| The Story of St. Valentine Here is the way it began to be known as St. Valentine's Day. Valentine was a kind hearted physician in ancient Rome. He practiced medicine out of a small room in his home. He always tried to make an effort to give his patients medicines that tasted good. He mixed bitter medicines with wine, milk, or honey to make them a little bit easier to get down. He cleansed wounds with wine vinegar and then would use freshly ground herbs and roots to relieve pain. He was a Christian, even though it wasn't popular at the time. Many were persecuted for their beliefs. But he often led others in prayer, even praying for his patients. Valentine was a good man and a good doctor. So one day the jailer for the Emperor brought his blind daughter for Valentine to treat. He wanted Valentine to cure her blindness. So Valentine put an ointment on her eyes and scheduled some re-visits. Several weeks passed, and the girl was still blind, but the jailer had faith in the man. But one day, a Roman soldier cme to Valentine's house and arrested him, destroyed his medicines, and admonished him for his Christian beliefs. When the little girl's father found out what happened, he wanted to help Valentine, but he was not in a position to do so. Valentine understood that he couldn't help him, but he asked the jailer for a pen, ink, and paper. He quickly jotted a note and handed it to the jailer to give to his daughter. Valentine was executed tht very day on February 14, 270 AD, by order of Emperor Claudius II Gothicus. When the jailer got home, he gave his daughter the note. When she opened it, she discovered a yellow crocus inside. The note said "from your Valentine". As the little girl tried to look at the cocus, she began to see beautiful colors, as she could see for the first time in her life. It was a miracle! In 496, Pope Gelasius I named February 14 as Saint Valentine's Day. The feast was dropped from the present day liturgical calendar in 1969. |
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