Oisin and Saint Patrick - Page 2
© Linda Casselman
Saint Patrick was familiar with the old Celtic tales, so he recognized Oisin immediately and asked him to tell his own account of the old stories so that he could record them. Oisin agreed, so he, Saint Patrick, and a scribe set out to travel Ireland visiting the places that Oisin detailed in his tales. At the same time, however, Saint Patrick had it in mind to convert old Oisin to Christianity. He told Oisin that Tirnanog was gone now and that he could not return to it. But Oisin protested saying that it was just there on the horizon. He began to realize though that it would always be there on the horizon, and that it would always be out of reach.
Saint Patrick also told Oisin all about Christianity, about God and Heaven and Hell. He told Oisin that his ancestors, the Fianna, would be in Hell and not in Heaven because they were pagans. Oisin shrugged. He said that he too would rather be in Hell with his friends than in Heaven which seemed boring to him.
And so our hero Oisin remains an unconverted pagan. This story places him in the realm of Celtic mythology where he belongs. Oisin is part of Ireland's glorious past - a past full of courageous heroes and brave warriors, of gods and goddesses, of powerful druid sorcerers and magical nature spirits. This myth about Oisin and Saint Patrick serves to blend the two histories of Ireland making the transition from Celtic pagan worship to Christianity.
Myth tells us that Oisin said to Saint Patrick:
If my son wrestled with your God and my son went down, I would say that your God had fought well.
For a deeper account of this myth please visit:
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