Customer Reviews

St. Patrick of Ireland: A Biography

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Having read other, classic studies on Patrick, I wasn't expecting much from this book. But I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised. Philip Freeman's "St. Patrick of Ireland" is a well-researched, scholarly, yet very readable book. While there is little new information in the book, for readers who wish to know something about St. Patrick but don't care to go in-depth, this work should serve adequately. The book should also serve as a good introduction to readers who wish to proceed to more in-depth scholarly works such as the late R. P. C. Hanson's, J. B. Bury's or other more studies.

Instead of concentrating on the vexing questions of dates, chronology, Patrick's missing years, and other intriguing though problematical issues in Patrician studies, Freeman concentrates on what is definitely known of Patrick's life and career, giving little space to speculation. He does a particularly good job of setting Patrick in the context of his times, describing fourth-century Romano-British and Irish society and religion.

Freeman also includes his own translations of Patrick's only two surviving works, the "Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus," and the "Confession."

The maps of Britain and Ireland and the black-and-white photos at the beginning of each section are a nice change from other books on Patrick, and the book has a handsome dust jacket. The time line at the back of the book was convenient and helpful, as was the pronunciation guide for Celtic words. One wishes more works on Celtic history/theology provided pronunciation guides. The book also contains an index and a list of suggested readings for each chapter.

In "St. Patrick of Ireland" Philip Freeman does a very good job of presenting the life, career and writing of this mysterious and humble man of God.

As St. Patrick's Day pub-crawlers don green sweaters, sing Irish folk songs, quaff copius amounts of green beer, and radical gay activists fight for their right to march in St. Patrick's Day parades, one can only hope that some of them will pause for a moment to remember the great man and Christian Saint whose feast day this is.

There certainly is a very large amount of information packed into a very small book (by comparison) here. This is an excellent work for those who have been curious, or are curious, about this famous Irish Saint, yet who are not so curious that they want to dig through a mind numbing academic work which would be better than xanax to provide a good nap. I am one of those people and I am one who greatly appreciated this work. In other areas of history, yes, I want something more in depth, but not on this particular subject. It is written in a scholarly manner, appears to be very well researched, yet I found not one page that I did not learn something from nor one page that caused my eyes to roll back into my head and wish the author would just get on with it. It was a good and informative read.

I certainly am not going to rewrite the entire work in this form and call it a review. That has already been done. For greater detail refer to one of the well done and very in depth reviews already posted here. What I found most interesting about the book was the author's ability to paint a very vivid picture of the cultural and religious clash that too place in Ireland during St. Patrick's time. I enjoyed the brief look at the state of the Christian Church at that time and how it affected the people of that time. That story, to me, was just as fascinating as the one told by the author of the Great Saint himself. The brief look at the Celtic religious practices and beliefs was excellent. I also appreciated the author's ability to separate fact from all the fiction that has been dished out for years and years and do it in a nonoffensive way. This was quite refreshing. The author is quite careful to note fact from fiction, speculation from written and archeological fact. This was most helpful.

The author has a wonderful popular history style, yet writes in a mode that does not insult your credulity nor does Freeman sensationalize events simply to hold the reader's interest. The facts alone, and the way the author presents them, are enough to keep you turning the pages on this one. The black and white maps provided are quite helpful as is the "dictionary" and foot noting. I enjoyed the translation of the two surviving letters of St. Patrick's "Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus" and the "Confession." Both are a nice touch and added much to the value of the book.

A work such as this, where so much has been lost down through the years is not an easy thing to write, but this author, Philip Freeman has done an excellent job. Now there are books out there that go into much greater depth on the subject of this obviously great man and I certainly would recommend further reading for those who are interested or who want to become experts on the subject. For myself, this work fit my needs perfectly. I wanted to know a bit about the man and I certainly learned it here.

Recommend this one highly.

Don Blankenship

Philip Freeman's biography on St. Patrick is an excellent read. The reader receives a very enriching view on the Patrick of history, rather than the Patrick of legend, which is precisely what I was looking for. Freeman's prose is academic and very thought provoking, without being so academic that it prones one to narcolepsy or repetitive trips to the thesaurus. It easily holds one's interest, but leaves the reader desiring more information. This desire is not a result of any fault of the author's, rather than the limited available information on St. Patrick. Should one seek further knowledge on the saint, Freeman helps the reader's search by providing a detailed Suggested Reading section for each chapter and aspect of Patrick's life and ministry.
There is a pleasant surprise contained in this book, which I appreciated most. That surprise is the treasure-trove of additional information on Celtic society and history within and without Ireland, Roman civilization throughout the Empire, early church structure, theology, and politics, and numerous other jewels. Freeman doesn't just settle on simply telling the story of a great man. He paints the world that Patrick lived in and struggled against to rise as a great historical figure. The author doesn't paint the picture of Patrick's greatness. The reader arrives at this conclusion on his or her own, by reading this great book.

Although the holiday bearing his name has become associated with legend and myth, St. Patrick, the man, lived such a life that warrants admiration and commendation from Christians everywhere. The man behind the myths exemplifies the Christian life of sacrifice, reliance on God, love and passion for souls, and unfoundering hope in eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Philip Freeman's book St. Patrick of Ireland presents the life and times of St. Patrick. Patrick's story is inspiring and astonishing. It reads like an addition to the Book of Acts in the Bible.

Patrick was born in Britain in the late fourth century to an aristocratic family. Irish marauders kidnapped him from his home when he was 15 years old and took him as a slave to Ireland. He labored endlessly for six years before escaping and returning to Britain and his family.

