The Seeker: St. Patrick's Day or Shamrock Day? St. Patrick's Day or Shamrock Day? Share | As we all know, St. Patrick's Day is known more for revelry than reverie. Pictures from this weekend’s St.Patrick’s Day parades don’t lie. But should I feel guilty that I celebrated a saint by acting like a sinner? “A little bit of guilt is a good thing to keep us in check,” Rev. Dan Brandt told me when I confessed that riding in a St. Patrick’s Day parade is an experience I’ll never forget—except for the parts Irish whiskey already erased. But Brandt, the priest at Nativity of Our Lord parish in Bridgeport, said I shouldn’t dwell on that guilt either. After all, he enjoys pounds and gallons of corned beef and green beer on St. Patrick’s Day too. “ Life is short and we should be mindful that God is good,” Brandt said. Even Jesus discouraged fasting while the bridegroom is present, he added, referring to Mark 2:19 in the New Testament. However, Brandt does hope the faithful keep in mind that the day honors a saint who was one of the earliest Christian missionaries.

Legend credits St. Patrick for driving the snakes out of Ireland (Some believe this is a metaphor for pagans). St. Patrick is also credited with introducing the Irish to the concept of the Trinity, using the shamrock. Ironically, the shamrock has been co-opted as the secular symbol of the day. According to my colleague Terri Jo Ryan at my parents’ hometown newspaper the Waco Tribune-Herald , a movement is afoot in commercial and public circles to rename the holiday Shamrock Day. That is precisely the kind of trend that Brandt and other Catholic priests want to turn around. Last year, Brandt discovered a 7-foot-tall 400-pound statue of St. Patrick in the basement of his 140-year-old parish and, with the help of mischievous parishioners, showed the statue around the neighborhood. Neighbors awoke to find St. Patrick camped out in their yards. He even stopped at Shillick’s Pub, a popular Irish bar in the neighborhood. But what started as a prank turned out to be a pilgrimage, Brandt said.

One woman in the bar—a self-proclaimed lapsed Catholic—was so moved by the saint’s visit to the pub, she saw it as a sign. Brandt now sees her at mass on Sundays. “God works in mysterious ways,” Brandt said. "In this case and this place, St. Patrick is still saving souls even centuries after his work driving the snakes out of Ireland.” St. Patrick didn’t go on our tour this year. Instead, the parish paid to have the statue restored and plan to display it inside the parish building to welcome parishioners. So I asked Brandt how St. Patricks’ Day came to be such a day of revelry? He pointed out that other saints’ feast days often reflect those saints’ passions. To honor St. Francis of Assisi parishioners often bring their pets to be blessed. “Irish have the reputation of being fond of drink,” Brandy said. “It makes me wonder of St. Patrick was fond of celebration." What do you think? Should St. Patrick's Day be observed as a religious holiday? Should it be renamed Shamrock Day? Or should the tradition of mixing it up remain the same?

(Manya Brachear and fellow reveler Lars Anderson of Richmond enjoy a chuckle as they wait for the St. Patrick's Day parade to begin. Photo for The Seeker by Jennifer Chesrown) Posted at 12:04:56 PM Shamrock Latin: Oxalis regnellii As a kid growing up in what looks like a German-Protestant enclave in central Oklahoma, I never quite understood St. Patrick's day. Sure, I not only was pinched but managed to bestow a few pinches on those unlucky classmates failing to abide the "wearing of the green" rule. But still, the significance of the day escaped me. That a religious holiday – what St. Patrick's day is at its heart, despite all the beer drinking and revelry – should have a plant associated with it is not surprising. That the plant sold as the "shamrock" is really from South America and not Ireland may take a bit of explanation. Shamrock is a tender pot-plant that grows from an underground rhizome that looks like a zipper. The three lobed green leaves are borne aloft on slender petioles about 6 inches long. The individual leaflets are triangular.

The name shamrock is derived from the Celtic word for clover, which also has three leaflets. St. Patrick is said to have used the shamrock to illustrate the principle of the trinity to the people he converted. It's unclear if the shamrock St. Patrick used was the Irish clover, Trifolium repens, or the native wood sorrel, Oxalis acetosella. The flowers of O. regnellii appear in greatest abundance in the spring and sporadically throughout the growing season. Flowers are an inch long, white, five-petaled trumpets borne in a loose terminal cluster that tend to flop about. This species is native to Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay, and it seems to have been cultivated in this country since the 1930's. St. Patrick, born in Britain as Maewyn Succat in 387 AD and fathered by a Roman officer, was sent to Ireland in 432 as a missionary to convert the masses to Christianity. His most famous legend, that he drove the snakes from Ireland, is really a metaphor for driving the Druids, the shaman and magicians of the Celts from the Green Isle.

He died in 461 on March 8 or March 9. Because no agreement could be reached on which day he died, the holiday is celebrated on the 17th of March, the sum of 8 and 9. The first St. Patrick's day was celebrated in the U.S. in Boston in 1737. Thanks to the Irish potato famine of the 1840's, we have more people of Irish descent in the U.S. than in Ireland. The use of O. regnellii is an American convention foisted upon the horticulturally uninitiated by the greenhouse industry. The plant is ideal for the holiday because it has the tripartite leaves, is green and is showy in a 6-inch pot. That the plant comes from the wrong continent is a bit of geographic formality that need not concern the average holiday celebrant. The shamrock is easy to grow as a houseplant. Give it bright, indirect light. Allow the soil to dry slightly before rewatering. Fertilize with a houseplant fertilizer during the summer months and, if possible, relocate the plant to a shaded patio for a summer vacation out-of-doors.

The foliage will usually die down late in the fall, at which time the pot should be allowed to dry down. Begin watering in early February to force the plant back into growth. Watch for spider mites, its most troublesome foe. Snakes don't seem to bother it, so I guess it's magic still holds. By: Gerald Klingaman, retired Extension News - March 16, 2001 The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture does not maintain lists of retail outlets where these plants can be purchased. Please check your local nursery or other retail outlets to ask about the availability of these plants for your growing area. 10 Things You Didn’t Know About St. Patrick’s Day 10 Things You Didn’t Know About St. Patrick’s Day By Kathy Landin March 12, 2014 9:25 AM REDDIT MDGovpics, Flickr/LenDog64, Flickr/-Chupacabras-, Flickr/2sirius, Flickr Everyone enjoys putting on their best green clothes on March 17 and being Irish for a day. We’ve all heard there was a saint and something to do with snakes in Ireland and now we have parades and drink green beer.

