Holiday News Stories

Saint Valentine...When You Care to Send the Very Best

The patron saint of love...good old Saint Valentine.  So who was he, and what does he have to do with chocolate hearts?  Hmmm....For this question, we did some research and found that there really was a St. Valentine.  In fact, there was more than one St. Valentine!  No, no....This is not like at Christmastime when you can find more than one Santa.  We all know those are really all Santa's helpers.  There was only one Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children.  Catholics around the world agree that Santa Claus is the incarnation of the one and only Saint Nicholas.  They don't all agree, however, on who Saint Valentine was.  Surprisingly, when we look back over the lists of saints, we can find no less than three Saint Valentines!  There is no real evidence to point to which one was really the saint who inspired the holiday.  Each were minor saints, who didn't seem to have done anything as awe-inspiring as sneaking toys and gifts into the homes of poor children during the course of a winter's night.  One St. Valentine was a Catholic priest who was actually imprisoned for helping "criminals" who had been sent to jail for confessing their faith in public.  This particular saint lived in Rome in the third century A.D. and was said to have been corresponding to a caring woman outside of the prison through letters.  In some of the notes he penned to the woman, he is said to have ended his letter by signing "Your Valentine".  This seems to be one explanation as to how the tradition of exchanging "valentines" began.  Saint Valentine met his demise by an unfortunate means.  He was publicly beaten and beheaded as a lesson to others who may have been considering adopting and professing his unorthodox Christianity.

What's So Special About February 14th, Mr. Hallmark?

Many historians believe that this time of year was chosen to honor St. Valentine because it is the time of year when "love blooms" in nature.  February 14th was believed to be the day that birds selected a mate.  This day was chosen to celebrate love and the courtship in the fifteenth century, and possibly became associated with Saint Valentine because of his good deeds and his tradition of sending his "Valentine letters".  The practice of sending letters eventually blossomed into the tradition of creating wonderfully decorated letters that are to this day still called "valentines".  Before commercial printing presses were in use, valentines were unique and highly ornate - decorated with handmade lace, real flower petals, precious stones, and other treasures.  By the early 1900's, valentines could be purchased for the giving - complete with a ready made verse professing one's love and admiration for the receiver of the card.  Soon, store-bought valentines reflected the changing times and emotions of the twentieth century, and now provide us with a historical time capsule of those times.