Voices In My Head (The Rick Lee James Podcast)

Episode 541 - Praying with Patrick - Matt Mikalatos and Aaron Burns

·32 min·3 clips

Rick Lee James shares how a new book about St. Patrick's prayers became a timely resource during a hospital visit.

Rick Lee James opens the episode by sharing his personal interest in St. Patrick, having written music and a book section about him. He introduces guests Matt Mikalatos and Aaron Burns, authors of 'Praying with St. Patrick'. Rick mentions using a prayer from their book during a hospital visit, setting a personal tone. Aaron explains the book's origin: he read Patrick's actual letters and was moved by his testimony, leading to collaboration with Matt. They address common myths about Patrick, like driving snakes out of Ireland, noting it's a spiritual metaphor. Matt shares the story of Patrick's enslavement and his vision calling him back to Ireland to preach. Rick reflects on Patrick's time alone tending sheep as a formative spiritual experience. Aaron draws parallels between Patrick and Joseph from the Bible, emphasizing how God turns evil into good. He also discusses the theme of waiting in Patrick's life, including seven years of enslavement. The conversation shifts to how Patrick's evangelism differed from modern approaches; he actively went to the poor and enslaved rather than waiting for people to come. Matt notes Patrick was controversial for embedding himself in Irish culture. Rick asks about Patrick's age when he returned to Ireland, estimated in his forties, highlighting that God calls people at any age. Aaron emphasizes Patrick's humility, as Patrick saw himself as uneducated and sinful yet used by God. Matt describes the book's structure: each entry includes a quote from Patrick, a scripture, commentary, and a prayer, designed for daily devotional use or chronological reading. Rick promotes the book in the show notes. Aaron shares that Patrick prayed readers would think of Christ, not him, making readers part of answering a 1500-year-old prayer. Matt mentions Aaron's filmmaking background and a potential St. Patrick movie script. Rick closes by praying Patrick's Breastplate Prayer over listeners, adapting 'me' to 'you'. He also promotes his own song based on the prayer.

As heard by us

A devotional St. Patrick conversation that holds faith and historical uncertainty together.

St. Patrick comes through as both a figure of Christian devotion and a life partly hidden by historical uncertainty. Rick Lee James frames the conversation around Praying with St.

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Why you'd press play

You want St. Patrick through prayer, church memory, and a little scholarly doubt in the room.

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