The Indianapolis journal., 1885-03-16
SANCTUARY SERVICES.
Rev. DR.. Mcleod Disc0urses on st. Patrick
at the First Presbyterian Church.
Services at Central-Ayenue NJ. E. Church,
North Baptist. Plymouth Congrega-
tional and the Tabernacle.
ST. PATRICK. APOSTLE OF IRELAND.


The Evening Theme of the Rev. James Me-
Leod, ID. d., at the First Church.
At the First Presbyterian Church last night
Rev. james Mcleod, D. D., preached from the
text, Acts xvi O. Come over into Macedonia
and help US, his theme being 'St Patrick, the
Apostle Of Ireland"
Dr. Mcleod spoke with more than his usual
earnestness toa keenly attentive audience. He
said his subject was timely one. The 18th of
March is cherished fondly by millions of our fel-
low Christians and fellowcitzens 1t
is day linked with one of the
noblest men Of whom Christendom can boast.
1t is scriptural subject. While the Saints
name is not recorded in the Bible, his faith is
found there--the motives by which he was i'm
pelled his great sacrifices, his all-consuming
love for God and for the souls of men, his untr-
ing ZEAL his Christ-liko life in teaching the ig
norant and saving the perishing-all this he
owed, through divine grace. to the holy script
ures. There have been saints in the past, and
there are to-day saints more worthy of our re-
gard than some Of those whose names are found
in scripture. st. Patrick is surely nobler
specimen of sainthood than st. Samson or st.
Jephtha. False notions about saints are by no
means uncommon. Surprising stories are told
about st. Patrick and other saints. We want
saints who can sympathize with ls in our every
day life--with whom we can feel we have some
things in common. Such saint was st. Pat
rick. We reject, of course. the arrant nonsense
which the Monk Joceline wrote of him. Let us
bear in mind that neither ST. Pat
rick nor st. Denis, nor any other good saint
should be held responsible for the rubbish
which ignorance and superstition combined if
you please, with piety. have collected and heaped
upon his memory. When we strip ST. Patrick
of the garish robes in which his deluded admirers
have dressed him, when we throw aside the ly-
ing wonders and miracles which they have at
tributed to him. we are then in contact with a
true man. When we see the real Patrick, we
recognize him as q man of like passions with
ourselves, and frstrate saint. We find man
who sSs great sinner and needed divine for
giveness. He had difficulties to overcome tempta-
tions to resist. But he had great faith, great
hope and great charity.
France, Spain, England, Wales. Scotland each
claims ST. Patrick one OF her sons. The best
authorities now award his birth to Scotland
He became Irishman by compulsion by be-
ing kidnapped by a fierce barbaric pirate Neal
He was then sixteen years old and unconverted
he tells us. He was sold into slavery, and for
six years acted the part of a faithful
shepherd to savage Druid chief. While
like Onesimus, became the Lords freeman
After six years he escaped from bondage
and reached his home on the banks of the Clyde
much to the JOY of his parents who had given
him up as lost He went back to Ireland by
reason of vision, and became an Irishman by
1t seems certain Christianity was introduced
into Ireland long before the time of st. Patrick.
At what precise time is unknown. There seems
to have been a church there in the days of Ter
tullian. But the number of Christians at the
time of his arrival must have been few. Druid
ism then held sway. There are three documents
which have come down to us which we have
good =. reason to believe we're written
his confession, his hymn, sometimes called ST.
Patrick's armor and his epistle to Coroticus.
From his letter to Coroticus, the Welsh pirate,
we can see that he was as patriotic as he was
pious. From his confession and his hymn we
learn the doctrines he embraced and preached
His creed was simple but in harmony with the
gospel. 1t was so evangelical that he has been
claimed by the various evangelical denomina-
tions as belonging to them more truly than to
our Roman Catholic friends. This is to his
honor.
1t seems from the record that the clergy of
Patrick's day did not believe in celihacy. His
father, Calphurnius was a deacon. So mani
festly ST. Patrick was the son of a clergyman.
Moreover, his grandfather. Potitus, was pres
byter or as some will have it. a priest St Pat
rick himself says this 1t seems that the Chris
tians of Scotland and Ireland paid but, little at
tenton then to DEGREES of councils bulls of
popes., There is not a line in his confession, or
hymn, or episte which shows that he had any
connection whatever with Rome He never al
ludes to it. If he received his commission as an
apostle or bishop from the pope, it seems
strange that he never alluded to it in his famous
confession, and his contemporaries make no
mention of any such commission. If the doc
trines taught by St Patrick were the doctrines
which the Church of Rome taught at that time,
then it is very evident that they are not the doc
trines which the Church of Rome teaches now
What, therefore, becomes Of the dogma that she
is always the samel' There is not a title of
evidence to show that St Patrick believed in
transsubstantiation, in purgatory, in auricuar
confession, IN penance, in the virtue
Of prayers for the dead, of prayers
offered up to the saints or angels 1t is
not credible that he could have believed or
taught such doctrines and yet make no mention
of them in his writings Why do they not APP
pearl Simply because be did not believe them
But we do find in his writings abundant evidence
that ne preached q pure gospel and loved holy
life. Perhaps since his day there has not
lived more prayerful, more conse-
Grated. more evangelical, more spiritually
minded, more powerful Christian man than he
oVr EabrlcK lOVeO ireland Win all his heart
He found it DESERT he left it paradise He
found it an island of pagans; he left it an island
of saints. Much as he might have wished to
visit his native land-to see the work of God in
other lands--there is no evidence that he ever
did SO. The story told of his visit to Rome and
his interview with the Pope is doubtless an old
wife's fable. His devotion to Ireland would not
suffer him to leave her even for day So from
the year 440. when be landed as missionary.
until the 18th of March, 493, when his spirit took
Glpht INT
for the salvation of the Irish people.
That his success was in any sense due to mi
raculous power, we do not believe. His Danish
ment of the snakes and toads is of piece with
his making a fire for his aunt out of blocks
Of ice, or with that other story which tells how
when his mother upset a pail Of water the child
Patrick came to her rescue and let fire drop from
her fingers, which soon licked up this water
Such silly stories ought not to deceive any one
The Only miracle with which ST Patrick
can rinhflv be identifed are those rl;eh ,asl.s n