But what do we really know about St. Patrick’s Day? While everyone claims to be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, you can sound like the real deal by knowing a few of these random facts about the day, the saint and the traditions. You might even earn some green beer with your knowledge. 1. St. Patrick Was Not Irish (or a Patrick) -Chupacabras-, Flickr The man we know as St. Patrick was born in Great Britain, named Maewyn Succat and was not religious. He was kidnapped and sold into slavery by Irish marauders when he was 16 and formed his religious beliefs while enslaved. After escaping back to England, he became ordained as a priest and returned to Ireland to convert the Irish Celtic pagans to Christianity. 2. St. Patrick’s Day Was Not Always a Big Party LenDog64, Flickr Originally, March 17, the recorded day of St. Patrick’s death, was celebrated as a Catholic feast and a quiet religious observance. The first largely public celebration of St. Patrick’s Day took place in Boston in 1737. It did not become a national holiday in Ireland until 1903.

In fact, until the 1970s, pubs in Ireland were required by law to be closed on March 17. 3. St. Patrick’s Day Parades Started in the US 2sirius, Flickr The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was actually held in New York in 1762, when Irish soldiers serving in the English military during the Revolutionary war marched through the city to celebrate the religious feast day and their Irish roots. The first parade in Ireland was held in Dublin in 1931. 4. Shamrocks Are for Sunday School mfrascella, Flickr Shamrocks and clovers have long been associated with St. Patrick because legend has it that he used a shamrock to describe the Christian idea of God as a Holy Trinity to the Druish King of Ireland. He chose the plant because the Celtics believed the clover to be sacred since its leaves form a triad. The legend of the clover states that each leaf has meaning. The first leaf is hope, the second is faith, the third is love and the fourth is luck. 5. St. Patrick Actually Wore Blue mdid, Flickr In modern celebrations of St.

Patrick’s Day, revelers wear green, eat and drink green foods and turn everything they can dye green. This tradition is said to commemorate St. Patrick’s use of the shamrock in his religious teaching, but didn’t really become a part of his feast celebration until the 19th century. In reality, St. Patrick wore blue. 6. There Were No Snakes in Ireland makeshift123, Flickr The legend of St. Patrick says that he is celebrated for driving all the snakes out of Ireland, which to this day, is a snake-free zone. The only problem with this legend is that biologists now believe there were never snakes in Ireland. Based on its geographical location and the temperature of the ocean surrounding it, snakes had no way of ever migrating to the island. Most likely, the legend of the snakes is a metaphor for St. Patrick driving paganism out of Ireland by converting so many people to Christianity. 7. America Has More Irish Than Ireland MDGovpics, Flickr According to a US Census, there are more Irish people in America than there are in Ireland. As of 2003, more than 34 million Americans had Irish ancestry. The population of Ireland is just more than four million people. 8.

Plenty of Irish Places to Celebrate in the US marada, Flickr If you really want to get into the Irish spirit for St. Patrick’s Day, you don’t have to actually go to Dublin. There are plenty of towns in the US that sound like they are in Ireland. In fact, there are at least seven shamrocks: Shamrock, TX; Shamrock, Colorado; Shamrock, OK; Shamrock Lakes, IN; Mount Gay-Shamrock, NC; Shamrock, MO; and Shamrock, LA. There are 16 cities in the US named after Ireland’s capital, Dublin. The largest is Dublin, CA and the second largest is Dublin, OH. You could also visit Emerald Isle, NC or Irishtown, IL for some St. Patrick’s Day fun. 9. The Chicago River Isn’t Always That Green Frank Polich, Getty Images In celebration of the shamrock and the Emerald Isle itself, American St. Patrick’s Day partygoers like to turn things green. One well-known dye job happens every year in Chicago when the city dyes its river green.

This tradition began in 1962 when the parade organizer, head of a plumbers’ union, noticed that the dye that had been used to find sources of river pollution stained his clothing green. He thought it would be a great idea to use enough dye to turn the whole river green for the city’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration. Researchers say the environmental impact of the dye is less than that of the pollution from sewage-treatment plants. 10. Corned Beef and Guinness Get a Boost Daniele Faieta, Flickr Aside from the varieties of green foods people consume for the feast of St. Patrick, there are some popular Irish treats that get a boost on the big day. Corned beef and cabbage is a popular Irish tradition. Each year in the US, more than 26 billion pounds of beef and more than two billion pounds of cabbage are produced. To wash this down, those who want to be truly Irish will have a pint of Guinness. The brewer says more than 13 million pints will be consumed around the world on St. Patrick’s Day. So raise a glass! You probably won’t remember any of this in the morning. Fact vs.

Fantasy : Ireland's Shamrock Legend Ireland's Shamrock Legend Sure, you already know a wee bit about the shamrock legends. I've found that many sites tell you the same basic things, in the same three paragraphs, word-for-word. (I wonder who originally wrote those paragraphs, anyway?) But I know you want to know more. I know you're tired of reading the same words about St. Patrick and shamrocks over and over again. Well, you came to the right place! How do I know? Because even though I won't leave out the basics you find everywhere else, I can relate that basic information to you in my own words, and I can (and will) reveal even more about the shamrock legend than you will find anywhere else. You are about to discover that Fantasy-Ireland is the only source you need for learning about all your favorite Irish symbols! Why? Because the shamrock is one of the best representations of the Fantasy Ireland! And it is my job to honor your fantasy of Ireland, but also to help you sort out fact from fantasy. You count on me to honor your fantasies, but also give to you the facts. So you can decide for yourself what the shamrock legend means to you.

Buy this Art Print @ AllPosters.com Contrary to popular belief, the shamrock is not the official emblem of Ireland. Ask any head of state or diplomat. Officially, that honor goes to the Celtic harp . But in the hearts and minds of people all over the world, the shamrock is the symbol of Ireland. You could say the shamrock is the emblem of Irish culture. After all, the shamrock is without a doubt the most universally recognized symbol of Ireland. It has such power to define Ireland in the minds of people that it is used in the official logos of many major Irish organizations, like Fáilte Ireland, the Irish Tourist Board, for example. It is also the emblem of the official airline of Ireland, Aer Lingus. Every year on St. Patrick's Day, Aer Lingus flies freshly cut shamrock to the Irish embassies all over the world so that Irish diplomats and uniformed personnel can uphold the "Wearing of the Green" tradition on their beloved National Holiday. Fact vs. Fantasy Many sites will tell you that the little trefoil known as the shamrock was once known as "seamróg", pronounced "Seamroy", meaning "little clover".

