What Does Love Have to Do With St. Valentine and Why Do We Celebrate His Day?
I want a little red heart of my very own, too!
Love. It’s a simple four-letter word. People use it every day to express their feelings in a many-splendour’d way. It’s eternal and universal.
So much so, that we dedicated a day to love and named it after a guy–St. Valentine.
But who is this cupid who brings harbingers of love dripping from the points of arrows? Why do we fling amour-tinged darts of affection today?
Let’s find out!
Who was this mysterious man of love?
There are at least three men in history named Valentine or Valentinus. The one I want to focus on is the 3rd-century martyr who lived during the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius.
Saint Valentine was a cleric who ministered to Christians during the persecutions of the Roman Empire. He was described as a priest of Rome and was placed under house arrest for helping persecuted Christians and performing unlawful Christian weddings during times of war.
During his incarceration under Judge Asterius, Valentinus was allowed to discuss his faith. Asterius, in an effort to shut Valentinus up, offered him a proposal.
