Things you may not know about February 14th and our celebration of Valentine’s Day.
Saint Valentine’s Day was set by the Early Church on the 14th of February as a public religious celebration in honor of Saint Valentis of Rome (who was killed (martyred) in 496 AD).
Saint Valentis of Rome was not the only saint named “Valentine”.
300 years earlier, there was a Saint Valentine or Terni, Italy (made bishop in 197 AD) and later martyred. There was also a Saint Valentine who was martyred in Africa.
All the stories about St Valentine of Rome were just that, stories.....
In 1969, the Catholic Church removed feast day of St Valentine’s from the General Roman Calendar and relegated it to local celebrations since " apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14.”
The celebration of Saint Valentine's Day did not have any romantic connection until the 14th century when Chaucer, the poet, wrote:
"For this was on St. Valentine's Day, when every bird cometh there to choose his mate."
Clearly, the birds do not migrate on 14 February in England. Chaucer wrote this poem in 1382, to celebrate the first anniversary of the engagement of King Richard the II of England to Anne of Bohmia (they were 14 years old at the time). As was a common practice of the time, Chaucer’s poetry was set in an entirely fictional context.
In the 600 plus years since Chaucer’s poetry, Valentine’s Day has picked up around the world as a day to celebrate romantic love. It is now even celebrated in the Asian cultures as well.
All of that aside, I celebrate the day as time of sentiment to express my appreciation to the ladies.
Happy Valentine’s Day ladies! With all my heart.
Respectfully,
OldSarge
