Saint Valentine

Who they were

The Roman Martyrology names two Valentines on 14 February: a priest of Rome martyred on the Via Flaminia, and a bishop of Terni. The Roman priest, around 270, was brought before the emperor Claudius Gothicus, told him the gods were useless and only Christ brought hope, and was given into the charge of a nobleman, Asterius, whose daughter had been blind since the age of two; Valentine prayed and she saw again, and Asterius was converted with his family. The emperor had Valentine beheaded at the second milestone of the Via Flaminia.

The bishop of Terni, some seventy years later, was invited to Rome by the rhetorician Craton to heal his son, and was later beheaded in secret at night by the prefect Placidus.

The miracles

There was never a formal cause: Valentine has been honoured as a martyr since the early centuries. His patronage of lovers began in medieval France and England and goes back to Geoffrey Chaucer.

Why that counted as sanctity

Valentine witnessed boldly to Christ before an emperor and gave his life for Him.

Connected on this site

• Saints Cyril and Methodius Saint
  “The official Liturgical Calendar for the Dioceses of the United States identifies February 14 as the memorial of Saints Cyril and Methodius.” — Wikipedia