I find this oddly amusing. Although I was technically baptized Catholic, I have never identified as Christian in my entire life. I am also a lifelong teetotaler, so that doesn't cramp my style either.
Basically, the guy I don't listen to anyway is telling me not to do the thing I don't do.
Actually, I was talking with a co-worker and I pointed out that St. Patrick's Day really isn't observed as a religious holiday in this country.
St. Patrick's Day parades to run into Holy Week roadblock
Posted by Robert L. Smith September 07, 2007 21:00PM
Organizers of Cleveland's annual St. Patrick's Day Parade do not like to tinker with tradition. Theirs is one of the oldest, largest parades in America, and one of the few always held March 17 -- St. Patrick's Day -- no matter the day of the week. So a recent directive from Rome sent an early chill through the parade ranks.
March 17, 2008, will fall on the Monday of Holy Week, the ramp-up to Easter Sunday, when Catholics celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Vatican reminded the faithful that no other church services are allowed to overshadow the solemnity of Holy Week. That includes St. Patrick's Day services which, in Cleveland, are spectacles nearly as grand as the parade.
Church authorities suggest moving the Feast of St. Patrick to sometime after Easter, said Bob Tayek, a spokesman for the Cleveland Catholic Diocese.Several cities in the United States and in Ireland are considering moving their parades. Savannah, Ga.'s 184th annual St. Patrick's Day Parade will take place March 14 next year. The Associated Press reports that the Irish church is moving the celebration to Saturday, March 15.
Cleveland's parade committee, for now, is standing on tradition.
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