They also mention the fact that it is a very common clover that grows heartily in Ireland. Many agree that the ancient Druids honored it as a sacred plant. The Druids believed the shamrock had the power to avert evil spirits. Some people still believe the shamrock has mystical, even prophetic, powers. It is said that the leaves of shamrocks turn upright whenever a storm is coming. According to Lady Wilde, the shamrock "enlightens the brain and makes one see and know the truth". The ancient Irish Celts also revered the shamrock because it has three leaves, and they considered "3" to be a sacred number. The ancient Celtic Druids believed many numbers held mystical powers. The three leaves shaped like hearts were associated with the Triple Goddess of Celtic mythology, otherwise known as the "Three Morgans". The Triple Goddess represented the Triple Mothers, the hearts of the ancient Celtic tribes. This Celtic tradition of honoring "3's" continued in Ireland for millennia. Great things do come in threes, after all... past, present, and future love, valor, and wit faith, hope and charity Three was also sacred to devotees of the goddess, Brighid, signifying totality.

And the Irish bards continued the significance of "3's" by using triple repetition in their storytelling rhythms. Actually, many spiritual belief systems, ancient and contemporary, find the number "3" to have mystical properties. The shamrock was considered a sacred plant to ancient Iranians, for example. They knew it as "shamrakh" and honored it as a symbol of the Sacred 3's. Symbol of the Holy Trinity The shamrock is a symbol of the Trinity and the Cross for most Irish-Catholics. This is due to the most famous shamrock legend, starring St. Patrick. The story basically says that he used the shamrock to help the pagan Druid High Priests and their followers comprehend the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - All in One Almighty God. But we know the shamrock was already considered a sacred plant to the Druids long before St. Patrick arrived in Ireland. Perhaps that is why, according to the shamrock legend, he chose this common little clover to illustrate the Trinity concept to them. The wisdom of St.

Patrick's mission was to take ancient pagan Celtic ideas and beliefs and use them to explain the concepts of Christianity in such a way that the Druids and their followers would embrace Christ and the Trinity. Knowing that it was considered a sacred plant to them already, the shamrock legend says he plucked one right out of the ground he was standing upon. Then he held it up high so everyone could see, and proclaimed, "Do you not see how in this wildflower three leaves are united on one stalk, and will you then believe that there are indeed three persons and yet one God?" According to Irish folklore, this effective demonstration secured the approval of the Druid High Priests of St. Patrick's missionary work in Ireland, and even led many of them to convert to Christianity and become Bishops themselves. Banishing the Serpents The shamrock legend also includes the story that St. Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland forever. The legend goes on to say that St. Patrick filled the Emerald Isle with lush shamrock fields to keep the snakes from ever returning. In fact, people say that shamrocks would grow wherever St. Patrick had preached.

An old Irish blessing says, There's a dear little plant that grows in our isle, 'Twas Saint Patrick himself, sure, that set it; And the sun of his labor with pleasure did smile, And with dew from his eye often wet it. It grows through the bog, through the brake, through the mireland And they call it the dear little Shamrock of Ireland It is true that you won't find any snakes in Ireland. Believers in Irish folklore take this as proof that St. Patrick indeed did banish all the serpents from the Emerald Isle. This shamrock legend is validated to some by the fact that snakes are never seen in fields of shamrocks anywhere in the world, and that shamrocks can indeed be used as a remedy for snake venom. The question is whether or not they were ever there at all. Some scholars believe that there have never been snakes in Ireland. The more romantic folk believe St. Patrick really did perform a Divine miracle and drove them out. Actually most people these days realize that the shamrock legend is probably just a metaphor for the fact that he did indeed drive out the pagan beliefs and rituals, which are commonly associated with snakes.

For the "Factaholics" What "factaholics", as I like to call them, argue is that there is no mention of shamrocks in the writings of St. Patrick or his missionaries as a teaching tool. One would think that if it was such an important tool, and if it had the major impact on their mission like the shamrock legend says, they would have written about it. Alas, they did not. But the shamrock is, in fact, a symbol found on many medieval bishops' tombs, including St. Patrick's. It is also found on the copper coins that were once known as "St. Patrick’s money". So maybe there is a wee bit of history behind the legend. The facts are clear, though, that it wasn't until 1571 that anyone made written reference to shamrocks, some 1000 years after St. Patrick. In 1681 it is first mentioned as the badge to be worn on St. Patrick's Feast Day. "Seamróg", the Gaelic word for shamrock, is not found in writing until even later, in 1707.

As far as it being a symbol of the Trinity, this part of the shamrock legend isn't included in any written records until 1727. How did the shamrock become such a powerful and universal symbol of Ireland? Well, for starters, during the days of Queen Victoria, the shamrock became a symbol of rebellion against the oppression of the Crown, when the Queen made it a capital crime to wear the shamrock on military uniforms, punishable by death. It was during this time that displaying the shamrock proudly on one's clothing became known as the "Wearing of the Green". Throughout the 19th century, the shamrock was used as a decorative symbol on everything Irish from churches and other public buildings, to clothing and household furniture. It wasn't long before anything connected with Ireland at all displayed shamrocks in some way. So the shamrock legend had taken on new meaning to Irish people. It went beyond being a spiritual symbol and became a source of empowerment and national pride. Celtic Revival This empowerment in the 19th century made way for a "Celtic Revival", when Celtic art experienced an explosion in popularity.

Between the oppressive rule of the Crown, the devastating and tragic Famine, and the growing tide of freedom-fighters, the Irish people sought to reassert their national identity and proudly display their Celtic heritage. The shamrock and Celtic knotwork were commonly used together as a symbol of this pride. The Real Truth So when you read all about the shamrock legend, you wonder, "which is fact and which is fantasy"? The fact is, we'll never know for sure. But the fantasy inherent in the shamrock legend is precisely what gives it such power. After all, it's not necessarily facts that define real truth. It's what people believe that defines their truth, and that is what has the power to influence people’s lives. So, whether the shamrock legends are factually accurate misses the point. The shamrock legend has the power to comfort and inspire. So the legend will no doubt live on for quite some time, as it should. Click Here to return to the TOP of this page To learn more about the shamrock legend, read Shamrocks, Harps and Shillelaghs: The Story of the St. Patrick's Day Symbols . This little treasure is an invaluable resource for understanding the symbols associated with St. Patrick's Day.

