February 14: Why do we celebrate St. Valentine’s Day?

On February 14, the world celebrates Valentine’s Day, let’s see where does this romantic date came from:

For some people, the tradition of Valentine’s Day started in Nordic countries, where the birds mate this time of the year, that’s why people see the date as a symbol of love and creation.

Others say that it was a Christianized pagan festival, as in ancient Rome they venerate the god of love, called Eros by the Greeks and Cupid by the Romans. The celebrations usually seek favors through gifts or offerings to find the ‘ideal love’.

Others see it as a traditional day in England; the “feast of Valentinus,” where they choose men and women to form a couple and then many of them get married, achieving happiness.

And others say that the history of St. Valentine was born in Rome in the third century, a time when Christianity was persecuted and was a period where marriage was prohibited to soldiers because they used to believe that single men will do better in the battlefield than married men because they weren’t emotionally attached to their families.”

It was then that the figure of St. Valentine raises, a Christian priest who faced such injustice and decided to marry couples under the Christian ritual, secretly.

Valentine protected the lovers, and because of that he was tried and sentenced to death on Feb. 14, but during his imprisonment, a guard asked him to gave lessons to his daughter. Valentine fells in love with her, and one day before his execution, he sent a farewell letter to her with his sign: “from your Valentine ‘. They say that the tradition of the poems started there.

The Vatican canonized St. Valentine as the patron of lovers and Valentine’s body is currently kept in the Basilica that has that name, which is in the Italian city of Terni.

So every February 14 is celebrated in this temple, an act of commitment by different couples who want to get married the following year.

All Feb. 14, the lovers have their day to celebrate but: what about gifts?, Well, there don’t have to necessarily be material gifts, as it is a day to love, which can be celebrated with a date, a flower, a toast or a meal to simplye renew their mutual love.