Celebrating St Brigid's Day

St. Brigid's Day (Gaelic: Lá Fhéile Bríde)

St. Brigid's Day, celebrated on February 1st, honours St. Brigid, one of Ireland's patron saints. This date also marks the first day of spring in the Celtic calendar, which is traditionally followed in Ireland rather than the meteorological calendar.

Why is St. Brigid no longer a saint?

In 1969 Brigid was one of ninety-three saints removed by Pope Paul VI from the universal Roman Catholic calendar. It seems that there isn't sufficient contemporary documentary evidence about her. This caused some consternation among the many churches all around the world that are named after Saint Brigid!

What to do the night before St. Brigid's Day?

Brat Bríde

This ancient practice involves placing a piece of cloth, ribbon, or garment outside on the eve of St. Brigid's Day. It doesn't matter what colour you use, the protection from the material is still the same. The story goes that whenever St Brigid passed your house in the evening after sunset, she would bless the item left that was out. The meaning behind this is to resemble St Brigid's Cloak and its protection around the house.

St. Brigids day Food

The National Museum of Ireland tells us that a traditional St Brigid's feast would consist of potatoes and freshly churned butter. This is better known as Colcannon was made by adding chopped cabbage.

What Is Colcannon?

Colcannon is an Irish potato recipe, a mixture of creamy mashed potatoes and usually kale or cabbage.

In the following colcannon recipe, we mix the mashed potatoes in with chopped cooked kale or cabbage, some green onions, a little milk or cream, and lots of butter.

To serve: make a little well in the mashed potatoes and put a knob of butter in it.

What are the flowers for St. Brigid's Day?

At this time of year blooming flowers are few and far between but the snowdrop is in bloom and is sacred to St. Brigid. In ancient times February 1st was known as Imbolc (or Imbolg), one of the four great festivals of the Celts.

More about St. Brigid

One of Brigid's many reported miracles include the story of her as a girl. She gave away the household's butter and bacon to hungry beggars and dogs, then miraculously replaced the food for her family. Later in life, she turned a wooden column into a living tree with one touch and hung her cloak on a sunbeam.

St Brigid's Cross

St Brigid's Cross is woven from rushes and is said to have been used by Brigid in explaining the story of the life and death of Jesus to a dying chieftain. Dating from pre-Christian times, the cross provides a connecting link between pagan customs and the emergence of Christianity.

How do you hang a St. Brigid's cross?

They are hung by the door and in the rafters of homes to protect the house from fire and evil. According to tradition, a new cross is made each St. Brigid's Day, and the old one is burned to protect the house from fire.