It was written by the late Edna Barth, the recognized expert in explaining the history and legends behind popular holidays to children. "Shamrocks" is not only thoroughly researched and well-written, but it has a way of blending fanciful stories and historical facts in such a way that it's easy for the wee ones to understand the significance of those symbols that they busy themselves crafting in preparation for St. Patrick's Day. Her book covers everything from the life of St. Patrick to the shamrock legend with insight and wit. For the teachers and parents out there, she includes a list at the end of the book that recommends more books to read to young students looking forward to March 17. < center> Wrestling with the Trinity: Truth, Myth or Metaphor? Wrestling with the Trinity: Truth, Myth or Metaphor? May 28, 2012 by David R. Henson 205 Comments Copyright Steve Wall (Flickr) My first run-in with trinitarian theology happened sometime around the fifth grade when my Sunday School teacher tried to explain the concept in a way that prepubescent boys would understand. He failed miserably. He used a water metaphor.

If three individual drops of water are put into a bowl, he said, they become one, but there are still three drops of water in the bowl. Most of us in the classroom were confused. For a long time, I chalked up his failure to communicate the Trinity to his shortcomings as a teacher and theologian for preteens. Now, years later, I realize the problem wasn’t him. It was the entire concept. To many outside Christianity, the Trinity seems a lot like polytheism or at least tritheism, some kind of divine triumvirate as it were. If we can manage to bracket momentarily all the theological loopholes and dodges we have been taught, we have to admit that these critics have a point. To be honest, the Trinity is one of those extrabiblical or inferred concepts, like penal substitutionary atonement, that makes less sense the more it is analyzed. To the uninitiated, it can seem like a fanciful myth Christians have created rather than sound theology. Over the years, I’ve encountered any number of explanations for the Trinity. That there aren’t three divine beings, but just three modes of one being — the same thing in different form or manifestation.

Or, conversely, that there is just one mode of three beings — different beings unified in thought and action. St. Patrick, legend tells us, used a shamrock to illustrate it, and the early church fathers explained it as a divine dance, perichoresis. I’ve been over the different traditional explanations time and again. But just as when I was a fifth-grader, each explanation I encounter today still seems to lack something, and it can even be difficult to square trinitarian concepts with Jesus’ own profoundly human interactions with God in the gospels. The point of the Trinity, I’ve been told, is that the basis of God is relationship, perfect harmonious relationship, to which the church should aspire. I think this is a compelling interpretation, but how difficult is it, exactly, for Godhead to be in relationship with each other when each is always agreeing with itself? That’s not how most of us experience relationships — free of conflict, disagreements and compromise.

I can’t help but wonder if this lens of understanding the Trinity with its eternal divine agreement of will and purpose is rather disempowering to those who slog it out in marriages, friendships and parishes with the tenacity, resilience, debate, disagreement and compromise that real relationships require. So, no, in such cases, I don’t believe in the Trinity. But, then again, I do. To me, the Trinity is a metaphor by which finite beings can understand a piece of the infinite mystery called God. It is the metaphor that directs us toward each other rather than away, the metaphor that keeps us from tarrying too long on the mountaintop where it is safe. And it is a beautiful, profound metaphor that has more power than whether the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are actually dancing around heaven and earth in perfect harmony, whether they are sprouting leaves from the same shamrock stem, whether they are droplets of water that exist together and separately. And, truly, this is all theology really is — a metaphor that points to something beyond it, something it fails to grasp completely, but that at least tries to grapple with.

This is the problem with theologians who try to use metaphors to explain what is already a metaphor, or when theologians attempt to parse the exact nature of the metaphor. A metaphor of a metaphor only muddies things more. In essence, the Trinity is a metaphor about relationships. It is a metaphor that directs us toward each other rather than away, a metaphor that keeps us from retreating into solitude whenever relationships grow difficult. Problems occur, though, when we begin to use the metaphor to exact a precise definition or formula for what and who God is. That’s not a what metaphor does. A metaphor isn’t meant to be believed in. Rather, it is an arrow pointing toward something ineffable behind it. The metaphor of the Trinity isn’t meant to explicate God, but to guide us toward what it means to be more fully human. The trinitarian metaphor doesn’t tell us about God. It tells us about ourselves. So, when I say the bit about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in the Nicene Creed, I suppose there is a part of me that doesn’t believe in it literally as some might expect.

Yet, I confess the Trinity with a clear conscience, because I believe in that to which this metaphor points, because I believe in what the metaphor says more than what it is. Essentially, the Trinity says what our sacred text says at its opening creation myth: that it is not good for humans — or God for that matter — to be alone; that meaning is created in community and through relationships; that we do better as creatures when we join hands rather than raise fists. May they and I be confident that the Trinity isn’t real at all, but that it is more than real. The Rain Bow: A Short Story » About David R. Henson David Henson received his Master of Arts from Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California, after receiving a Lilly Grant for religious education for journalists. He is ordained in the Episcopal Church as a priest. He lives in North Carolina, is a father of two boys, and the husband of a medical resident. Connect with David through his Facebook page, Twitter, or Instagram. Lee Harmon I agree; perhaps a metaphor that needs another metaphor to explain it needs an overhaul. ieh St. Patrick pulled, quite randomly, a rarer four-leaf shamrock. Would like to hear that story…….

Mahjong2012 Three leaf, but I don’t believe any of it so…. I am only here because my friend is a pastor and I love him… not the religion… axelbushing beyond be-leaf? Rose Akerman The belief in a “trinity” was solidified when the Emporer Constantine decided it should be. He came from a polytheistic culture, and believed himself to be a god.. so he didn’t have any problem with there being a trinity. Texasdoc Rose, please expand your bibliography beyond Bart Ehrman and Dan Brown. David R. Henson I expect a more courteous dialogue on this subject. If you care to expand your own comments beyond such pettiness, I’d welcome it. I believe we can disagree respectfully. Jeff Fletcher Hello, Texasdoc- I don’t mean to intrude on your dialogue with Rose but I thought I’d offer some bibliographical info… When Jesus Became God by Richard Rubenstein is a good place to find some historical background on the Arius/Athanasius conflict that serves as a backstory to Nicea. Also, the Jesus Jeff Fletcher sorry… the Jesus Wars by John Jenkins.

