The Irish standard., 1916-02-12
A TRIBUTE TO ST. BRIDGET.
Read Before the Irish History Club OF
tho Ladies' Auxiliary Of the
A. o. H., BY Miss Margaret
Finne0an.

A. o. H., BY Miss Margaret
Finnegan.
The Irish Church has ever been the
prolific mother of sanity children.
Never in the history of the propaga-
tion of the Catholic faith was there
found q soil more ready for the re-
ception of the blessed seed of the gos-
pel of Christ than that of our own
dear soil.
1t was in the time Of st. Patrick
that ladies of royal and noble birth sat
at the feet of the Apostle and learned
the true dignity of womanhood, at
tained only by knowledge and prac-
tice of Christian virtue. And It was
one of these Irish maidens noble by
birth and most fair Of face and figure
that is our patroness, St. Bridget.
She Of all the spiritual children of
St. Patrick is the brightest jewel In
his apostolic crown. st. Bridget typl'
fed the perfect woman.
She was the light that shone over
Ireland. to direct the footsteps of the
daughters of Erin in the paths Of vir-
tue and sanctity. 1t was customary
in speaking of her, during her time to
discard the prefix saint and call her
in homely yet reverend fashion "No
Brighe," meaning "My Bride"
When we study more closely the
life of this most extraordinary saint
we realize how near and dear the
MARY of Erin" must have been to
Him who raised her to the highest
pinnacle of sanctity, and we cease to
wonder why Catholics Of all nationali.
ties foster devotion to saint whose
days were spent within the narrow
limits of the Emerald Isle. If we seek
the key to the intense love and ven
Grafton for St. Bridget that rules and
sways the Celtic heart of today as in
centuries gone by, we must look for 1t
in one of the noblest traits of the
Irish character.
No matter what our faults may be,
we, the children of Erin, can never be
charged, even by our bitterest enc
mics, with ingratitude to our friends
and benefactors. And st. Bridget, our
national patroness, was the best
friend Ireland ever had for, during her
long life, she was ever going about
doing good. She marked out the path
Of perfection which many an Irish
virgin has since trodden with the hap
piest spiritual results. Her works of
charity relieved distress in many an
Irish home.
There is general agreement
among the biographers of st. Bridget
that she was born in Foughart, Coun-
ty Louth, in the year 451. At the bap-
tismal font the name of Bridget was
given to the infant, which signifies
strength and virtue. It was peculiarly
appropriate for one who was to be-
come such shining star in the firma-
ment of the Irish church.
When her days of infancy had
passed and those of knowledge and
wisdom had succeeded, it became ap-
parent that God was moulding the
heart of Bridget to be the abode Of
rarest virtue and piety. Her nodesty
attracted not only those of her house
hold but all who came in contact with
her. People could not resist gazing
in wonderment as she passed them by;
they sincerely praised God for having
raised up in their midst this perfect
model Of unblemished innocence and
virginal purity.
It was characteristic for her to steal
away from her playmates to some se-
questered spot where she could hold
communion with Him whose love filled
her heart to overfowing. A virtue
which drew all hearts to her was her
wonderful sympathy for the poor and
afflicted. She chose them as her dear
est friends and loved to have them
around her. She was the foundress of
the first sisterhood in Ireland, and it
was a nephew of st. Patrick that
placed the veil on the head of St.
Bridget.