Valentine’s day is a bit of mystery you could say. A holiday with hints of ancient Christian and Roman tradition mixed with the commercial cards, chocolate and flowers. Why do we celebrate this holiday of love in the middle of February? Well, there are a two stories about different saints named Valentine, they both became martyrs according to the Catholic Church.
The first story is about a priest during Claudius II’s rule of Rome in the 3rd century. Claudius decreed that single men made better soldiers, so no soldier was allowed to marry. Priest Valentine thought this law unjust and went against Claudius and married young couples in secret. Valentine was put to death when Claudius found out.
The second story is that Valentine was killed for attempting to help Christians break out of the cruel Roman prisons. There is a legend that when Valentine was imprisoned, he fell in love with the jailer's daughter. On death row he sent her a letter signed, “From your Valentine.” Doesn’t that sound familiar?
Valentine’s day is celebrated in February, because of when St. Valentine was buried or that the Christian Church tried to bury the pagan holiday of Lupercalia which is on February 15th. Lupercalia was in honor of the god Faunus and the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. During the holiday young men and women were paired with each other which most likely ended with marriage.
Pope Gelasius declared St.Valentine’s Day on February 14th, but it was not correlated with love. It became associated with love in the Middle Ages when France and England believed that the birds’ mating season began on February 14th. The oldest known valentine was written in 1415 by Charles the Duke of Orleans. It was written to his wife, while he was imprisoned after the Battle of Agincourt.
This holiday of love is important in our culture as we remember to appreciate the people around us. From Lupercalia to St. Valentine to Pope Gelasius, Valentine’s day is a holiday rich in history and love.