aint Brigid, known as 'Mary of the
Gael,' is one of Ireland’s most beloved saints. Along with Saint Patrick and Saint Columba, she is a patron saint of the Emerald Isle. Her influence was as essential as St. Patrick’s in the spread of Catholicism among the Irish, and her story is equally remarkable. Her strength, grit, and faith helped forge the character of Irish Catholicism.
Brigid was born in 451 at Faughart near Dundalk, Louth, Ireland to a pagan father and a Christian mother. Her father, Dubhthach, was a pagan chieftain of Leinster. Brigid’s mother, Brocca, was a Christian slave in her father’s court. St. Patrick eventually baptized the entire family, though the family faced many difficult obstacles along the way.
Throughout her life, Brigid’s munificent nature led her to provide extraordinary aide to the poor. However, when she was a girl, many of the goods Brigid gave away belonged to her father, and Dubhthach did not appreciate his daughter’s magnanimity. When he protested, the young girl explained, ”Christ dwells in every creature.”
In frustration, Dubtach even attempted to sell Brigid to the king of Leinster. While they bargained, she gave a treasured sword of her father‘s to a leper. Dubtach was furious, but Brigid explained she had given the sword to God through the leper, because of its great value. Then the king, a Christian, intervened saying, “Her merit before God is greater than ours.” After this incident, the chieftain gave his daughter her freedom.
S
REGINA | 167