Beyond Saint Patrick: The Other Important Irish Saint

Studying the facts of history can make you change your perspective. For example, have you heard of St Brendan? He is a much lesser known Irish saint who discovered America. According to history, he journeyed across the ocean to a new land in the 6th century.

He had his team of monks for his sail boat and lots of sailing experience. They sailed for months and months, before finding what they were looking for: the Promised Land of Saints. The trip was well documented technically. No miracles were recorded just pure practicality with time and distances travelled. He was gone from his native Ireland for years.

This “Irish Sailor Saint” sounds inconceivable. Despite the stories and documentation, how could anyone cross the ocean in a basket-like wood frame boat that was covered in ox hide.

Find this hard to believe? Well, if you can read Latin, check out his Navigatio. Christopher Columbus was said to have made a stop in Ireland to read this work. His writings are full of details and information about his journey.

Suspend your disbelief for a moment so that we can use some of his story for today’s history lesson. Here are some of Brendan’s pointers we need today:

He took risks - These were physical risks with a bigger motivation. But they were also calculated risks as he had a team and the guidance from those who had gone as far as Iceland on an ocean journey. He was not expecting a miracle. He was prepared.
He had a plan – The plan included a solid sailboat filled with food and an understanding of the ocean.
He had faith – This is the intangible piece that we all need when we take on something different or new.

This must be a myth you are thinking. Well, many people thought so. Then, in 1976, Tim Severin, an adventurer and scholar, reenacted the voyage. He left from Ireland and eventually landed in Boston. ( I went to see the boat and crew on a warm summer day in 1977.) The boat made it. The crew made it across the Atlantic. So perhaps there is something to Saint Brendan discovering America.

Both crews that crossed the Atlantic needed perseverance in the storms that surrounded them. They had some calm seas but the powerful inner strength came through in adversity. In this world of quick service and instant internet information, we are having a moment when we are all in need of perseverance.

When you are thinking about the stock market this Saint Patrick’s Day week, consider the questions of Saint Brendan:

Are you prepared?
Are you being practical?
Do you have a bit of faith?

Watch those who have gone before you. Whether in sainthood, family lore or history, having role models and stories help us today. When there are no clear answers, there is history and story to support and remind us that life will go on. And there has been a long line of people gone before us who have endured. And a few saints as well.