St. Valentine's Day is a widespread holiday around the world, and celebrate it on February 14th. They call him Valentine's Day, but not many people know, in honor of whom the celebration was named, and what his story is. In fact, there are several versions that provide explanations for these questions.
Who is Saint Valentine?
The Roman saint of the third century, who is considered the patron of all lovers, is called Saint Valentine. In the history of this person there is practically no information what caused the appearance of different rumors concerning this person. There are historians who believe that St. Valentine is two people at once. The Pope included his name in the list of people respected, of whose deeds are known only to the Lord.
Finding out who Saint Valentine is, it's worth noting that in some sources one can find a description of the three holy saints: one was a priest, the second was a bishop, and the third is known very little and, judging by indirect evidence, he died in agony in the African province of Rome . A certain similarity in the legends concerning the first two Valentines pushes many people into thinking that they were a representation of the same person.
Saint Valentine - the story of life
In the Catholic Church Valentine is not on the list of saints, which must be remembered at liturgies, therefore his memory is revered only at the local level in a number of dioceses. In the Orthodox Church, St. Valentine Interamnsky is remembered on August 12, and Rimsky on July 19.
- Valentin Interamskiy was born in 176 in the family of patricians. Even in his youth he converted to Christianity, and in 1977. he was appointed bishop. In 270, at the invitation of the philosopher Craton, the saint arrived in Rome and healed a boy whose spine was heavily curved. This led other people to believe in God and accept Christianity. The mayor forced Valentine to renounce his faith, but he refused and took a painful death on February 14, 273.
- Who is Saint Valentine of Rome known is not so much. He accepted death because of his healing abilities.
What is Saint Valentine famous for?
More often, reflecting on the patron of all lovers, people point to the bishop Valentine, who was born in the city of Ternia. There are many contradictory legends about this person.
- There is evidence that St. Valentine patron of lovers, when still a young man, provided support to people, for example, taught them to show their feelings and become happy. He helped write letters with confessions, made people happy and gave spouses flowers and gifts.
- St. Valentine married men and women, but, according to the legends, Emperor Julius Claudius II did not allow the soldiers to fall in love and marry, but the bishop violated his prohibition.
- The saint was sent to prison and there he fell in love with the blind daughter of his own executioner and helped her heal. There is evidence that the executioner himself asked the bishop to save his daughter from illness, and she then fell in love with her savior. Continuing to learn the story - who is he St. Valentine, it is worth mentioning such an interesting fact that before the execution he gave his favorite note with the signature "Your Valentine". It is believed that from here and went "valentines."
- The day of execution coincided with the Roman holiday in honor of the goddess of love Juno. In Rome, this day was considered the beginning of spring.
Was Saint Valentine gay?
As already mentioned, because of the lack of information, there were different rumors. They can be attributed to the fact that St. Valentine is gay. This rumor arose because the supposedly Emperor Claudius II issued an order that men fit for military service can not marry among themselves, since this will negatively affect the fighting spirit of the army. The bishop, who himself was a homosexual, broke the order and crowned the boys with each other, for which he was executed.
The truth about St. Valentine indicates that he was a heterosexual and interpretation of the law of the emperor, just a fantasy. In fact, Claudius was a reformer who made the Roman army strong and regular. He said that soldiers should not be married, because they will be afraid to go into battle, so that the family does not lose the breadwinner. Since the saint blessed Christian values, for him marriage was sacred, and he conducted services for marriage, so the question of who was crowned by St. Valentine is not related to homosexual couples.
How did Saint Valentine die?
There are two versions concerning the death of the patron of all lovers:
- According to the very first and well-known version, the priest was imprisoned for helping Christians and leading the wedding of young Christian couples. When Valentine wanted to convert Claudius into true faith, he sentenced him to execution. The Saint was beaten with stones, but they did not wound him in any way, so it was decided to decapitate him. There is no exact date for execution, but there are three options: 269, 270 and 273.
- There is another version, concerning who executed Valentine. So, he was sentenced to house arrest, and the supervisor was a judge who began to talk with a priest on a religious topic. To resolve the dispute, the judge brought a blind daughter and said that he would fulfill any desire Valentine, if he returns the girl's sight. As a result, the Saint fulfilled his obligations and demanded that the judge renounce paganism and accept Christianity. After that, Valentine was released, but there was another arrest and then he was sent to the emperor, who ordered him to be executed, according to the scenario described in the first version. In this version there is an exact date of death - February 14, 269.
St. Valentine in Christianity
If we consider the origin of the custom to celebrate the day of all lovers, then they have pagan roots, so the church believes this holiday is superfluous. In addition, it is important to note that St. Valentine is not mentioned in the Bible and in other books sacred to Christians. Priests assure that a sincere love for the Lord will help a man to say goodbye to all the customs associated with the glorification of false gods. Many other religious scholars believe that Valentine's Day is a commercial ploy.
St. Valentine in Orthodoxy
In the Orthodox Church there are testimonies of three holy Valentines: Interam, Roman and Dorostolsky. It is believed that the Orthodox St. Valentine is an Interamnian, but if you look at it, then all the legends known about this person are taken from all three biographies of saints with the same names. Religious scholars claim that it's just a legend and a fiction that the priest allegedly violating the ban, helped couples marry together. In the church calendar on February 14 there is no mention of the need to glorify St. Valentine.
St. Valentine near Catholics
It has already been mentioned that the Roman Catholic Church speaks of three Valentines, and two of them, probably, are one person. It is worth noting that the liturgical memory of the saint was replaced with the memory of Saints Cyril and Methodius . This is due to the fact that during the reform of the church calendar many considerations were taken into account, for example, it was decided to indicate in the calendar of saints who have a genuine church-wide significance, and the Catholic Saint Valentine does not have this. Summing up, we can say that Catholics do not have such a holiday as the day of lovers.
St. Valentine in Islam
It is clear that there is no such patron of lovers in Islam, but this religion of true love and cooperation is in good intentions, therefore Muslims recognize the holidays that promote the rapprochement of people who sincerely love Allah and each other. It should be noted that the priest St. Valentine himself and the holiday in Islam are not welcome. Religion says that people should express each other their feelings every day, not just once a year.
The legend of Saint Valentine
For many years there were many legends associated with the patron saint of lovers. The story of the execution, in which the Emperor Claudius II and St. Valentine participated, was told above, but there are other legends:
- One of the legends tells how Valentin married a Christian and a Roman centurion, who were mortally sick. Having done this act, he violated the decree of the emperor. It is believed that after this the saint began to be called the patron of lovers.
- There is an interesting legend, which describes the meeting between Valentine and a pair of lovers who quarreled strongly. By the will of the priest around them began to spin a pair of pigeons, which amused and helped to forget about the quarrel.
- In another story, it is told that Valentine had a large garden, where he himself grew roses. He allowed the children to frolic in its territory and when they left home, they received a flower from the priest. When he was arrested, he was very worried that there would be no place for the children to walk, but two pigeons flew to him in prison, through which he handed the key to the garden and the note.
Saint Valentine - interesting facts
There is information about this person, marked in religion, which for many people is unknown.
- Saint is considered the patron of beekeeping and epileptics.
- The skull of the patron saint of all lovers can be found in Rome in the Church of the Virgin Mary. After the life of St. Valentine was over, in the early 1800s, various relics and remains were found during the excavation, which spread throughout the world.
- There is an opinion that the holiday of lovers was invented by the English poet Chaucer, who described him in the poem "The Bird Parliament".