2006 Grand Marshal Brian O'Neill

Annual Awards’ Banquet & Dinner Dance

Saturday, March 20, 2004
Contact:  Beverly Murphy (514) 694-0206

It is imperative to be aware of the historical context of St. Patrick in order to understand what he stands for and the significance of these principles as embodied by the millions of men and women who have marched in his honour every year for the last 179 years.

In his excellent international best-seller, How the Irish Saved Civilization, author Thomas Cahill tells us that Patricius is transported to Ireland where he works alone in the hills as a shepherd-slave for a local chieftan named Miliucc in the district of Antrim. He finds himself "chastened exceedingly." His two constant companions are hunger and nakedness.

Patricius, who had grown up as a non-observant Catholic, is transformed into a holy man during his six years in isolation as a shepherd. With nobody to talk to, he prays constantly - as many as 200 times a day. He becomes a visionary for whom there is no rigid separation between this world and the next. In his dreams, he receives a vision to return home to Britain. Escaping bondage, fortuitous connections permit him to book passage to the Continent, eventually making his way back to England and his family. But once home, he discovers he is more Irish than English. In his visions, he hears the voice of the Irish crying to him: "We beg you to come and walk among us once more." Patricius, the escaped slave, is about to be drafted as Saint Patrick, apostle to the Irish nation, writes Cahill. Saint Patrick is the archetype of the underdog - the stranger who integrates into his adopted land, evolving into a leader whose rectitude and kindness serve as a beacon to its indigenous people. How many times has a similar journey of discovery been repeated over the last two centuries by Irish immigrants who have arrived as strangers in Quebec? The statistics bear witness to how thoroughly the Irish have integrated into Canadian society.

Close to four million Canadians are of Irish ancestry and 40 percent of Quebecers trace their roots to Irish forebears. A glance at the names of municipal, provincial and federal politicians over the last 200 years confirms their leadership role. When we march in the St. Patrick's Parade, we do so - in part - to remind ourselves to open our hearts and our hearths to those strangers less fortunate than ourselves.

But the parade holds additional symbolic significance. To glean those clues, we return to the journey of Saint Patrick 1,500 years ago.
After returning home, Patrick undertakes long studies in a monastery and is ordained a bishop - virtually the first missionary bishop in history. He returns to Ireland, where he establishes his church near modern Armagh and goes on to set up the system of churches throughout northern, central and eastern Ireland to minister to the needs of "his people."