The Confession of St. Patrick

Translated from the Latin by Ludwig Bieler

Patrick, a sinner
I am Patrick, a sinner, most unlearned, the least of all the faithful, and utterly despised by many. My father was Calpornius, a deacon, son of Potitus, a priest, of the village Bannavem Taburniæ (in Britain); he had a country seat nearby, and there I was taken captive.

Did not know God
I was then about sixteen years of age. I did not know the true God. I was taken into captivity to Ireland with many thousands of people—and deservedly so, because we turned away from God, and did not keep His commandments, and did not obey our priests, who used to remind us of our salvation. And the Lord brought over us the wrath of his
anger and scattered us among many nations….

His Conversion
There the Lord opened the sense of my unbelief that I might at last remember my sins and be converted with all my heart to the Lord my God, who had regard for my abjection… and watched over me before I knew Him, and before I was able to distinguish between good and evil……Hence I cannot be silent….about the great benefits and the great grace which the Lord has deigned to bestow upon me in the land of my captivity….

His Concept of God
Because there is no other God, nor ever was, nor will be, than God the Father unbegotten, without beginning, from whom is all beginning, the Lord of the universe….and His son Jesus Christ, whom we declare to have always been with the Father, spiritually and ineffably begotten by the Father before the beginning of the world… by Him are made all things visible and invisible. He was made man, and, having defeated death, was received into heaven by the Father; and He hath given Him all power …in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue shall confess to Him that Jesus Christ is Lord and God…He has poured forth upon us abundantly the Holy Spirit … who makes those, who believe and obey, sons of God and joint heirs with Christ.

Total Commitment
If ever I have done any good for my God whom I love, I beg Him to grant me that I may shed my blood with those exiles and captives for His name….I am firmly convinced that if this should happen to me, I would have gained my soul together with my body, because on that day without doubt we shall rise in the brightness of the sun, that is, in the glory of Christ Jesus our Redeemer, as sons of the living God and joint heirs with Christ, to be made conformable to His image; for of Him, and by Him, and in Him we shall reign.

Rewards of Faith
For this sun …rises daily for us because He commands so, but it will never reign, nor will its splendour last; what is more, those wretches who adore it will be miserably punished. Not so we, who believe in, and worship, the true sun—Christ, who will never perish, nor will he who doeth His will; but he will abide for ever as Christ abides for ever, who reigns with God the Father Almighty and the Holy Spirit before time, and now, and in all eternity. Amen.

Pure Motives for preaching
Behold, again and again would I set forth the words of my confession. I testify in truth and in joy of heart before God and His holy angels that I never had any reason except the Gospel and its promises why I should ever return to the people from whom once before I barely escaped.

My Confession: a gift of God
I pray those who believe and fear God, whosoever deigns to look at or receive this writing which Patrick, a sinner, unlearned, has composed in Ireland, that no one should ever say that it was my ignorance if I did or showed forth anything however small according to God’s good pleasure; but let this be your conclusion and let it so be thought, that—as is the perfect truth—it was the gift of God. This is my confession before I die.

Note:

• Patrick’s Confession contains approx. 200 references to scripture
• It contains The Rule of Faith of the Trinity, a creed of the Celtic Church
• Patrick was a British Celt, enslaved in Ireland as a teen, later a missionary to Ireland
• The date of his birth/death is unknown, but traditionally it is 17th March
• The only documents about Patrick are his Confession and his letter to Coroticus

The Shield of St. Patrick . Attributed to St. Patrick . Paraphrased by Cecil Frances Alexander
I bind unto myself today the strong name of the trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, the One in Three. I bind this day to me forever by power of faith Christ’s incarnation, his baptism in the Jordan river, his death on the cross for my salvation; his bursting from the spiced tomb, his riding up the heavenly way, his coming at the day of doom I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead, his eye to watch, his might to stay, his ear to harken to my need, the wisdom of my God to teach, his hand to guide, his shield to ward, the Word of God to give me speech, his heavenly host to be my guard.

Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me; Christ to comfort and restore me; Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the name, the strong name of the Trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, and One in Three, of whom all nature hath creation, eternal Father, Spirit, Word; praise to the God of my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord!

Note:
The Shield of St. Patrick is attributed to Patrick, but may not be written by him. It is found in many variations. Some leave out the middle section, some have only the middle section, and some are more or less like what you see here. This version is an example that contains all the verses that are normally associated with the shield, which is also sometimes called the breastplate of St. Patrick.