When someone says “Valentine’s Day” what do you think of? Hearts, pink, chocolate, cute couples…and then that dreadful realization of “Oh, I’m single.” You may have already scheduled a date with your pillow and a box of chocolates to pity how you’re “forever alone,” and that’s just fine because we all need to relax sometimes. Yet, you may be missing the point of February 14 completely! After all, the day is named for a saint!
Who is this Saint Valentine we made a day for? (And why doesn’t Notre Dame get off for it? Well, that’s another story, considering Columbus Day and Labor Day and MLK Day…). Plot twist: is Valentine’s Day at all related to what we celebrate? Actually, yes. St. Valentine was a guy (a priest, really) from Rome during a time when a guy named Claudius was emperor.
Why am I mentioning some random Roman emperor?
Emperor Claudius made an edict forbidding marriage because he thought unmarried soldiers fought better than married ones. Valentine wanted people to be able to get married, like happy couples tend to do. Every now and again of course you’ll meet those couples who don’t want to get married to avoid the complexity and the romance wearing off, for example Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughan in Four Christmases, but this was ancient Rome. The institution of marriage was alive and thriving, until this emperor declared “Non piĂą!” (That’s “No more!” in Italian).
Here’s where Valentine comes in. Being a priest, he decides to secretly marry couples in the Catholic Church. But, it wasn’t without consequence; Valentine was caught, tortured, and imprisioned for doing so. It didn’t end there, though. The emperor publicly beheaded Valentine for breaking the law! This happened on February 14, now known as Valentine’s Day.
What’s the true meaning of Valentine’s Day? It’s to keep marriage alive! St. Valentine fought for this until his own death; he thought marriage was that special. We’re so young though, don’t worry if at the moment you’re alone. Odds are you’re holding out for someone special, someone you could consider seriously marrying. So, eat your chocolates and watch some sappy movies, but don’t freak out. Be happy that marriage is still “a thing!’
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