Jeff Fletcher AD 381 by Charles Freeman carries the them forth from Constantinople as well. You can’t separate the trinity dogma formation from politics. Telehope The author could appear clearer, if s/he gives a historical review to show why certain people say certain things about trinity. Texasdoc It is hard to know even where to begin when criticizing this essay. To the author I would simply say, you are clearly unaware of the rich theological tradition surrounding trinitarian theology and all of the nuances regarding the nature of analogical language concerning God. To whoever is responsible for publishing this stuff I would simpl say – seriously? Rose Akerman You seem unaware that there is a “rich theological tradition” of perhaps even longer duration of “unitarian” theology. The trinity was adopted as the political decision of it’s time which united and strengthened Christianity. Texasdoc You nailed it! I’ve never read any of the primary source material relevant to this issue. Nor have I heard your perspective before. How original and full of insight. David R. Henson I expect a higher level of respectful dialogue here, TD. There’s no reason for insulting language and sarcastic retorts you are demonstrating here.

Texasdoc You are right, and I apologize for the sarcastic tone. However, I was really surprised when I read this essay, and I agree with Robert Hunt above when he suggests that it betrays ” failure of theological education, or a failure of self-disciplined thought, but not of the doctrine itself.” The Triune God is, indeed, a mystery. However, the doctrine of the Trinity, in its classic formulation, was always intended to guard and protect the mystery of God. It does not need to be tinkered with or apologized for. Certainly, we can make progress in theology, even in Trinitarian theology, but progress cannot be achieved if we do not know where we have been. There is no need to re-invent the wheel and make the same mistakes over and over again. Theologians have, for millennia, understood that Trinitarian language is “analogous” language. As such, our language about God can be true to God’s self-disclosure in scripture without exhausting the mystery. Augustine himself wrote that “a comprehended God is no God at all.” And of course, Augustine believed that God is Triune.

What astonished me most about this essay, and about the comment by Rose, was the authoritative tone used. This is why I could think of little else to say besides – “seriously?” How can you speak so authoritatively about such things? Even on the issue of Constantine and Nicea, do you know how vast and sophisticated the literature on this subject is? Have a little humility when speaking about such things, and I will refrain from the sarcasm. Actually, I will refrain from the sarcasm and lack of humility regardless of your response, but a little humility from you when writing essays about God’s nature would be much appreciated, as well. David R. Henson In the post, I move from wrestling with a sense of concreteness with the Trinity that pervades much of Christianity to a sense of metaphor and mystery. I am essentially moving from a position where the Trinity is used as concrete reality to a position where the Trinity is a metaphor that points to something ineffable behind it. That is the narrative movement in the post. I am not engaging in a literature review on the subject, but offering an exceptionally brief blog post on my engagement with it.

(Notice I move from fifth-grade to my now post-graduate self in the ordination process — it’s a lot of ground that I skip to make a simple point, admittedly. I can’t rightly engage the vast literature on it in a 600-word post whose intention is narrative in nature) As far as I can tell, we actually agree on that point: that attempts to move theology and language about God outside of the realm of metaphor (or analogy if you prefer … they are the same thing) is indeed arrogant, that our theological language cannot exhaust the mystery of God. My point that you might take issue with is the notion that metaphors of metaphors (or analogies of analogies) are by their nature unhelpful. Using a metaphor to explain a metaphor is to engage in mixed metaphors, a big no-no in the writing world. So I argue in the post to let the Trinity metaphor of God to stand as it is, as a metaphor. I argue to allow the metaphor to point us to the mystery and not allow ourselves to get caught up in the metaphor so that we argue about the precise nature of the metaphor to the point that we miss the mystery.

I don’t think this is arrogant at all, but affirms human’s inability to make sense of the mystery of God. You accuse me of a failure of theological education. Based on your response, I might accuse you of a failure of reading comprehension. That would be unfair, though. My guess is we actually agree on the end point — maybe not in how I get there — and you’re not giving the post a fair reading based on how you perceived the issue to be framed by the post. Though I appreciate you dialing back the sarcasm, I do find it ironic that you request that I have humility when speaking when you have shown none on your own in engaging with folks on this blog and have bordered on ad hominem comments. In essence, you have engaged in this dialogue as an authority — under an anonymous handle — while criticizing everyone else for having the same confidence in their thoughts, often assuming that those with which you disagree are uniformed or have not read as much as you have or a negligently ignoring it. You encourage me to have a little humility when engaging in complex issues with vast literature. Let me encourage you to have a little humility when engaging with complex people with vast histories, reasons and understandings.

To judge Rose so harshly and anonymously, based on a three sentence comment, is the height of arrogance, in my opinion. Reved up I think this essay is a great example of what it is to think through the meaning of New Testament Church theology. While I don’t agree with some of what the author has said, I am engaged to consider why. One of the reasons why I don’t agree is the concept that you can’t see conflict in the trinity relationships. But have you considered the Gethsemane story. Jesus interacts (in relationship) with the Father and the Spirit in a way that set him up to be able to go through the passion, death and resurrection in conflict with the Father and the Spirit. Tertullian spoke of the fact that the passion death, and resurrection are significant parts of the Godhead relationship. Since he is the one who gave us this ‘inferred’ doctrine, I guess it would be good to consider what he has to say about the whole thing. David R. Henson Now I wish I hadn’t cut the two paragraphs where I discussed Jesus interactions with God like the ones you mention!

Robert Hunt There is something particularly post-modern into turning a doctrine into a metaphor about human relationships, and particularly modern about turning the effort to speak meaningfully about God into talking about the nature of our humanity. Engaging in theological reflection is first and foremost a form of worship, a way of loving God with our minds. And to do that we must begin to comprehend how God who has revealed God’s self can be in our world (and the world of our minds) while being incomprehensibly different from our world. The narrative version of reflection, and its source, is the story of Jesus within the Christian version of the story of the entire Bible. The Trinity is a formulation of the central truths about God found in that story, now expressed in the form of philosophical or doctrinal language. It is not a metaphor. It doesn’t “point” us to truths beyond words. It expresses in the only possible rational language the reality of the God revealed in Jesus Christ. This sets it apart from “extra-biblical” doctrines like that of substitutionary atonement. These doctrines were efforts to make the work of Jesus comprehensible in a particular cultural environment, and become meaningless and harmful when that environment changes.

The doctrine of the Trinity is not culturally bound, but is central to authentic Christian witness about God. It may require new expressions within the limits of culture, but you cannot be Christian without it. To say “Christ saves” is to say, “God is Trinity.” A failure to draw the line from one to the other is a failure of theological education, or a failure of self-disciplined thought, but not of the doctrine itself. David R. Henson From my reading of church history, the formulation of the Trinity was very much influenced by culturally bound questions of philosophy. All theology is a metaphor for something we ultimately cannot fully know. When you get down to it, all language is metaphor. Thomas West David, Once again you make an argument that is a challenge to foregone modern (+100 AD) assumptions within the family of God through Jesus Christ. I have to say it was an enjoyable read and great exercise to think about what you are positing. My only hope is that when a fellow believer in Christ read what their brother has written they have an open mind and are willing to see without fear, what their brother thinks. Who among us is the greatest disciple?

