Why read Saint Patrick Retold?

Book cover of Saint Patrick Retold: The Legend and History of Ireland's Patron Saint

Book description

A gripping biography that brings together the most recent research to shed provocative new light on the life of Saint Patrick

Saint Patrick was, by his own admission, a controversial figure. Convicted in a trial by his elders in Britain and hounded by rumors that he settled in Ireland for…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Saint Patrick Retold as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Yitzhak Hen

Author

I always love it when scholars manage to scorch a sacred cow, and this is exactly what Roy Flechner does to the saintly image and reputation of Patrick, Ireland’s patron saint and one of the most venerated saints around the world.

With a careful analysis of various documents associated with Patrick, not the least his own autobiography, Flechner re-tales the story of Patrick surprisingly and provocatively. And so, Patrick, the pious missionary of Ireland, emerges from the pages of Flechner’s book as a convicted Roman tax collector who settled in Ireland with his family’s slaves for financial gain.

From Yitzhak's list on challenge views of the Early Middle Ages.