Hymns Written By St Patrick

St. Patrick's Day March 17 St. Patrick's Breastplate Liturgical stichera Apolytikion and the Kontakion

St. Patrick's Breastplate - a hymn written by the Saint -

I bind unto myself today The strong name of the Trinity, By invocation of the same, The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever, By power of faith, Christ's Incarnation; His baptism in the Jordan River; His death on cross for my salvation; His bursting from the spicèd tomb; His riding up the heavenly way; His coming at the day of doom; I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power

Of the great love of the Cherubim; The sweet 'Well done' in judgment hour; The service of the Seraphim, Confessors' faith, Apostles' word, The Patriarchs' prayers, the Prophets' scrolls, All good deeds done unto the Lord, And purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today The virtues of the starlit heaven, The glorious sun's life-giving ray, The whiteness of the moon at even, The flashing of the lightning free, The whirling wind's tempestuous shocks, The stable earth, the deep salt sea, Around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today The power of God to hold and lead, His eye to watch, His might to stay, His ear to hearken to my need. The wisdom of my God to teach, His hand to guide, his shield to ward, The word of God to give me speech, His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin, The vice that gives temptation force,

The natural lusts that war within, The hostile men that mar my course; Or few or many, far or nigh, In every place and in all hours Against their fierce hostility, I bind to me these holy powers.

Against all Satan's spells and wiles, Against false words of heresy, Against the knowledge that defiles, Against the heart's idolatry, Against the wizard's evil craft, Against the death-wound and the burning The choking wave and the poisoned shaft, Protect me, Christ, till thy returning.

Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the name, The strong name of the Trinity; By invocation of the same.

The Three in One, and One in Three, Of whom all nature hath creation, Eternal Father, Spirit, Word: Praise to the Lord of my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Liturgical stichera (hymns) from the Vespers of St. Patrick

"Rejoice, ye hills and groves of the Irish land! Leap up, ye lakes and rivers. For lo, through the grace of God blessing and strengthening have come upon youfrom on high, for your enlightener and spiritual father comes unto you: Patrick, glorious among hierarchs, zealot of the Orthodox Faith, chosen by God for the apostolate. Using the nature of your own island, he teaches you the mystery of the Trinity by means of the simplest Shamrock."

"To the newly-enlightened Christians, the holy Patrick, Equal-to-the Apostles, cries out: Attend, my spiritual children: I have begotten you, as says the Gospel! I have betrothed you as a bride to Christ God. Stand fast, therefore, in the Faith, and confess it fearlessly, binding the Faith of the Holy Trinity upon yourselves as a Breastplate. Be not afraid of the opposition of oppressors, that God may manifest Himself unto you as a great Helper and Protector!"

"Great is your faith, O holy hierarch Patrick: for lo! Having left your homeland and lands enlightened by Christ, you journeyed to a land thirsty for the message of the Spirit. Bearing the Gospel of Christ unto the people, you lit the holy fire of Pascha upon the mount of Slane, and taught by it those who worshiped the fire to adore the True Light. You did not depart therefrom until you had converted the whole land to the Orthodox Faith. Wherefore, we praise you O Father of the Irish Church."

"Loving the heavenly homeland and desiring to attain thereunto, O father Patrick, you forsook your native land on earth; and in a foreign land you did beget a new people in the Spirit, showing yourself to be a true father to them, and crying aloud unto the Lord: 'Here am I, and the children whom Thou hast given me,' as you gaze upon the Divine Truth which will never depart from the land you ransomed from Death."

The Apolytikion and the Kontakion for St. Patrick

While thou didst live on earth, O blessed father Pádraig, thou didst bind to thyself the strong name of the Holy Trinity, and faith in the undivided Trinity Who created the universe.

Now that thou standest before the throne of the Holy Trinity, entreat Christ our God to save our souls! (Apolytikion, Second Tone) May Christ be in the heart of everyone who thinks of thee, Christ in the mouth of those who speak to thee, Christ in every eye that sees thee, Christ in every ear that hears thy words, O blessed Pádraig, our father. (Kontakion, Grave Tone) "Hymn on St. Patrick, Teacher of the Irish" - by St. Secundinus Hear ye all, lovers of God, the | holy merits Of the man blessed in Christ, Pa - | trick the bishop, How for his good ways he is likened to the an - | gels, And because of his perfect life is deemed equal to | the Apostles. Christ's holy precepts he keeps | in all things, His works shine | bright among men, And they follow his holy and wondrous exam - | ple, And thus magnify God the Father | in the heavens. Constant in the fear of God and steadfast | in his faith, Upon whom the Church is built | as on Peter;

