Martyrdom and Love: How St. Valentine's Day Came To Be

This is your reminder that if you haven’t already bought something special for your significant other, you better go online or to the store as soon as you finish reading this. And I only say to wait until after reading this, because it may have an impact on your purchasing decision.

Today we think of St. Valentine’s Day as a day that lovers?give extra effort in wooing their other half by offering them romantically-themed gifts. There’s nothing wrong with that unless you act out of obligation instead of a desire to want to do something nice for your partner. But even the most romantic of us must realize that it has become a cash cow for greeting cards and chocolate manufacturers, not to mention florists.

However, do you know the origin of the holiday? It’s more macabre than one might guess.

How did we get to fully-booked restaurants and 24-hour flower deliveries that are so common on February 14th? Turns out, it started with the English. Kind of.

Religious Origin

Saint Valentine was a mild-mannered man who, rumor has it, continued to help Roman soldiers marry the loves of their lives after the Roman Emperor Claudius II banned marriage for young soldiers. Claudius thought this would make better soldiers by taking away concerns for wives and children back home while fighting Rome’s enemies on the frontier. When he found out that Fr. Valentine was helping soldiers disobey his order, he condemned the man to death, on February 14th, 269. His remains were guarded by Christians and St. Valentine’s devotion to helping lovers marry became his tie-in to love and romance that we associate St. Valentine’s Day with today.

Romantic Origin

Many people believe that the secret marriage of soldiers to their wives is quite a bit removed from chocolate hearts and lines of prose about the love one shares for their partner. There must be another origin behind Valentine’s Day.

Some folks believe that origin stems from the famous English poet, Geoffrey Chaucer. He bridged the gap between Saint Valentine and lovers by writing a poem that equated February 14th (Saint Valentine’s Day) to the day that all birds find their mate, instead of the date that a saint was martyred. Since Chaucer was fairly popular amongst the elite at that time, the noble folk began to associate the date with overtures of love and romance. Chocolate hearts still weren’t on the scene, but I'm sure there were other romantic gestures that “doth make thy lady swoon."

Other Origins

Today, it is obvious that the date has become a day to grow profit margins for greeting card companies. But the day doesn’t have to be a transactional proof of adoration. You can make the day a true devotion to love by avoiding the traps of commercialized romance. Making something personal or just spending quality time with each other is truly enough to show real affection. While the intent can still be meaningful with the purchase of a gift, it doesn’t have to be an expensive gift or extravagant meal. In fact, you could go the other way on the meal side, opting for White Castle or Waffle House, two places that only take reservations on St. Valentine’s Day.

Think back to what Saint Valentine did. He risked his life to help lovers enter into a holy Christian union, knowing the Emperor would not think kindly of a priest disobeying his orders. While today’s holiday obscures that honorable origin, as Gents we can continue to honor that, not what the modern culture tells us. If you can make February 14th about devotion and service to your love, you can have a Valentine’s Day worthy of a martyr. But maybe try and live like that every day, as well.??

This content originally appeared on The Gents Blog.

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