None, which is why there where 12, and then 11 and not 1. Well said my friend, again it was a good read. Careful down the path though, down that path are fruitless exercises in thought because we cannot, or should not attempt to understand. Remember, we were told that we could not possibly understand things eternal, in fact we could not possibly understand things of this world, let alone the next. Catherine @ Robert Hunt who writes “narrative version of reflection, and its source, is the story of Jesus within the Christian version of the story of the entire Bible”. Robert gives the key – the ENTIRE Bible. It is centered in John 1. The Word was always. Without this understanding the Hebrew scriptures make no sense. God had one plan and Christ is present throughout. Another writer on another topic wrote “It is one thing to study God. It is entirely essential to experience God”. I think that is the piece that is missing here. David R. Henson If I’m understanding you correctly, you are saying that the Hebrew Scriptures only make sense through the lens of Johannine Christianity.

If this is what you are communicating here, I register strong disagreement and think this does a disservice to Judaism, the faith to which Jesus ascribed. In essence, what this assertion seems to say is that Judaism is incomplete without Jesus as described in John 1. Ed Pacht Well, David, as I see it, this is indeed a major difference between orthodox Christianity, of the Christianity expressed in the New Testament, and Judaism, one that simply can’t be shrugged off. Judaism, quite obviously, treats of itself as complete in itself, but Christianity has always had a somewhat different view. Jesus Himself, commenting on the Scribes and Pharisees in searching the Scriptures, is quoted as saying, “They are they which testify of me.” St. Paul often makes a similar point. One can have the highest respect for the Jewish tradition (I certainly do) and yet recognize that it indeed is not complete without Jesus as described in John 1.

We can (I have) learn a great deal from Jewish teaching and practice, and, for that matter, from many other religions, but Christianity, form NT times and on, has always revolved around the person of Jesus, not so much doctrine or practice, though neither of these is to be neglected, but through worshipful relationship with his person. I’m no more insulting or belittling Jews in claiming that they err in leaving Jesus out than I am insulted or belittled when they do not accept Him in the role I think essential. Catherine Considering the confusing manner the above is written, I checked your nbio. “David Henson received his Master of Arts from Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California, after receiving a Lilly Grant for religious education for journalist. He is currently a postulant for the priesthood in the Episcopal Church and writing his first book. He is a father of two young sons and the husband of a medical school student” As a retired educator in Language development, may I suggest that you never try to explain the Trinity to a new believer. David R. Henson I hope to never underestimate the ability of the people in parish to wrestle with difficult and complex topics of faith. MJ ………..

explain to a new believer? Why not? I think “trinity” as a basic concept of Christianity should be part of those creeds that each believe should get to fully understand. I really have interest in it and I want to know about it so that I can also depend it any where I find myself. The challenges concerning the mystery of trinity is getting out of hand. Please educate us more. Remliw My own interpretations of the parts of the Christian Scriptures that have been used to develop a doctrine of the Trinity that goes beyond the testimony of Scriptures themselves are completely heretical. Thank God for the diversity of his creation! Samuelamannauthor The Trinity is explained in SPIRIT AND TRUTH by Samuel Mann. If the “Father” is understood as that which existed before “things” – as described by Boehme as a “No-thing” or “Nothing” in which all exists but is not yet manifested – – then the Son is understood as the beginning of consciousness (or that through which all things were created and through which we are all connected) – – and the Holy Spirit is considered as the power or causative factor or energy within all things (as science says matter is energy) – then you have the Trinity.

Jesus never claimed to be God but always referred to the “Father” as that which worked through him. Jesus was the first human to complete the cycle where the original consciousness that is the “Son” – and was contained in the body of Jesus – returned to the Father, thus establishing the Christ Consciousness for humanity. This is the meaning of the atonement or at-one-ment or the establishing of the “Way” in which every human can become one with God – something that was not possible before Jesus. SPIRIT AND TRUTH also explains the Immaculate Conception and other spiritual truths that are beginning to be recognized more frequently by individuals as the “new age” of consciousness proceeds through 2012 and beyond. Jeff Fletcher Enjoyed the piece, Mr. Henson. You might enjoy The Metaphor of God Incarnate by John Hick. I agree that to try to understand the trinity as literally true makes it unintelligible. I think the true humanity of Jesus has suffered for it. I think the true beauty of Jesus is that he shows how a fully human person can be fully connected to God and shows us how to achieve our full human potential or divinization.

GET PATHEOS NEWSLETTERS St Patrick and the Shamrock Story | Living Shamrock ‹Return to Previous Page St Patrick and the Shamrock Story Shamrock, the emblem synonymous with Saint Patrick, has a very long and colourful tradition. It means many things to different people and can evoke messages relating to national pride, religion, history, celebration etc. In horticultural terms what is Shamrock and why do we wear it on St. Patrick’s Day? Shamrock, Seamóg or Seamair Óg, the Irish for a young clover can be found growing wild throughout Ireland. It is worn on the feast day of St. Patrick, 17th March, to represent a link with Saint Patrick, the Bishop who spread the Christian message in Ireland. It is said Saint Patrick used the three leaved Shamrock to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity, (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit), to the pagan Irish during the 5th Century. The tradition of wearing Shamrock on Saint Patrick’s Day can be traced back to the early 1700’s. Irish research in the late 1980’s highlighted a number of plants that were traditionally considered to be Shamrock.

The plant most widely considered to represent Shamrock was Trifolium Dubium (the lesser clover, Seamair Bhuí). Other plants that were used as Shamrock included, Trifolium Repens (White Clover, Seamair Bhán), Trifolium Pratense (Red Clover, Seamair Dhearg) and Oxalis Acetosella (Wood Sorrel, Seamóg). THE STORY OF SAINT PATRICK Saint Patrick understood the Celtic people. Being a romanised Briton his real name was Magonus Saccatus Patricius. St. Patrick’s father had been a deacon and a decurion and his grandfather was a priest. The Romans had not yet fully pulled out of Britain, so Patrick grew up in a world whose mores and Christianity were provincial Roman, in an area which never lost its Celtic identity and customs. St. Patrick had already become familiar with the Celtic festivals of the pre-Christian calendar before he was taken into Irish slavery. Even though Patrick’s family had been ordained they did not seem to have a passion for their work. St. Patrick himself was described as being rather indifferent to it as a youth. At the age of sixteen St. Patrick’s life changed.

