Preface #

¹ I, Patrick, a sinner and uneducated, have been chosen to serve as a bishop in Ireland, and I accept from God what I am. I live among barbarians, as both a convert and an exile, for the sake of my love for God. He will bear witness that this is true. It is not my desire to express so many harsh or stern words, but I am compelled by my zeal for God and the truth of Christ, who has called me to serve my neighbors and sons. For their sake, I have left my homeland and family, and I would even lay down my life, if I were found worthy.

² I have vowed before my God to teach these people, even if they hold me in contempt. I have written with my own hand to deliver this message to the soldiers to be sent to Coroticus—not as an address to my fellow citizens, nor to the citizens of devout Romans, but to those who, through their wicked actions and hostility, have become citizens of the devil. They live in death, allying themselves with the apostate Scots and Picts—bloodthirsty men who are ever eager to stain themselves with the blood of innocent Christians. Many of these Christians I have begotten to God and confirmed in Christ. Yet, on the very day after they were clothed in white garments and anointed with the chrism of neophytes, they were cruelly cut up and slaughtered by the sword, carried out by the aforementioned people. In response, I sent a letter through a holy priest, whom I had guided since his youth, along with some clerics, pleading for the return of some of the stolen goods or the baptized captives. But they mocked them.

³ Therefore, I do not know whether I should grieve more for those who were killed or for those whom the devil has ensnared, condemning them to the eternal torment of hell, where they will be bound like him. For anyone who sins is a slave to sin and is rightly called a son of the devil. Let it be known to all who fear God that such people are utterly separated from me and from Christ, my God, whose ambassador I am. These murderers of their own kin, these destroyers of brothers, these ravenous wolves consume the people of the Lord as though they were mere bread. As Scripture says: “The wicked have trampled on your law.” Yet, in these latter days, Ireland had been well planted with faith and faithfully instructed in the ways of the Lord.

Chapter 1 #

¹ Thanks be to God, I claim no authority of my own. I share in the mission with those whom He has called and predestined to proclaim the Gospel, even amidst great persecution, to the ends of the earth. Yet the enemy has worked against me through the tyrant Coroticus, a man who fears neither God nor His priests, to whom He has entrusted the great and sacred power: “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.” I therefore implore you, the holy ones of God, humble in heart, not to be swayed by their false words. Do not eat or drink with them, nor accept their offerings, until they have repented with many tears, freed the servants of God, and released the baptized handmaids of Christ, for whom He was crucified and gave His life.

² “He who offers a sacrifice from the goods of the poor is like one who sacrifices a son in the presence of his father.” And as Scripture warns: “The riches unjustly gathered shall be vomited out from his belly; the angel of death will drag him away; he will face the wrath of dragons; the tongue of the serpent will strike him down; and unquenchable fire will consume him.” Therefore, “Woe to those who fill themselves with what does not belong to them.” And, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?” It would take far too long to recount every warning or to compile all the testimonies of the law that condemn such greed.

³ Greed is a mortal sin. “You will not covet your neighbor’s goods” and “You will not kill.” A murderer cannot dwell with Christ, for “He who hates his brother is a murderer,” and “He who does not love his brother remains in death.” How much graver, then, is the guilt of those who have stained their hands with the blood of the sons of God—those whom He has only recently brought to Himself at the farthest ends of the earth through our humble efforts to share His word!

⁴ Did I come to Ireland by the will of God or the will of man? Who compelled me? I was led by the Spirit, leaving behind my family and homeland to see them no more. Have I not shown compassionate mercy to the very nation that once enslaved me? By birth, I am of noble lineage—my father was a Decurio—but I do not regret, nor am I ashamed, to have exchanged my nobility for the sake of others. I am a servant in Christ to a foreign people for the indescribable glory of eternal life found in Christ Jesus my Lord. Even if my own people fail to recognize or honor me, as it is written: “A prophet is without honor in his own country.” Are we not all from the same origin? Do we not have one God as our Father? As He has said: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Is it not true that some tear down while others build? I do not seek my own.

