Saint Valentine: A Celebration of Love and Faith
Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate love and affection between couples, but it is also an opportunity to reflect on the life and legacy of Saint Valentine, a Christian Roman martyr who dedicated his life to spreading the message of God's love and compassion.
Saint Valentine was a priest during the third century, at a time when the Roman Empire was known for its persecution of Christians. Despite the danger, Saint Valentine continued to perform secret marriages for Christian couples, helping them to affirm their love and commitment to each other in the face of persecution. He was imprisoned and eventually executed for secretly marrying couples at a time when the Roman Empire had banned marriages. This act of love and bravery helped to solidify Saint Valentine's reputation as the patron saint of love.
Saint Valentine's selfless acts of love and compassion earned him the title of the patron saint of lovers, and his feast day, February 14th, became a day to celebrate love in all its forms.
In the Bible, love is a central theme, and many verses offer guidance on how to love one another. One of the most famous verses about love is 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, which says, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hope, always perseveres." This passage reminds us that true love, like the love that Saint Valentine showed, is not just a feeling, but it is a decision to act in kindness and selflessness. Love is not just about receiving, but also about giving, and this is the message that we celebrate on Valentine's Day
Another important verse about love can be found in John 15:12-13, which says, "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends." These verses offer guidance on what love truly is and how we can live out this love in our relationships, both romantic and otherwise.
Saint Valentine's Day is a celebration of love and faith, a time to remember the life of a great man who devoted himself to helping others and spreading the love of God. So, as we reflect on the legacy of Saint Valentine and the central role of love in our faith, let us strive to embody the love and compassion that he embodied, and that is so beautifully expressed in 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13. Let us show love and kindness to those around us, and let us celebrate the power of God's perfect love to transform our hearts and heal our world.
A prayer for St. Valentine's Intercession
Pray then, O holy martyr St. Valentine, for the faithful,
who are so persevering in celebrating your memory.
The day of judgment will reveal to us all your glorious merits.
Intercede for us, especially in regards to [insert intention here],
that we may then be made your companions
at the right hand of the great Judge
and be united with you eternally in heaven.
Amen.
-Adapted from Dom Prosper Gueranger
1 Corinthians, Chapter 13
The Excellence of Love
If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails. If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing; if tongues, they will cease; if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing. For we know partially and we prophesy partially, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things. At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known. So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is Love.
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