We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month
of romance, and that St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains
vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was Saint
Valentine, and how did he become associated with this ancient rite?
Three hundred years after the death of Jesus Christ, the
Roman emperors still demanded that everyone believe in the Roman gods. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single
men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed
marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree,
defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret.
When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to
death.
Valentine, a
Christian priest, had been thrown in prison for his teachings. On February 14,
Valentine was beheaded, not only because he was a Christian, but also because
he had performed a miracle. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first "valentine" greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl--possibly his jailor's daughter--who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed "From your Valentine," an expression that is still in use today.
He supposedly cured the jailer's daughter of her
blindness. The night before he was executed, he wrote the jailer's daughter a
farewell letter, signing it "From Your Valentine."
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