Chapter 2 #

¹ Not to me be the praise, but to God, who has placed in my heart this calling: that I should be one of the hunters and fishers He foretold would come in the last days. I am scorned—what can I do, O Lord? I am deeply despised. Behold, Your sheep are being torn apart around me, plundered by the aforementioned robbers with the support of Coroticus’s soldiers. These betrayers of Christians, handing them over to the Picts and Scots, are far removed from the love of God. Ravenous wolves have scattered the flock of the Lord—a flock that was growing in Ireland through tireless effort. The sons of the Irish and the daughters of kings, who have become monks and virgins dedicated to Christ, are too numerous to count.

² Therefore, “the oppression of the powerful is not pleasing to You now—even in the very depths it will not please”. What saint would not recoil in fear from sharing in the feasts or pleasures of such people? They fill their homes with the spoils of slain Christians; they thrive on plunder, unaware of the poison—the deadly sustenance—they offer to their friends and children. Just as Eve did not realize she was handing death to her husband, so too are all those who commit evil: they work to bring about death and eternal punishment.

³ It is the practice of Christians in Rome and Gaul to send holy men to the Franks and other nations, carrying large sums of money, to ransom baptized captives. Yet you who kill these captives and sell them to foreign peoples who do not know God are delivering the members of Christ, as if into the den of wolves. What hope do you have in God? Whoever agrees with you, or commands such acts, will be judged by God. I hardly know how to express the grief I feel for the sons of God, so cruelly slaughtered by the sword. As Scripture says, “Weep with those who weep.” And again, “If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it.” For this reason, the Church mourns and grieves for her sons and daughters—not only those killed by the sword but also those sent away to distant lands, where sin is more shameless and widespread. In those places, freeborn Christian men are sold and enslaved among the wicked, depraved, and faithless Picts.

Chapter 3 #

¹ And so I cry out with deep sorrow and anguish: O my beloved brothers and children, so dear to me, whom I have begot in Christ in such great numbers—what can I do for you? I am unworthy before both God and man to offer you help. “The wicked have triumphed over us”, and we have become outcasts. It seems they do not recognize that we share one baptism and one Father—God. They look down on us simply because we were born in Ireland, as Scripture says: “Do we not all have one God? Why, then, do you betray one another?” Therefore, I mourn for you. I grieve deeply for you, my beloved ones!

² Yet, on the other hand, I take comfort in knowing that my efforts have not been in vain—my journey has not been for nothing. This dreadful and astonishing crime has been allowed to happen, but thanks be to God, those of you who have believed and been baptized have left this earth for paradise. Surely, you have begun your journey to a place where there is no night, no death, and no sorrow. There, you will rejoice like young bulls set free from their bonds, trampling the wicked underfoot as dust.

³ Indeed, you will reign with the apostles, prophets, and martyrs, and you will inherit the eternal kingdom, as He has promised: “They shall come from the east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” Outside, however, will be the dogs, sorcerers, murderers, liars, and perjurers, who will have their share in the everlasting lake of fire. The apostle’s warning is not without cause: “If the righteous are scarcely saved, where will the sinner, the ungodly, and the lawbreaker appear?”

⁴ Where will Coroticus and his wicked rebels against Christ find themselves when they will see rewards distributed amongst the baptized women? What will he think of his miserable kingdom, which shall pass away in a moment, like clouds or smoke, which are dispersed by the wind? So will deceitful sinners perish before the face of the Lord, and the just will feast with great confidence with Christ, and judge the nations, and rule over unjust kings, for ever and ever. Amen.

Chapter 4 #

¹ I testify before God and His angels that it will be so, as He has revealed to my limited understanding. These are not my words written in Latin, but the words of God, the prophets, and the apostles, who never lied: “Whoever believes will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” God Himself has declared this.

² I implore anyone who serves God to willingly carry this message and ensure it is not obstructed by anyone. Let it be read publicly, in the presence of Coroticus himself, so that, if God moves their hearts, they might one day return to Him and repent, even if belatedly. Let them free the baptized captives and repent for the murder of the Lord’s brethren, so that they may be deserving of God to live both in this world and in the next. The peace of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.