Valentine's Day - the patron saint of lovers - is celebrated on February 14. On this day, it is customary to congratulate couples in love or simply representatives of the opposite sex. Also on February 14 - Valentinov and Valentin's name day.
In different countries, the holiday is celebrated in different ways. Colleagues in the USA and Germany receive congratulations, and residents of Foggy Albion honor not only people, but also pets: cats, dogs, parrots and guinea pigs. The Japanese give each other chocolate, and the French give jewelry.
On Valentine's Day, it is customary to pay increased attention to the object of your love, give each other valentines (greeting cards in the shape of hearts), bake hearts from dough, make dates and arrange romantic evenings.
Like other holidays, Valentine's Day has its own story, the hero of which is the ancient Roman priest and doctor Valentin. Since the events took place many centuries ago, it is difficult to determine today what fiction is in fiction and what is true. One thing is certain: the legend of St. Valentine tells of the extraordinary spiritual strength of an ordinary person who knows how to love his neighbor, as it is written in the Bible.
Martyr
Valentine was one of the priests of ancient Rome, professing the Christian faith. The emperor himself worshiped the pagan gods Mercury and Zeus. Christians in those days were persecuted and tortured.
Once the guard grabbed Valentine and brought him to the emperor. The ruler tried to convince the holy father, to make the believer in Christ change his beliefs. But St. Valentine, the legend of which has survived to this day, was adamant - he prayed to God and invited the emperor to repent.
The tyrant remained deaf to the priest's requests, and the dignitary Asterius invited Valentin to pass the test. Asteria had a blind daughter, and he asked to return the girl’s vision. Thanks to fervent prayers, the baby received her sight, and the official’s family, having believed in a miracle, converted to Christianity.
Upon learning of what happened, the emperor ordered all Christians to be imprisoned, and Valentine himself to be beaten with sticks and executed. The priest courageously accepted all the trials and died at the hand of the executioner. Here is such a legend of the feast of St. Valentine, but it is not the only one.
Priest
Another legend about St. Valentine tells how a clergyman went against the will of the emperor. In those days, the Roman Empire ruled Claudius II. The tyrant had few conquered lands, he sought to expand the boundaries of his possessions. But the legionnaire soldiers did not want to fight, because they did not see the point in the fighting.
Claudius II decided that the soldiers refuse to take weapons, since many of them have families, children. Then the law was passed in the empire prohibiting marriage. Of course, the inhabitants of Rome were against this law.
Valentin also opposed the foolish decree. He secretly married lovers, for which he was arrested and thrown into prison. There, the priest fell in love with the jailer’s daughter, but since he was bound by a vow of celibacy, he could not give vent to his feelings. Waiting for execution, Valentine wrote a letter to his beloved and put a crocus flower in the message. According to one version of the legend, the girl was blind, but the power of love and faith helped her to see clearly. The day after sending the letter - February 14 - Valentine was executed.
Doctor
St. Valentine was not only a priest, but also a doctor. During treatment, he tried not to cause suffering to patients. Pain was removed by herbs, wounds were washed with wine, and bitter medicines were diluted with milk and honey.
One day, Valentine knocked on the door. On the threshold stood a jailer of the Roman emperor. His daughter was blind from birth, and the guard asked the doctor to heal her. The priest understood that it was impossible to restore vision, but still prescribed herbs and ointments. Valentine was later arrested for religious beliefs and sentenced to death. On the eve of his death, Valentine wrote a girl a love letter, having read which, she saw the light.
This legend of St. Valentine is very similar to previous legends, but there is nothing surprising in this. In those years, the clergyman could be a doctor, a scientist, a psychologist, a teacher, or even an unofficial judge.
Friend of children
Another legend tells that the ancient Roman youth Valentin loved the little citizens of the empire and spent time with them with pleasure. The young man was a Christian, so he did not worship pagan gods. For this he was imprisoned.
The children really missed their oldest friend, came to the window of the cell in which Valentin was, brought him letters of declaration of love. Unfortunately, the young man could not play with his young friends, as he was in custody and was sentenced to death. The legend of St. Valentine, a friend of the children, is less known than other legends.
Canonization of Valentine
The enlistment of Valentine as a saint occurred before the division of the Christian church into Orthodox and Catholic, in 494 AD. e. at the initiative of Pope Gelasius. It was supposed to honor the saint on the day of the pagan feast of fertility (February 14), when boys and girls behaved more freely than in everyday life. Today in the pantheon of the church there are three saints bearing this name: the martyr Valentin Dorostolsky, the holy martyrs Valentin Interamnsky and Valentin Rimsky.
The clergy do not welcome the idea of the relationship of the image of the saint with the holiday of lovers, because you need to give love every day. Saint Valentine, a legend about which is told each time in different ways, is revered as a martyr who suffered for his faith.
The Orthodox Church celebrates Valentine's Day on August 12. On this day, as well as on other days, believers have the opportunity to worship the relics of the saint in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. And the legend of Valentine's Day remains in the hearts of all people as a memory of the great martyr.