The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-04-02
WAS ST. PATRICK A BAPTIST ?
Or. LANDRUM SAYS HE TAUGHT BAP-
TlST DOCTRINE AND PRACTlCEO
IMMERSION.

Or. LANDRUm SAYS HE TAUGHT BAP-
TlST DOCTRINE AND PRACTlCED
IMMERSION.
Rcv. w. w. Landrum, D. d., OF
Richmond. Va, preached to large
congregation recently OIL "St. Patrick
as Baptist" and the following report
Of his argument is given by the Rich
mond Times:
Irishmen vcnerato him as Roman
Catholic and patron saint Of Erin ;
and an Episcopalian Scotchmcn claim
him as fellow country man and Pres.
byterian; Methodists say he was the
original after which John Wesley
patterned; Salvation Army officers
remember how he assembled around
hi m in the open fields at the beat OF
a drum u concourse OF people where
no related to thcm tho story OF Christ
| Baptists pronounce him ono Of their
early missionaries and noble expo
nent OF doctrines and duties they hold
dear.
Historic material to enable us to re.
construct Patrick's life is scant and
unsatisfactory. Perhaps our only trust.
worthy information il derived from
two Latin tracts left by him. Ono ia
| entitled His Confession and the
other his "Epistle to Coroticus," most
probably Welsh prince. The date
and place OF Pstrick's birth arc in
doubt. He is believed to have flourish
ed in the carly part OF the sixth cen
tury.. 1t seems to be probable that he
was born in part Of Scotland which
was at that time not Scotland, but
Britain. We know from his "Confes-
sion the name, office, and occupation
OF his father and the calling of his
father and the calling of his grand
mother; We know that ho was captured
at fifteen years Of ago and carried to
ireland, sold as a slave, and required
to guard cattle; thai he escaped after
six years Of servitude, and after a
period OF wandering, returned to
ireland as a missionary and preached
the gospel with marvellous success
that he became, indeed, the father of
Irish Christianity and Irish civiliza-
ton. His birthday and deathday are
supposed to como around about March
l7th.
Rationalists admit ST. Patrick was
not q myth. Moncure d. Conway, in
Tho Open Court" March IL, 1896,
says: There seems to be no reason
to doubt that missionary in Ireland
who called himself Patrick did in the
| fifth century write two brief tractates
|
second the Letter to Coroticus.' The
sufficient antiquity Of these works is
unquestionable. They do not contain
the faintest intimation OF any con-
nection Of Patrick with Rome, or of
any papal commission, or OF any obscr-
vance by him Or the mass"
Lives OF ST. Patrick abound which
TEEN with marvels. Like Moses, he
works wonders with a rod he dries up
q flood, turns an unbclieving district
into marsh, makes a sacred stou,
loat to bear q loper to ireland, cAusop
one magician to sink into the earth,
another to be struck by lightning,
makes hideous dwarf tall and beauti.
full; makes kettle boil with blocks OF
ice sinks a hostile ship with the sign
Of the cross calls up or appeases tom
pests.
All, or nearly all, Protestants claim
Patrick. They hold that there was no
Pope OF Rome at the time Of Patrick,
hence it was quite impossible for him
to have been Romanist. English
churchmen would hardly dispute the
statement Of Moncure d. Conway,
thority In Ireland until the twelfth
century, when al English Pope Break
spear) and an English king Henry II. J
forced on thcm the Romanism, for
which Cromwell punished them. All
Protestants, arguing from Patrick's
own Confession" maintain that he
was an evangelical Christian. An
evangelical Christian is one who be-
Iieves in salvation by faith a. one, and
may be Episcopalian or Presbyterian,
Baptist or Methodist, Lutheran or
Congregationalist. Evangelicals know
tnat in his writings Patrick makes 10
| nf ha fnn
auricular confession, ubstantia.
tion, or worehip OF the virgin.
Patrick's doctrines and practices
show resemblance to- those of modern
Baptists. These particulars may be
enumerated His belief was the Bible
and the Bible alone ; he quotes as au-
thority on religion not the pope or the
church. or the creeds of councils, but
only the Bible. Patrick's Christian OK
perienco is not due to sacramentS, but
is o work Of grace In tho soul, causing
repentance for his sins and faith in the
Lord jesus Christ. Patricks views of
the officers OF q church ia that of the
Baptists. According to him the church
has only two set. Of of1icers--one called
presbytcrs or elders or bishops, and
the other deacons. Patrick's grand
father was Potitus, not Il priest but q
married presbyter. His father was O
deacon, who owned and lived on o farm
ard held the Office of decurio, or town
councilman. Patrick was Baptist
as to tho act and tho subject OF oap.
tism, He did not baptise infants, but
onl y persons who personally repented
and personally believed on the Lord
Jesus Christ. The act of baptism in
Patrick's day was immersion in water
In the name of the Trinity.
Patrick seems to have understood
tho Baptist doctrine Of religious
liberty. He hold that no good Citizen
should be punished for his irroligious
or Pagan opinions, and he sought to
win converts to Christianity only by
sweet persuasion and self-sacrifcing
love. Patrick was Il peerless foreign
missionary. Ireland when he entered
~ was DISTRACTED and cursed with petty
wars, piracy, tyranny, and idolatry.
Ireland, when Patrick died, after half
a century of fearless preaching in the
name OF Jesus, was universally Chris
tiap.
Patrick's doctrines say to us as did
the Lord, "Qall no man master"
| neithar Paul nor ApOl Os noithor poto,