Who Was St. Valentine?

By William Pelrine Jr.

St. Valentine was a Christian martyr who died on February 14, 270 A.D. during the persecution of the early church by the Emperor Claudius II. February 14th became his feast day for the church.

Today young lovers celebrate this day by giving greeting cards and/or candy to someone they hope may be their companion for a time or perhaps for the rest of their lives.  But how did the day a priest was martyred become what it is today?

There has been conjecture that St. Valentine wrote a love letter to the daughter of the warden of the prison where he was held captive.  Another surmised that February 14th is the day when birds mate.  Both of these assumptions deny historical fact.

Valentines Day originally occurred on the eve of the festival of the Lupercalia (February 14).  This was “a festival held in ancient Rome on the 15th of February to promote fertility and ward off disasters.” [1]   The young people of the Roman Empire celebrated the day by declaring their love for each other, proposing marriage, or choosing a partner for the following year ( which started on March first in the centuries before Christ).  This youth festival, with its pledge of love, stood under the patronage of the goddess Juno Februata.” [2]   Juno was “the ancient Roman queen of heaven, a daughter of Saturn and the wife and sister of Jupiter.”1

As the Romans were converted to Christianity their worship of pagan gods ceased, but this youth festival persisted.  Instead of the goddess Juno, they adopted as their patron the saint whose feast day it was: St. Valentine.  That’s how Valentines Day got to be the day for young people to express their love for one another by giving cards or little candy hearts which say, “Will you be my Valentine?”

May the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, keep your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. (see Philippians 4:7)