"Lord of All Nations and All Peoples, we rejoice today in a special servant of Yours, St. Patrick. Irish or not, Catholic or not, we all dance a gleeful jig on this his joyous feast day. His green feast day gives us all a chance to wear the green of spring and life. Four days from now our old friend winter will loose his lease of life. Packing up his ice and snow, his chilly winds and frosty breath, he’ll soon be gone. The green of this day foretells of rich vegetation soon to grace our countryside; proclaims the fresh and new to the tired and weary; announces to one and all that spring is on her way! Lord of All Seasons, winter is on his deathbed, but songs and mirth are greening all around us. Blessed be St. Patrick, bishop and man of prayer. Blessed be all saints, and the wee folk as well." Edward Hays, Prayers for the Domestic Church
Ah, St. Patrick’s Day. I have just driven down the streets in Saint Paul where green is being worn by every man, woman and child. Though the city, and certainly the church celebrated on Saturday due to the day falling during Holy Week, there was still a ‘wearin’ of the green’ for as far as the eye could see. And what a welcome color it was with the skies as gray as a goose and peppering the people and streets with slushy snow. How we long for green right now….and so are thankful for this celebration that allows us to pull out all the green clothes we own, put them on and head out to create a little interruption of the monochromatic to the world.
As I attended the St. Patrick’s Day mass at the Cathedral on Saturday morning, I was struck with the joy that green can bring into a room. Looking around there was kelly green, forest green, lime green,pale green, green feathers, hats, shirts, pants, jackets, even a few heads of hair that had been dyed green. All that beautiful, rich color even outshone the priests in their Sunday-best vestments.
St.Patrick’s Day is a celebration adopted by many for all kinds of reasons. But I would venture to say that a part of the attraction is trading the browns and blacks of winter in for a brilliant green, at least for one day in our snowiest month of the year. Ask a person who has just returned from a warm weather vacation what the best part was. Almost all will say ‘the color!’ After a certain amount of time we simply crave the sheer beauty and stimulation of color and its residual effect on our spirits.
And so if you haven’t already, I invite you to search for your green clothes and put them on. It doesn’t even matter if they don’t match very well. Put them on anyway. And head out into the streets to join the others proclaiming the message. "Winter’s work is over. The spring lies waiting to be born. St. Patrick has given us the signal. Wear green and coax the new life to begin." I promise you will be well received.