St Brigids Cross

The History of the St. Brigid and Her Cross.

St. Brigid was born the daughter of Dubhtach, a Leinster pagan chieftain, and a slave woman during the mid-fifth century in Ireland. It is believed that she was a contemporary of St. Patrick  who converted her to Catholicism.  St. Brigid founded a monastery in Kildare, Ireland and is remembered for her great charity and kindness and is second only to St. Patrick, among Ireland’s heritage of Saints.  Thousands of Irish woman are named Brigid in her honor.  St. Brigid’s feast day, February 1, corresponds with Imbolc, the Celtic feast of purification and renewal.

The most enduring image of St. Brigid is the St. Brigid’s Cross. In her endeavor to explain the Passion of Christ to her father, a dying pagan, she wove a cross from the straw-like rushes strewn on the floor.

In those early Christian times the farmers adopted the custom of making these same crosses at the beginning of spring to protect their holdings, placing the handmade St. Brigid's cross in prominent positions in their houses and barns. The tradition of making the crosses on St. Brigid's Day, February 1st, continues to the present day in Ireland and abroad.

The St. Brigid’s Cross is believed to protect homes from want and evil.