He was abducted and taken into Irish slavery. During his six years of enslavement he developed a life of prayer. Patrick even credits God for his escape from slavery. Patrick returned to Ireland as a missionary, whose main religious background was Roman. The story follows: Around the year 400, Patrick was born in Scotland. When Patrick was sixteen years old he was captured as a slave by the high king of Ireland. He was sold in Ireland and was taken to the North east of the country to herd sheep. During his six years of solitude he found a life of prayer and pledged his life to God. One night Patrick had a vision and he escaped from slavery and found his way home to his family. Patrick studied religion for many years to become a priest and a missionary and at night he would hear in his dreams the call from the Irish. They called him to come and free them from paganism, “crying to thee, come hither and walk with us once more”. Finally Pope Celestine fulfilled Saint Patrick’s wish and ordained him as bishop to preach the word of God to the Celtic People. Saint Patrick then came back to Ireland to help teach the word of God.

He helped to build churches and he baptised the pagans into Christianity, he also ordained bishops and priests but this did not come without difficulty. As legend tells us of Saint Patrick lighting the Easter bonfire at Slane hill, it portraits some of the difficulty which Patrick had to face. On Easter night long ago it was forbidden to light any other fire in Ireland until after the lighting of the High King’s own bonfire. When the High King saw that Saint Patrick was lighting the fire he sent a warband to kill the Saint and quench the fire. But the fire could not be quenched and Saint Patrick and his followers passed the warriors in disguise of a herd of deer and they went onto defeat the royal druids at Tara in a contest of miracle working. Many of the King’s court bowed down to Saint Patrick and were converted, even though the High King was not one of these he did grant the Saint free speech and the right to preach freely to the people of Ireland. Another one of the stories told to us about Saint Patrick is the one where he went to the royal center at sunrise and here he found the King’s two daughters, Eithne and Fedelm.

The two girls questioned Patrick about God and they listened attentively to what he had to say, Patrick recited the Holy Creed to them then they wished to be baptised and Patrick did so. Upon receiving the sacrament the two girls died and were buried there. Another tale about Saint Patrick tells us of him coming to a Neolithic tomb thought to be a “giant’s grave”. To satisfy his followers’ curiosity, Saint Patrick raised the giant from the dead and baptised him, and then returned him to his grave. As time past Saint Patrick and his followers spread the word of God around the country. They fasted and prayed at the top of what is now Croagh Patrick. Patrick made a promise to God on that day that the people of Ireland would keep their faith until the end of time and the day they did not keep their faith would be the day of doom. When Saint Patrick died, several communities joined together for his burial. It is said that Saint Patrick’s body was wrapped in a shroud and placed on a cart, which was drawn by two unreined white Oxen, it is said that the beasts wandered to Downpatrick where, today people believe he is buried.

A granite boulder marked with a cross marked his grave and it is simply inscribed: PATRIC. It is also said that on the day Saint Patrick died that the sun did not set, but shone for twelve days and nights. View Sponsorship Cards Taking stock of people and ideas in the news. March 16 2013 5:07 AM St. Patrick By David Plotz On March 17, revelers will drink green beer in celebration of the man who, according to David Plotz, "didn't rid the land of snakes, didn't compare the Trinity to the shamrock, and wasn't even Irish." In a 2000 Assessment printed below, Plotz stripped the myth away from St. Patrick, evaluating the many different popular incarnations that have arisen in the years since his birth. Today we raise a glass of warm green beer to a fine fellow, the Irishman who didn't rid the land of snakes, didn't compare the Trinity to the shamrock, and wasn't even Irish. St.

Patrick, who died 1,507, 1,539, or 1,540 years ago today—depending on which unreliable source you want to believe—has been adorned with centuries of Irish blarney. Innumerable folk tales recount how he faced down kings, negotiated with God, tricked and slaughtered Ireland's reptiles. The facts about St. Patrick are few. Most derive from the two documents he probably wrote, the autobiographical Confession and the indignant Letter to a slave-taking marauder named Coroticus. Patrick was born in Britain, probably in Wales, around 385 A.D. His father was a Roman official. When Patrick was 16, seafaring raiders captured him, carried him to Ireland, and sold him into slavery. The Christian Patrick spent six lonely years herding sheep and, according to him, praying 100 times a day. In a dream, God told him to escape. He returned home, where he had another vision in which the Irish people begged him to return and minister to them: "We ask thee, boy, come and walk among us once more," he recalls in the Confession.

He studied for the priesthood in France, then made his way back to Ireland. He spent his last 30 years there, baptizing pagans, ordaining priests, and founding churches and monasteries. His persuasive powers must have been astounding: Ireland fully converted to Christianity within 200 years and was the only country in Europe to Christianize peacefully. Patrick's Christian conversion ended slavery, human sacrifice, and most intertribal warfare in Ireland. (He did not banish the snakes: Ireland never had any. Scholars now consider snakes a metaphor for the serpent of paganism. Nor did he invent the Shamrock Trinity. That was an 18th-century fabrication.) Advertisement According to Thomas Cahill, author of How the Irish Saved Civilization, Paddy's influence extended far beyond his adopted land. Cahill's book, which could just as well be titled How St. Patrick Saved Civilization, contends that Patrick's conversion of Ireland allowed Western learning to survive the Dark Ages. Ireland pacified and churchified as the rest of Europe crumbled. Patrick's monasteries copied and preserved classical texts. Later, Irish monks returned this knowledge to Europe by establishing monasteries in England, Germany, France, Switzerland, and Italy.

The Irish have celebrated their patron saint with a quiet religious holiday for centuries, perhaps more than 1,000 years. It took the United States to turn St. Patrick's Day into a boozy spectacle. Irish immigrants first celebrated it in Boston in 1737 and first paraded in New York in 1762. By the late 19th century, the St. Patrick's Day parade had become a way for Irish-Americans to flaunt their numerical and political might. It retains this role today. The scarcity of facts about St. Patrick's life has made him a dress-up doll: Anyone can create his own St. Patrick. Ireland's Catholics and Protestants, who have long feuded over him, each have built a St. Patrick in their own image. Catholics cherish Paddy as the father of Catholic Ireland. They say that Patrick was consecrated as a bishop and that the pope himself sent him to convert the heathen Irish. (Evidence is sketchy about both the bishop and pope claims.) One of the most popular Irish Catholic stories holds that Patrick bargained with God and got the Big Fella to promise that Ireland would remain Catholic and free.

