It is a familiar hymn in our Episcopal Church, and one that
is used on Trinity Sunday, for confirmations and renewal of baptismal vows, and
of course for the Sunday nearest St. Patrick’s Day—March 17. We know it as St. Patrick’s Breastplate. It
is also recognized as The Deer’s Cry
and The Lorica of St. Patrick. It’s a rather unique hymn in our collection because
its verses vary so much in length and meter that it requires two hymn tune
settings. St. Patrick is the tune
setting for the “I bind myself” stanzas and the tune Deirdre is used for the “Christ be with me” verses.
The words are steeped in history and in Celtic legend and
mythology. The original Old Irish poem is called “Faeth Fiadha.” These words
translate literally as “mist-knower” but idiomatically mean “invisible to human
eyesight.” Faeth fiadha was a magical
mist that arose to protect and render invisible those faithful to the ancient
Celtic goddess Danu. The Tuatha Dé Danann were a race of ancient Irish that appeared
from the might of druidry out of a black cloud to conquer the previous
inhabitants of Ireland. It is from this legendary group that mythological
characters such as the Morrìgan, Lughnasa and Aengus, the god of love derive.
Legend has it that when certain runes and druidic incantations were recited,
the protection of the goddess Danu would surround them with a magical mist that
would cloak them in invisibility.
A similar story is attributed to St. Patrick.
King Lóegaire mac Néill was a constant antagonist to St. Patrick and refused to
let him preach Christianity and convert the people of Ireland. The king sent
out troops to hunt down Patrick and his followers. Patrick, familiar with the
ways of the ancient druids and the structures and poetry of their incantations,
adapted the style to a poem of his own invoking the protection of Christ and
the Trinity. As attack was imminent, one could hear the powerful rumble of
Patrick’s prayer over the charging hooves of the attackers. A heavy mist thickened to an impenetrable fog
as Patrick continued his recitation, allowing Patrick’s disciples to escape.
When the prayer ended with the invocation of Christ to surround him, the fog
lifted and the saint appeared to the soldiers as a deer bounding away into the
heath. For this reason, the Lorica is
also called “The Deer’s
Cry.” These verses became a prayer for pilgrims in medieval times against
the perils of travel—a prayer of protection. (The word “lorica” derives from an
Irish word and means “breastplate.” There are quite a number of Irish loricas,
including one from whence comes the traditional Irish hymn “Be Thou My Vision.”)
The Lorica of St.
Patrick is included in a two-volume medieval collection of Irish and Latin hymns and devotional texts called Liber Hymnorum. Robert Atkinson, who in 1898 published a
translation with editorial annotations of each entry of the Liber Hymnorum, had this to say about
the Lorica, “It is probably a genuine relic of St. Patrick. Its uncouthness of
grammatical forms is in favor of its antiquity. We know that Patrick used very
strange Irish, some of which has been preserved.” Atkinson further noted that
the poem “Faeth Fidaha” was composed without
meter and perhaps was structured in a visual representation of a breastplate. It
includes five iterations of the phrase “atomriug
indiu” which means “I arise today.” However, when Cecil Frances Alexander
translated the poem in 1889, she used the phrase “I bind unto myself today.” Her
translation and adaptation of the poem was less a literal translation and more
a lyric for a children’s hymn. The Lorica is reminiscent of bardic poetry of
ancient Ireland, yet is creed-like in its comprehensiveness. It’s stanzas
hearken to the ancient celtic pagan traditions of holistic and universal
worship while weaving in Christian dogma. (You can read a translation of the
whole Lorica of St.
Patrick by clicking on the hyperlink.) Even so, modern scholars express
skepticism of the attribution to St. Patrick. The first reference to the poem
doesn’t appear until the middle ages, some four centuries after St. Patrick is
said to have composed the prayer.
St. Patrick’s Breastplate has been a literary inspiration to
a number of authors. Its connection to
so much of Irish and Celtic mythology is one draw, but Patrick’s own history is
also appealing as an entertaining story.
Madeleine L'Engle alludes to it in her book A Swiftly Tilting Planet in which Charles Wallace must learn “Patrick’s
Rune” a brief adaptation of the lorica that is meant to invoke protection. As a
particularly beautiful and lyrical prayer, St. Patrick’s Lorica has often been
adapted and set to music. If you clicked on the above hyperlink, you’ll have
heard the Shaun Davey song performed by Rita Connolly. The Estonian composer, Arvo
Pärt, composed a haunting piece called “The Deer’s Cry” using
just the “Christ be with me” portion. Steve Bell composed a very fun, upbeat
song adapting both the C.F. Alexander translation and the traditional
translation called, “The
Lorica.” This Sunday, March 17, the choir at Trinity Church, Rutland will
sing “Christ Be Beside Me,” a setting arranged by Craig Kingsbury. But you will
have to come to church to hear it—no hyperlink here. Happy St. Patrick's Day!
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