29. Saint Patrick Did Not Rid Ireland of Snakes, Did Not Popularize Shamrocks, and Is Technically Not a “Saint”
Saint Patrick’s most famous legend is that he banished snakes from Ireland. While it is true that the island is free of snakes, it has been that way throughout human history. The Ice Ages that began about three million years ago drove snakes to extinction in the Emerald Isle. When the Earth eventually warmed up, Ireland was surrounded by water, so snakes were unable to slither over and re-inhabit the island. Another famous but untrue Saint Patrick legend is that he popularized the shamrock to the point that it became a symbol of Ireland. Patrick is said to have used the shamrock’s three leaves to explain the Trinity of God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to the pagans, with each leaf representing a facet of God.
However, the shamrock had long been a popular symbol in the Emerald Isle. Ireland’s ancient Celts believed that many important things came in threes. For many centuries before Saint Patrick’s arrival, they had used the shamrock to symbolize such groupings of three. Another untrue fact about the beloved holy’s man concerns the “Saint” in his name. Ironically, one of Catholicism’s most famous saints is not even technically a “Saint”. Patrick lived before the Church laws that establish the process of sainthood came into being, so he was never formally canonized as a Saint. Nonetheless, Saint Patrick is venerated as one in both the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox churches.