Saint Brigid’s Day – Lá Fhéile Bríde – celebrates Ireland’s only female patron saint on February 1 and most people will be familiar with the popular tradition of making crosses in St Brigid’s honour.
What many people may not know is that the feast day of this 5th century saint was one of the most important days of the year for our rural ancestors.
St Brigid’s Day has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival of Imbolc, and it is the festival of new life. It was a time to look forward to brighter days, warmer weather, new growth on the land and the birth of farm animals. It was very important to seek protection and blessings for the family, home, crops and animals at this time.
Some households would leave out a small piece of cloth or a ribbon on the windowsill, called a Brat Bríde or Ribín Bríde. As St Brigid crossed through the country on the eve of her feast, she would touch the Brat Bríde, endowing it with special curative properties to ward off illness and pain in both humans and animals.
Prayer to Saint Brigid
Brigid,
You were a woman of peace.
You brought harmony where
there was conflict.
You brought light to the darkness.
You brought hope to the downcast.
May the mantle of your peace cover
those who are troubled and anxious,
and may peace be firmly rooted
in our hearts and in our world.
Inspire us to act justly and
to reverence all God has made.
Brigid, you were a voice for
the wounded and the weary.
Strengthen what is weak within us.
Calm us into a quietness
that heals and listens.
May we grow each day into greater
wholeness in mind, body and spirit.
Amen.