from the straitness of hunger, and, ungrateful for the benefits extended unto them by the divine bounty, they sacrificed of their food to devils, and not unto G.o.d, imitating herein those Samaritans whom the Book of Kings records to have wors.h.i.+pped G.o.d, yet not to have the service of their idols. Wherefore it seemed good to Saint Patrick to eat no earthly food for twenty continual days, and, albeit he was much entreated thereto, he would in no wise join with them in their meals, lest he should appear to be contaminated with their sacrifices. And the power to endure this abstinence was given unto Patrick by the Lord, who had theretofore enabled Elias the prophet to fast forty days.

CHAPTER XIX.

_How he Overcame the Temptation of the Enemy._

The wonderful Ruler of all things, the more he exalts with signs and with wonders his elect whom he loveth, the more does he, according to the Apostle, suffer them to fall into divers temptations, that they may learn and know how to preserve their strength in G.o.d, who is their maker, and trust to nothing in themselves or of themselves. Wherefore Patrick, the beloved and the elect of G.o.d, is suffered by the divine will to be grievously tempted of Satan, to increase the confusion of the tempter and the glory of him who was tempted, and lest he should be lifted up by the greatness of his miracles or his fastings. For in the night season the prince of darkness rushed on him, and oppressed him as with the weight of a huge stone, and, falling on him, the tempter took from him all sense and motion, causing to him darkness and heaviness, and for the s.p.a.ce of three days ceased not to torment and lash him beyond human power to endure. But the saint in his tribulation cried unto the Lord, thrice in His name invoking Elias, the prince of prophets, unto his aid. And Elias, being sent of the Lord with a great brightness, freed him from the pressure of the enemy that hemmed him round, and, wonderfully illumining him both within and without, refreshed the powers of his limbs and his senses. And the enemy of mankind, being put to confusion, was compelled to own himself vanquished by Patrick, and that ever after he could have no power to prevail against him.

CHAPTER XX.

_How he was again made Captive, and released by the Miracle of the Kettle._

But Patrick, departing from the company of his fellow-travellers that he might prove how many are the tribulations of the just through which they must enter into the kingdom of heaven, fell into the hands of strangers, by whom he was taken and detained; and while his spirit was afflicted within him, the Father of mercies and G.o.d of all consolation sent the angel Victor in the wonted manner to comfort him, promising that in a short time he should be released from the hands of his captors; and how truly was made the angelic promise did its speedy fulfilment show, which followed even in the s.p.a.ce of two months; for the barbarians sold him to a certain man in the neighborhood for a kettle--how small a purchase for so precious a merchandise! But when the vessel that had been bought with such a price was filled with water, and placed as usual on the hearth to dress their victual, behold it received no heat; and so much the hotter the fire burned, so much the colder did it become; and fuel being heaped thereon, the flame raged without, but the water within was frozen, as if ice had been placed under instead of fire. And they labored exceedingly thereat; but their labor was vain, and the rumor went everywhere through the country; and the purchaser, thinking it to have been done by enchantment, returned his kettle to the seller, and took Patrick again into his own power. And the vessel thereon received the heat, and did its accustomed office even naturally, and showed to all that this miracle happened because Patrick had been unjustly oppressed; and forthwith they who had taken him let him go free. Thus, by the heavenly power being released from the hands of strange children, was he, after his long captivity, restored to his parents; and they, beholding him, rejoiced with exceeding great joy, and at the return of their son did their spirits revive as the spirits of one awakening from a heavy sleep, and they besought of him, with entreaty of many prayers and the abundance of many tears, that he would not again bereave them of his presence. Therefore, that he might show the honor and the submission due unto his parents, he abided with them certain days.

CHAPTER XXI.

_Of Saint Patrick's Vision._

And a short s.p.a.ce of time being pa.s.sed, the while he was settled in his lather's house, he beheld in a vision of the night a man of comely garb and countenance, bearing many letters as if from Ireland, and holding out to him one of them for him to read--which taking, he read, and found therein thus written: "THIS IS THE VOICE OF THE IRISH." But when he would have continued to read, he seemed in the spirit to hear the Irish infants which were yet unborn crying unto him with a loud voice, "O holy youth Patrick! we beseech thee come unto us, and abide with us, and release us!" And Patrick, being pierced therewith in his heart, could not finish the letter; but awaking, he gave infinite thanks to G.o.d, for he was a.s.sured by the vision that the Lord had set him apart, even from his mother's womb, had by His grace called him to convert and to save the Irish nation, which seemed to desire his presence among them. And on this he consulted the angel of great counsel, and through the angel Victor he received the divine command that, quitting his father and his country, he should go unto France, there to learn the doctrine and the discipline of the Christian faith.