When Catholicism arrived in Ireland there had been a strong Celtic presence for centuries. The Celtic religion, Druidism, was based in nature. Mountains, storms, rivers and seasons were all significant in Druidism. Then Saint Patrick arrived.
Patrick used a three leafed clover to explain the Holy Trinity, his attempt to teach the Celts that Polytheists were a step lower on the ladder to heaven than Monotheists. The stem united three people in one God. Patrick explained that the leaves of the shamrock/clover represented Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Celtic traditions had such a stronghold in Ireland, Catholic priests decided to mingle existing Celtic feast days, beliefs and customs with Catholic ones in an attempt to sway the indigenous group’s beliefs more easily and readily.The four-leaf clover is an example of Celtic myth and Christianity intermingling. That fourth leaf represents luck. Superstition had no place in this new religion called Catholicism.
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