Q: I heard that the official day of St Patrick's Day is being changed from the 17th of March...is this true? And when will it be if so, and why?
A: Saint Patrick's Day is a Roman Catholic Church feast day, a national holiday in Ireland, and March 17th is widely believed to be the day Saint Patrick died. The date of the feast is occasionally moved by church authorities due to clashes with Holy Week; this last happened in 1940, when Saint Patrick's Day was observed on 3 April in order to avoid it coinciding with Palm Sunday, and will happen again in 2008, when it shall be held on 15 March to avoid Holy Monday. Aside from the Roman Catholic Church feast, the holiday will be celebrated on March 17 by everyone else.