eSword - The Confession of Patrick of Ireland
This morning I was listening to the weekly podcast of The Journey Home with Marcus Grodi. Marcus was interviewing Patty Bonds, sister of well-known reformed apologist Dr. James R. White. Patty mentioned that around Saint Patrick's Day one year she decided to read up on Patrick and found Patrick's Confession online. After reading The Confession of Patrick, Patty decided to read the fathers of the early church before 250 A.D.. Based on her study of the early Church and scripture, Patty decided to move from the Baptist faith to the Catholic faith.
Well, when I heard this testimony, I stopped and looked up The Confession of Patrick. I wanted to see this powerful document that would have this effect on Christians like Patty Bonds.
The Confession of Patrick was easy to find and there were dozens of translations to be found. Mericfully, Patrick believed in brevity. The Confession is extremely short in comparison to Justin Martyr's First Apology.
Patrick's opening paragraphs set the tone for his Confession:
When I got home this evening, I quickly copied and edited The Confession of Patrick in eSword as a topic file. The zipped esword topic file is available for download in my eSnips eSword account.
Source: The Journey Home podcast (RSS/XML)
Well, when I heard this testimony, I stopped and looked up The Confession of Patrick. I wanted to see this powerful document that would have this effect on Christians like Patty Bonds.
The Confession of Patrick was easy to find and there were dozens of translations to be found. Mericfully, Patrick believed in brevity. The Confession is extremely short in comparison to Justin Martyr's First Apology.
Patrick's opening paragraphs set the tone for his Confession:
- I, Patrick, a sinner, a most simple countryman, the least of all the faithful and most contemptible to many, had for father the deacon Calpurnius, son of the late Potitus, a priest, of the settlement [vicus] of Bannavem Taburniae; he had a small villa nearby where I was taken captive. I was at that time about sixteen years of age. I did not, indeed, know the true God; and I was taken into captivity in Ireland with many thousands of people, according to our deserts, for quite drawn away from God, we did not keep his precepts, nor were we obedient to our priests who used to remind us of our salvation. And the Lord brought down on us the fury of his being and scattered us among many nations, even to the ends of the earth, where I, in my smallness, am now to be found among foreigners.
2 And there the Lord opened my mind to an awareness of my unbelief, in order that, even so late, I might remember my transgressions and turn with all my heart to the Lord my God, who had regard for my insignificance and pitied my youth and ignorance. And he watched over me before I knew him, and before I learned sense or even distinguished between good and evil, and he protected me, and consoled me as a father would his son.
The Confession of Patrick
When I got home this evening, I quickly copied and edited The Confession of Patrick in eSword as a topic file. The zipped esword topic file is available for download in my eSnips eSword account.
Source: The Journey Home podcast (RSS/XML)
Labels: Apologetics, Baptist, Early_Church, eSword, Ministry
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