Everyone knows that Valentine’s Day is a holiday meant to show that special person in your life how much you care for them. But not many people realize where, or what, this important day originates from, and surprisingly, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows.
There are many different theories on what Valentine’s Day was based on, one of which takes us back to ancient Rome. During the religious upheaval in the third century, a lot of Romans were converting to Christianity, and the Pagan ruler of Rome, Claudius II Gothicus, did not not like it. Evidently, the harsh emperor wanted to end the conversion, and coincidentally, a saint named Valentine, who was helping fellow Christians, had caught the attention of Claudius II. The emperor had banned Roman soldiers from getting married, because it “distracted” them from their duties. So St. Valentine decided that he was going to help these couples get married in secret. He would give them parchment in the shape of a heart to remind them of their vows and that God was with them. Everything had been going well until the knowledge of these marriages came into the hands of Claudius II. St. Valentine was then put into jail for defying the Roman emperor.
There is also another story including a St. Valentine, but it’s not for certain that these St. Valentine’s are the same person. Legend has it that after this saint was put in jail, he befriended the jail-keeper, Asterius, who noticed that the priest was a very wise and thoughtful man. Asterius also had a blind daughter, and in hopes of her being healed by the saint, Asterius began bringing her to the dungeon, and St. Valentine began reading her books about history and gods. And according to some tales, St. Valentine also healed this young woman’s blindness. Unfortunately, the Roman emperor eventually heard about the ongoing events in his castle, and ordered him to be executed. Before his death, he wrote a letter to Asterius’s daughter on February 14th, and signed it, “From your Valentine.”
However, it wasn’t until much later that an official holiday was made to honor St. Valentine and his good deeds. Nevertheless, whether these tales tell the story of one saint, or two, have a good holiday with your loved ones, and happy Valentine’s Day!
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