Valentine was a real person. That much must be known or else nothing wonderful may come of the story which i am about to tell. Actually, there really isn’t much more to tell.

All that we really know was that Valentine existed. And it may well be that the “Valentine” we celebrate every 14th of February is actually an amalgamation of two, three, or more Valentines. So conflicted is the scant data, the Catholic Church officially stopped celebrating Saint Valentine’s Day as a religious holy day in 1969.

But there was a Valentine. He was a priest and Christ-follower in Rome. He was martyred for his faith in 269 AD. There was another Valentine, he was a bishop and died as a martyr about the same time.

So how did Saint Valentine’s name become associated with romance and love? Good question. The short answer is, we don’t really know. Most everything that we know about these Valentines is legend… probably containing little truth. Our most educated guess is that Chaucer created the association between love and Valentine with a 14th century poem. But again, who knows.

Sometimes legends are true.

For the Christ-follower, it’s important to remember that Valentine lived and died for his faith.

Our family, friends, and children are taught about Valentine’s Day from a cultural perspective. The values of society and worldy-love are embedded in us each February 14th. But this day of celebration is about so much more:

So this Valentine’s Day, tell someone the real story of Valentine’s Day.

PRACTICE:  Dig a bit in Google about Saint Valentine, then pass what you learn along to your kids, spouse, or friends.