Patrick had atheistic beliefs when kidnapped, but during the course of his slavery he was transformed into a devout Christian, burning with love for Christ. After several years of religious study, Patrick willingly journeyed back to Ireland on a mission to share the message of salvation with a godless people known for their barbarianism and paganism which he had experienced first hand.

Freeman tells the story of Patrick's life from information garnered from the two writings left by Patrick. These are two letters Patrick wrote from Ireland to Britain that relate significant events of his ministry and life in simple, honest language. Freeman also references other historical texts and archeological discoveries to explain the culture of Patrick's world.

Freeman displays his expertise in Irish history by offering the reader a comprehensive picture of the cultures in which Patrick lived. Freeman is a professor of Classics at Washington University in St. Louis and earned his Ph. D. in Classical Philology and Celtic Studies from Harvard University. His expertise in Irish history is apparent by his writing. He adroitly fills in many of the blanks concerning Patrick's life.

This biography illustrates the ordeals and sufferings of Patrick while a slave and while a missionary in Ireland, as well as highlighting his amazing accomplishments. At every turn Patrick faced opposition from Satan and from men. Freeman's writing reveals Patrick's closeness to God by emphasizing portions of Patrick's two letters that Freeman interpreted and included in full in this book.

Through Patrick's own words, we see his enthusiasm and love for the Irish. His words are reminiscent of Paul's writings to the Thessalonians and Philippians. They are the words of a shepherd about and to his sheep.

In his letter of confession, Patrick writes of his compulsion to preach to the Irish, "I must proclaim my good news, I must pay God back in some way for all that he has done for me here on earth and what he will do in eternity-blessings no one can even imagine...The love of Christ carried me here to be a help to these people for the rest of my life."

Freeman's biography of Patrick tells a story of transformation-the transformation of a selfish boy to a Christian man and the transformation of a pagan people to a people brimming with love for Christ. This story will change your perspective of the Christian life and will give you a reason to celebrate St. Patrick's Day as a day of devotion to God.

It is nearly impossible to separate fact from legend when dealing with a figure like St. Patrick. And yet, if we are to find meaning in the lives of the saints so they can help us in our own striving, isn't it important to at least try to find the reality behind the stories? If it is, then Mr. Freeman has produced something very nice here.

If the truth be told, finding the facts about anyone living 1600 years ago is next to an impossible task. But, surprisingly, we do have a certain number of facts about Patrick: he was born to a relatively well-off family in Britain, was captured and sold as a slave in Ireland where he stayed for six years tending sheep until he escaped back to Britain where he was reunited with his family. Clearly his captivity opened Patrick's religious spirit and, after spending a number of years training with the Church, he returned to Ireland where he was bishop for the rest of his life doing his utmost to convert the natives.

Of course, this brief story is not enough to satisfy the human need for the extraordinary in their heroes--particularly religious ones--so stories quickly built up around Patrick: miracles & snakes & druids. But Mr. Freeman puts these aside very quickly and focuses only on what we can be relatively certain about with Patrick. Instead of legend he gives us historical background, quotes from contemporaries, and minimal speculation. I also enjoyed reading Patrick's two letters in the epilogue which Mr. Freeman quotes extensively in his text. I hadn't realized Patrick had produced any writings that survived.

All in all, this book is an excellent experience. Brief, certainly, (only 150 pages of original text) but deeply satisfying. Personally, I am more inspired by a human story than a miraculous one and this is the story that we get here.

This is an excellent book that details the geography and history of the times, and the station of life that young Patrick hailed from. All of these background historical details are vital in understanding better Patrick's life and ministry. The author appeared to be as thorough as possible. What was startling was just how depraved, pagan, and cruel, at least the roving Irish were (slave traders, murderers, even cannibals) without the tempering influence of Christianity. It makes one realize how the conversion of Ireland did in fact bring the kind of normalcy that most of us take for granted within the context of civilized society.

This is a great book for anyone interested in getting a glimpse at one of the most influential figures (in my opinion) in early Christianity. Freeman's book presents a concise, easy-to-follow account of Saint Patrick's life and ministry as well as pertinent historical and cultural information about Ireland and Roman Britain during his lifetime.

I'm personally challenged by the life of Patrick, kidnapped as a teenager and escaping as a young adult only to return to the land of his captors to serve the people there for the remainder of his life. He began entirely new communities and raised the standard for equal treatment of women in a time when they were thought of as little better than property. Amazing as that was, he grew to genuinely love and care for the Irish, although they were considerably less developed and a harsher people than his own. Freeman gives finely researched historical background to the times and context that Patrick lived in - both in Roman Britain and in Ireland. I learned heaps and it wasn't at all painful.

I was shocked at how beautiful this biography turned out to be! I expected a lot of non-essential information, but there was a wealth of information on the real man who was St. Patrick. The author is a 'wielder of words' and really drew me into the life and times of St. Patrick. A lovely, highly-readable, and now very treasured book in my library!

Anyone wishing to write an authoritative biography of St. Patrick certainly has his work cut out for him, owing to the paucity of original source material and the tremendous amount of myth and legend which has grown up around the man. For that reason this volume may be excused for the abundance of information about the Ireland of St. Patrick, as opposed to St. Patrick of Ireland.

But that abundance of historical background information about the times in which Patrick lived and worked does its job quite well here, and the author is always careful to draw definite lines of connection between the man and his time. The only two letters extant which were written by Patrick ("Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus" and Patrick's "Confession") are explored in depth and referred to throughout this brief, though excellent, biography, and the layers of legend are carefully peeled back so that the real man can be seen. All of the chapters in the book are fairly brief, written in an engaging style, and easily digestible.

Although this volume certainly won't be the final resource for any serious student of the life of St. Patrick, it makes an excellent first step. Highly recommended.