I was freeborn according to the flesh; I am born of a father who

Hear now the words of Saint Patrick, the apostle to Ireland: “I was freeborn according to the flesh; I am born of a father who was a decurion, but I sold my noble rank—I blush not to state it, nor am I sorry—for the profit of others. In short, I am a slave in Christ to a foreign nation for the unspeakable glory of the eternal life which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” These words, forged in the fire of trial and exile, resound with the courage of one who chose humility over honor, sacrifice over privilege, and the service of God above the fleeting praise of men.

Patrick was born into a Romanized family of status, the son of a decurion, a man of civic rank. By the measure of the world, he had wealth, heritage, and the title of the freeborn. Yet he confesses with boldness that he relinquished all, casting aside the comforts of his birth. Why? Not for personal gain, but for the profit of others—to serve the Irish people, the very nation that had once enslaved him. In this lies the paradox of Christian greatness: to lose everything in order to give everything, and in so doing, to gain the eternal.

Consider the story of his youth. At sixteen, Patrick was torn from his home by raiders and sold into slavery in Ireland. He tended flocks in the wilderness, hungry, lonely, and despised. Yet in that solitude, he discovered prayer, and in chains, he discovered freedom of the spirit. Years later, after escaping back to his family, he could have lived in comfort, sheltered by his noble rank. But he heard the voices of the Irish crying out, “Come walk among us again.” He answered, not with anger or vengeance, but with love. Thus he returned, no longer a slave by force, but a slave in Christ, offering his life willingly.

In this, Patrick’s choice mirrors the path of the greatest saints and teachers. Consider Moses, raised in Pharaoh’s court with the riches of Egypt, who renounced it all to suffer with his people. Or Francis of Assisi, who cast away his inheritance to live among the poor. Such lives testify to the eternal law: the value of a soul is not measured by what it keeps, but by what it gives. Patrick’s surrender of privilege is not loss, but a greater victory, for it bore fruit in the conversion of a nation.

The words “slave in Christ” may jar the proud heart, for who desires slavery? Yet Patrick turns the meaning on its head. To serve Christ is not bondage but freedom, for in serving Him, one serves truth, love, and eternal life. The slavery of sin degrades; the slavery of Christ ennobles. By calling himself a slave in Christ, Patrick declares that his chains are not of iron but of devotion, willingly clasped around his heart, binding him forever to the work of salvation.

The glory he speaks of is not earthly glory, not the laurels of war or the crowns of empire. It is the unspeakable glory of eternal life, a glory no army can seize and no decay can tarnish. Patrick knew that noble titles pass, wealth fades, and the graves of the mighty are soon forgotten. But to serve others in the name of Christ is to sow seeds that bloom into eternity. His mission, carried out in hardship, danger, and misunderstanding, still speaks centuries later because it was rooted in selfless love.

What then must we learn from Patrick’s testimony? That the worth of life is not in the rank we inherit, but in the service we render. That it is no shame to give up privilege for the sake of others; indeed, it is the highest honor. That true greatness lies in becoming small, and true freedom is found in willing servitude to love.

Therefore, let us act. Let each person ask: what noble rank, what comfort, what pride may I set aside for the good of another? Let us listen for the cries of the suffering, even if they come from those who once wronged us. Let us take upon ourselves the gentle yoke of Christ, and live not for fleeting success but for eternal glory. For in the end, it will not be said how high we stood, but how deeply we stooped to lift another. And in that humility, we shall find the greatness of the saints.