And his Apostleship has he received from | God -The gates of Hell will not pre - | vail against him. The Lord has chosen him to teach the barbar - | ian tribes, To fish with the nets | of his teaching, And to draw from the world unto grace the believ - | ers, Men who would follow the Lord to His | heavenly seat. He sells the choice talents of | Christ's Gospel And collects them among the Irish hea - | thens with usury; As a reward for the great labor of his voy - | age, He will come into possession of joy with Christ in the hea - | venly kingdom. God's faithful minister and His distinguished am - | bassador, He gives the good an Apostolic ex - | ample and model, Preaching as he does to God's people in words as well as in | deeds, So that him whom he converts not with words he inspires | with good conduct. Glory has he with Christ, honor | in the world, He who is venerated by all as an | angel of God. God has sent him, as He sent Paul, an Apostle to the gen - | tiles, To offer men guidance to the | kingdom of God. Humble is he of mind and body because of his | fear of God; The Lord abides upon him because | of his good deeds; In his righteous flesh he bears the stigmata of | Christ; In His Cross alone, his sole comfort, | he glor - ies. Untiringly he feeds the faithful from the heaven - | ly banquet, Lest those who are with Christ | faint on the way; Like bread he gives to them the words of the Gos - | pel,

Which are multiplied like manna | in his hands. He preserves his body chaste for love | of the Lord; This body he has prepared as a temple for the | Holy Spirit, And he keeps it such by purity in all his act - | ions; He offers it as a living sacrifice, acceptable | to the Lord. Enflaming light of the world, great one | of the Gospel, Lifted up on a candlestick, shining un - | to all the age The fortified city of the King, founded upon a moun - | tain, Wherein there is great abundance | of the Lord. Greatest indeed will be called in the kingdom | of heaven The man who fulfills with good deeds the holy | words he teaches, Who by his good example is a leader and model to the faith -| ful, Who in purity of heart has con - | fidence in God. Boldly he proclaims the Name of the Lord to | the heathens, And gives them eternal grace in the bath | of salvation. He prays to God daily for their | sins, For them he offers sacrifices, worthy in | the eyes of God. For the sake of God's law he despises all | worldly glory; Compared to His table he considers all | else as trifling; He is not moved by the violence of this | world, But, suffering for Christ, he rejoices in | adversity. A good and faithful shepherd of the flock won for | the Gospel, God has chosen him to watch o - | ver God's people And to feed with divine teaching His | folk, For whom, following Christ's example, he | gives forth his soul. Who for his merits the Savior has raised him to the dignity of a | pontifex, In heavenly things he instructs the army | of the clergy,

Providing them with heavenly rations, besides vest - | ments The rations of divine | and sacred texts. He is the King's herald, inviting the faithful | to the wedding. He is richly clad in a | wedding garment, He drinks heavenly wine from heavenly | cups And gives God's people the spiritual | cup to drink. He finds a holy treasure in the Sa - | cred Volume And perceives the Savior's divinity | in His flesh. It is a treasure he purchases with holy and perfect | works. ISRAEL his soul is called -- | "see - ing God." A faithful witness of the Lord in the Ca - | tholic Law, His speech is spiced with divine | revelations, That human flesh may not decay, eaten by | worms, But be salted with heavenly savor | for sacrifice. A true and renowned tiller of the | Gospel field, His seeds | are Christ's Gospels. These he sows from his God-inspired mouth into the ears of the | wise, And cultivates their hearts and minds with the | Holy Spirit. Christ chose him to be His vi - | car on earth. He frees captives from a two-fold | ser - vitude: The great numbers whom he liberates from bondage to | men, These countless ones he frees from the yoke | of the devil. Hymns, and the Apocalypse, and the Psalms of | God he sings, And explains them for the edification | of God's people. He believes the law in the Trinity of the holy | Name, And he teaches one Substance | in Three Persons. Girt with the Lord's girdle | day and night,

He prays unceasingly | to God the Lord. He will receive the reward for his immense la - | bor With the Apostles will he reign, holy, over | Is - rael. May Bishop Patrick pray for | all of us, That the sins which we have committed be blotted out | immediately, May we ever sing Patrick's prais - | es, That we may ever | live with him. Amen.