Every February, around the world, friends exchange flowers, gifts and candies to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Saint Valentine’s name is known as the patron saint worldwide. However, most of us do not know the true origin of Saint Valentine and the coming of this special day. What we do know is that February is a romantic month.
As we know today, Valentine’s Day contains elements of ancient Roman and Christian traditions. The Catholic Church recognizes at least three martial saints whose names are Valentin or Valentineus.
One of the common legends is that the lover is a priest who served in Rome in the third century. At that time, Emperor Claudius II announced that single men showed higher soldiers than those with wives and children, and he prohibited all young people from marrying in order to optimize their potential soldiers. Valentin immediately realized the injustice in this declaration and continued to marry in a secret ceremony, which directly violated the Emperor Claudius II. After obtaining the insider’s actions, the emperor immediately executed him.
There are additional stories surrounding Valentine that suggest he was killed for attempting to assist Christians in escaping Roman prisons where they were often tortured and beaten. If one particular legend holds true, Valentine himself sent the first ever “Valentine” greeting.
It is believed that Valentine fell in love with a jailer’s daughter while in prison. The girl had visited Valentine in jail, during which time Valentine fell deeply in love with her. It is thought that before his death, Valentine sent her a letter that he signed “From Your Valentine”.
By the time of Valentine’s death and subsequent sainthood, he was one of the most popular legends in England and France during the Middle Ages.
The early priests of the Roman Christian church used St. Valentine’s Day because that day young people chose young girls from the congregation as potential brides. Since then, many traditions have become an important part of Valentine’s Day.
Cards, gifts and promises Eternal love is the most common way we express our feelings on the most special day of the year. In the United States, the first commercially printed Valentine’s Day cards began to appear in the early 1800s. Since then, Valentine’s Day has become a highly profitable business, costing millions of dollars each year.