Ireland's Protestant minority, by contrast, denies that Patrick was a bishop or that he was sent by Rome. They depict him as anti-Roman Catholic and credit him with inventing a distinctly Celtic church, with its own homegrown symbols and practices. He is an Irish hero, not a Catholic one. Outside Ireland, too, Patrick has been freely reinterpreted. Evangelical Protestants claim him as one of their own. After all, he read his Bible, and his faith came to him in visions. Biblical inspiration and personal revelation are Protestant hallmarks. Utah newspapers emphasize that Patrick was a missionary sent overseas to convert the ungodly, an image that resonates in Mormon country. New Age Christians revere Patrick as a virtual patron saint. Patrick co-opted Druid symbols in order to undermine the rival religion, fusing nature and magic with Christian practice. The Irish placed a sun at the center of their cross. "St. Patrick's Breastplate," Patrick's famous prayer (which he certainly did not write) invokes the power of the sun, moon, rocks, and wind, as well as God. (This is what is called "Erin go hoo-ha.") Patrick has even been enlisted in the gay rights cause.

For a decade, gay and lesbian Irish-Americans have sought permission to march in New York's St. Patrick's Day Parade, and for a decade they have lost in court. Cahill, among others, has allied Patrick with gays and lesbians. Cahill's Patrick is a muscular progressive. He was a proto-feminist who valued women in an age when the church ignored them. He always sided with the downtrodden and the excluded, whether they were slaves or the pagan Irish. If Patrick were around today, Cahill says, he would join the gay marchers. Now television has invented yet another Patrick. Last night, Fox Family Channel aired its made-for-TV movie St. Patrick. Fox's Patrick is mostly drawn from the historical record, but the producers added one new storyline. The English parent church demands that Patrick collect its church taxes in Ireland. Patrick rebels and risks excommunication by the British bishop. The fearless colonist leads a tax revolt against the villainous English. We Americans, like everyone else, think St. Patrick is one of us. David Plotz is the CEO of Atlas Obscura and host of the Slate Political Gabfest.

Shamrock - World Cultures European Emblems of Ireland: The Shamrock by Bridget Haggerty According to the Concise Columbia Encyclopedia, the identity of the true shamrock has long been debated, but the plants most often designated as the emblem of Ireland are the white clover, the small hop clover, and the wood sorrel, or oxalis. It's likely that some or all of this information was provided by the botanist, Nathaniel Colgan, who endeavored to identify "the real shamrock" at the turn of the 20th century. He asked people all over Ireland to send him living, rooted specimens which he carefully planted and labelled. When the plants matured and blossomed, he was able to identify four different plants - the three already mentioned and one called Black Medick. So how did the shamrock become an emblem of Ireland? It may surprise many readers to learn that the plant's international association with the Emerald Isle is relatively recent. It wasn't until the 17th century that it became the custom to wear the shamrock on the feast of Ireland's patron saint; until then, the Irish wore a special St. Patrick's cross, made just for the occasion.

Then, in the late 18th century, the shamrock was adopted as an emblem by the Volunteers of 1777. But it didn't really become widely popular until the 19th century, when the emerging Nationalist movements took the shamrock, along with the harp, as one of their emblems. Viewed as an act of rebellion in Victorian England, Irish regiments were forbidden to display it. This one single act may have done more to establish the shamrock as Ireland's national emblem than anything else. It was also the catalyst for the creation of the famous ballad, The Wearin' O' The Green: "Oh Paddy dear, and did ye hear the news that's going round? The shamrock is forbid by law to grow on Irish ground! No more St. Patrick's Day we'll keep; his color can't be seen, For there's a cruel law agin' the wearing o' the Green!" While the lyrics may have stirred the souls and hearts of rebellious Irishmen, there are a couple of strange contradictions in this verse: it's very likely that St.

Patrick wore vestments of blue, not green; and since the plant wasn't cultivated but grew wild, there was no way the Crown could have successfully banned its growth! As for St. Patrick using it to teach us the mystery of the Holy Trinity, it was never mentioned in any of his writings. So, that of itself, remains a mystery. On the other hand, Triads, or groups of three, were of major significance in ancient Ireland; so it is quite possible that the shamrock may have been used by early Christian teachers because, not only could it instantly illustrate and explain an important belief, it would also have been symbolically acceptable. But that was then. Today, the shamrock is firmly established as the most instantly recognizable emblem of Ireland. For good luck, it's usually included in the bouquet of an Irish bride, and also in the boutonniere of the groom. It's the symbol of a quality B & B that's earned the right to display it. It's part of the Aer Lingus logo, as well as those of many other companies, sports teams and organizations. And, it's also an integral part of an old tradition called "drowning the shamrock." This takes place on St.

Patrick's Day, when the shamrock that has been worn in the hat or lapel is removed and put into the last drink of the evening. A toast is proposed and then, when the toast has been honored, the shamrock is taken from the bottom of the glass and thrown over the left shoulder. Sláinte! Genuine Shamrock Seeds Note: There is a common belief that Shamrock is a very difficult plant to grow, especially outside the environs of Ireland. While there is undoubtedly some truth in this, if you are careful, Shamrocks are a pretty easy plant to grow. They thrive in warm to cool air, fairly moist soil, and in a sunny spot (when they are flowering). Try not to place them in a south window and don't let them get too hot, never over 75 degrees. Sow outdoors from March to September. Sow indoors all year round. When planted in early January you should have good-sized plants by Saint Patricks Day. Because Shamrocks are bulbs, they are best planted close to the surface in a peat-based potting soil. A once per month feeding with a liquid plant fertilizer will do the trick.

They grow tired now and again and begin to look a bit droopy, or even a bit dead; with the leaves turning brown. It's just time for good rest. Stop watering, relocate them to a darker place while the dormant period lasts. Usually occurring a few times each year lasting 2-3 months. A good time to re-pot them would be after they've been dormant for the 2-3 months. Remember, shamrocks do not get along with other houseplants in mixed pots. They are best grown with just other shamrocks all together in a crowded pot. To order, please click here: Shamrock Seeds . (Thanks to Lollysmith for the Shamrock growing instructions.) Photo Credit: The stunning image of shamrocks was taken by Jim Crotty, a professional commercial and fine arts photographer. The photo is available for sale. Please click Shamrock Print To see more of Jim’s outstanding work, please click Photography by Jim Crotty

Question: For religious people, the shamrock is said to be a metaphor for what?
Answer: HOLY TRINITY