OF RED ROSES AND IRONY, HOW DISBELIEF IN ST VALENTINE ALLOWS HIS CULT TO FLOURISH

A brilliant Jewish doctor I know strictly adheres to the 613 mitzvoh. And he won't say or write the word, "Christmas". He avoids me for fear he'll catch Christianity from me.  I carry the disease for which this medic knows no cure. But because he thinks of St Valentine as a romantic fable, he is happy to celebrate the day openly. Ho, ho, I have heard tell he gives out red roses to his staff! 

Oh, but he's not alone. 250 million roses are sold in the US every February 14th, the day that Valentine was beaten with clubs and then decapitated under Emperor Claudius II. Back in St Valentine's Day, 1757 years ago, red roses were woven into wreaths for the martyrs, to be worn on the head, symbolizing the red crown of martyrdom. 

Were people like the good doctor to do some study of the Traditional Latin Mass offered in honor of St Valentine, they may not be so quick to mark the day with blossoms and chocolate. The Introit brings to mind the Saint in glory for having given his life for Christ, he is in bliss among the elect and he wears the crown of victory. 

The Collect has us beseeching Valentine to rescue us, "from the many dangers that beset us". Then the Gospel the Lord speaks of taking up the Cross and following Him, and the words of Christ, "I did not come to bring peace but the sword" calls to mind Valentine's death when a blade sundered his head from his body. He could have avoided this had he denied Christ and given up his ministry of preparing couples for Christian marriage and then being the celebrant at their secret weddings.

In Valentine's case, red roses function as several symbols in one; for the single person who has the will of a martyr, for pure and passionate love between a man and a woman (the gift of a rose is not a sin), for the dying to self required in a Christian marriage and for his own spilt blood. The red rose is for the single, the married and the chaste like Valentine. 

The misunderstanding or false belief that St Valentine is fictitious means that the Saint continues to be embraced from age to age even by those who think of Christianity as some kind of infection. Ironically, in supposed secularity, this saint's memory is safe. 

Prayer to St Valentine

O Glorious St. Valentine, lover of Christ and of the Church, we ask your intercession that we may learn how to love God above all things, and to selflessly love one another. O Glorious St. Valentine, pray for us, that we too may have the steadfast faith of the martyrs. Amen

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The classic paintings employed in this post are in the public domain. The first, St Valentine baptizing St. Lucilla was executed by Jacopo Bassano, and the second, an engraving was executed by Cibera.