Extension magazine - Spring 2023

18 INSPIRE
Cover Story
Extension | Spring 2023 19
Over 5 million Ukrainians have fled their country
since the Russian invasion began in February 2022.
About 180,000 are now in the United States.
Roughly 400,000 Congolese have fled their country
since the first and second Congo Wars, sometimes
called Africa’s World War.
In the past 10 years, more than 125,000 Burmese
refugees have been admitted to the United States after
fleeing tumult in Myanmar.
The Irish. The Ukrainians. The Congolese. The
Burmese. And many others.
All the world’s emigrants are
made sisters and brothers by the
“Every immigrant
has a heart-rending
backstory. Each has
left a land they loved
driven not by choice
but by brutal necessity.
Every immigrant in
America is also
an emigrant.”
same way of the cross which
they walk. All are from different
countries but are walking the
same calamitous path.
What drives someone to reduce
a lifetime’s worth of possessions
to the size of a traveling
bag? What compels a parent to
subject their children to the Russian-roulette
terrors of the road
and sea? How does anyone work
that terrible calculus, judging
that the war, terror or famine they flee is worse than
what lies ahead?
Every immigrant has a heart-rending backstory.
Each has left a land they loved driven not by choice
but by brutal necessity. Every immigrant in America
is also an emigrant.
Each has seen the shadows falling on everything
they had to leave and would love forever. Each has
searched for the last glimpse of a farewell hand. It is
a toll each emigrant has paid.
The Irish. The Ukrainians. The Congolese. The
Burmese. And so many more like them. Now scattered
throughout the world looking for an open
hand.
Saying all the names we know for all the lost
lands is an exercise in compassion, a widening of
heart and soul, a quickening of empathy, and a call
to see the face of Christ in all the souls wandering
the earth or being tossed upon its seas in search of a
new place to stand.
There is a saint who shares a special bond with all
the souls who have lost their land.
St. Patrick:
From slavery
to sainthood
IN THE FIFTH CENTURY, St. Patrick
was forced from his homeland in tears
and anguish. He knew the pain of a
“Lost Land.”
As a teenager, Patrick was captured
by pirates in his homeland of northern
Britain, which at the time was part
of the Roman Empire. He was shipped
outside the boundaries of the empire
to Ireland where he was enslaved. According
to his own writings, he followed
a voice he heard in a dream that
directed him to escape on a ship back
to his homeland.
Years later, that same voice spoke to
him even louder and urged him to return
to Ireland. This time, however, he
arrived not as a captive but as a missionary.
He became one of the first bishops
in history to minister to the “barbarians”
(the Celts) who were beyond
the reaches of Roman society and law.
The Celts were not even considered to
be humans by Patrick’s contemporaries.
Patrick affirmed their humanity. He
is believed to be the first person in human
history to openly condemn the evil
of slavery. Patrick’s deep love for the
Celtic people, his affirmation of their
culture and his concern for their welfare
were the hallmarks of his life as he
sought to share the Gospel throughout
the Emerald Isle.
This is perhaps why he continues to
be celebrated and loved all these centuries
later. His ability to prevail in the
face of suffering, to affirm the humanity
of others and to share the Gospel with
people of other cultures are revered attributes
that continue to resonate with
people across the globe.
In the United States, the saint’s legacy
lives on in the hearts of our 31.5
million Irish Americans. Just as St. Patrick
extended himself beyond his own
country and culture, so too does his
following extend beyond the descendants
of Ireland, especially among
those who have had to tearfully leave
their homeland as he once did.
As evidence of his enduring popularity,
Catholic Extension has records
dating back to 1905 that indicate
that we have helped build or
repair hundreds of churches named after
the beloved saint. These churches
are located across the country, from
Montana to Puerto Rico—each one a
unique chapter in the story of St. Patrick’s
legacy in America.
ILLUSTRATION SAMUEL LIND
An illustration
of St. Patrick
created for Holy
Spirit and St.
Patrick Church, a
Black Caribbean
parish in Loíza,
Puerto Rico.
BELOW A parishioner at Holy Spirit and
St. Patrick Church in Loíza, Puerto Rico,
celebrates her faith and culture with “La
Bomba” dance.
THE FOLLOWING FOUR COM-
MUNITIES each possess their own
special connection to St. Patrick.
Each shows how the spirit of St.
Patrick remains alive and well today
throughout our country.
St. Patrick in
Puerto Rico
LOÍZA, PUERTO RICO, is home to
one of the oldest Catholic parishes
under the American flag. Founded
in 1645, St. Patrick is its patron.
The town has a predominantly
Black Caribbean population that
descended from enslaved people
brought from Africa. It is believed
that the slave ships stopped in
Loíza to dispose of the slaves who
were on the brink of death after
the grueling journey across the
Atlantic Ocean. Those who survived
eventually settled in Loíza. How did
this Black Caribbean community
descended from former slaves come
to adopt the Irish saint as its patron?
The community had experienced
multiple devastating yuca famines
and was searching for a powerful
intercessor. Yuca is a root vegetable
and major food staple in the Caribbean,
much like the potato was in
Ireland. The people
turned to St. Patrick
for help. When
the yuca famine
ended, which they
attributed to the
power of St. Patrick,
they re-dedicated
their church and
added St. Patrick’s
name, becoming
Holy Spirit and
St. Patrick Church.