[Ravensfort] Happy Mister Valentinus Day

[byzytym]

Greetings All,

Below is a reprint of an artical of mine 
that appeared in the Quoth a few years back.
I drag it out and dust it off every couple of years 
to give new comers a little historical background 
into the roots of today's celebration of love.
I hope you enjoy it.

V NV

Mister Valentinus' Day

A Brief History Of Heavenly Amorous

By Marius Atreidae

 

As with so many Christian traditions and heroes, the story of Saint Valentine is handed down to us as a muddy mess of miss-woven facts, fanciful fabrications and unanswered questions.  So much so, he is one of the unlucky outcast saints that the Roman Catholic Church de-canonized in 1969 for lack of credible evidence that they actually lived at all.  He's name does not appear on the earliest compilation of Roman martyrs in 354.

 

A long list of tortured souls are credited with various versions of the famous name, including a saintly female.  However, only two Italian martyrs have any significant association with the celebration of romance, sex and love that we will ritualize this month.  Some authorities believe that the two Saint Valentines are likely one in the same individual.  Both of these colorful rebels lived in the second half of the third century and died on the 14th day of February in 269 or 270.   Both are reported to have been buried on the Flaminian Consula Way but at different distances from the City of Rome.  Official interrogation reports of both saints are of a late date so have little, if any, historical value. 

The most popular belief is that Saint Valentinus was a third century Roman priest.  With the help of Saint Marius (no relation to author) he assisted the oppressed during the Christian persecutions of Claudius II (also called the Gaul).  Finding it difficult to recruit young men to leave their loved ones behind and join his military leagues for unpopular campaigns, Claudius II banned all weddings and engagements within the City of Rome.  Valentinus and Marius defied the ban by continuing to perform wedding ceremonies.  Nothing more is mentioned of Saint Marius, but one has to guess that he came to a bad end as it is mandatory for a saint to suffer for the faith.  We are told that Valentinus was dragged from his temple and arrested.  

Here, the story begins to blur with myth and accounts differ.  One has him languish in a dungeon till he dies and is buried in the Church of Saint Praxedes on February fourteenth.  Kind of dull as the death of Saints go and probably not true, as records show that the remains of Valentinus did not arrive in said church till a millennium later.

A second version has Valentinus imprisoned, but well liked by Emperor Claudius until he tries to convert him to Christianity and / or insults the Roman Gods.  Not having patience for such blaspheme, Claudius has him beaten with clubs, stoned and then beheaded on February fourteenth outside of the Flaminian Gate of Rome.  

A third telling has Valentinus thrown into prison where he falls in love with the jailer's blind daughter.  Ever the troublemaker, he continues to preach and cures the sightless girl, earning himself a death sentence.  Before his beheading, he sends a bright colored crocus plant and a farewell note to his love which he signs, "From your Valentine".  Far fetched, but such is the nature of saints.

 

The only other real candidate for the "true" Saint Valentinus was the Bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) who also lived during the reign of Emperor Claudius II.  Having aided the persecuted Christians and overseen the first marriage between a pagan and a Christian, he was scourged, imprisoned and beheaded on February fourteenth by the Roman Prefect of Interonma on the Via Flaminia and was quickly buried to prevent rioting. 

 

The assumption that the two Valentinus' were the same man obviously has some validity.  The theory is that a Roman priest became a Bishop in Interamna and was arrested there before being returned to Rome for execution.  A possible explanation for the two burial sites on the Flaminian Consula Way is the interment of his body and his severed head at different times by different Christian cults.  Again, the facts are slim and this is purely conjecture.

 

The ancient Flaminian Gate became known as the Porta Valentini and a small church was built in the immediate vicinity.  Pope Julius I (333-356) built a basilica at the site of the tomb which is now known as the Porta del Popolo.  In the thirteenth century most of Valentinus' supposed remains were transferred to the Church of Saint Praxedes where they remain today.  At least a portion of his relics were a gift to the Whitefriar Street Church in Dublin, Ireland from Pope Gregory XVI (1831-1846).  The segments of Valentine's body that had been brought to the Church of Saint Peter of Melun in France have disappeared.

 

Over the years Saint Valentine has become the Patron Saint of love, lovers, travelers, greetings, young people, bee keepers (the birds and the bees ?), engaged couples, happy marriages, fainting, plague, people lost to the state government and epilepsy.  Yes, epilepsy.  This leads some to speculate that Valentine suffered from the disease himself or was a physician that healed the affliction.  He has been depicted as a bishop with a crippled or epileptic child at his feet.  He's also been represented as a Bishop with a rooster nearby, a Bishop refusing to adore an idol, a Bishop being beheaded, a priest bearing a sword, a priest holding a sun, a priest bestowing sight upon a blind girl, a priest barefoot holding a crocus and a Bishop in direct conversation with Jesus and Mary ( Magdalene ? ).  Of course most images of Saint Valentine picture him with a wide variety of plants, animals, birds and odd objects.  Decoding their meanings would take good reference books and many hours of devotion.

 

The origins of our modern mid-February frivolities of the flirtation lie in religious roots much older than Valentinus or Christianity itself.  The Roman Lupercalia was a festival of eroticism that honored Juno Februata, the goddess of "feverish" (febris) love.  On the ides of February lottery "billets" with the names of available women were drawn to partner couples for feasting and sexual game playing.  This must have been much like modern swingers dropping their keys into a hat, with religious fervor thrown in to encourage a whole hearted effort.  Christians have always been a dour bunch that frowns on such lascivious abandonment so the early clergy encouraged substituting the names of saints for the lottery.  One would pull the name of a saint, then study and attempt to emulate the saint for the following year.  Needless to say, this prudish version of Lupercalia was wildly unpopular and suffered a quick death. 

 

But Christians are anything but easily discouraged.  A backup plan was implemented that would turn the overly sexual "feast of the flesh" into a "ritual of romance".  A single saint was selected to do battle with the pagan goddess Juno.  In 496 Pope Gelasius attempted to abolish the superstitious heathen's lewd celebrations by decreeing February fourteenth the feast day of Saint Valentine.  Valentine was the prefect choice.  He had been executed for marrying couples into monogamy on the fourteenth day of February, the eve of the Lurercalia orgies.  Slowly the festivities became focused on affection and devotion rather than fertility and lust.

 

Despite the churches best efforts lottery drawings to select "Valentines" persisted well into the eighteenth century.  Once paired, a couple would rarely exchange more than gifts and love tokens.  During the medieval days of chivalry the man would wear the name of his Valentine on his sleeve and was bound to attend and protect her for a year.  This is possibly where the term "wearing  his heart on his sleeve" originated.

 

The first modern style Valentine cards are attributed to Charles, Duke of Orleans, who after his capture in 1415 and imprisonment in the Tower of London, wrote romantic verses for his wife.  By the seventeenth century handmade cards became quite elaborate.  By the nineteenth century printers were mechanically producing cards and a reduction in postal rates ushered in the practice of mailing Valentines.  This made it possible to exchange cards anonymously.  As one might guess, racy, sexually suggestive verses started appearing. The large number of obscene Valentines caused several countries to ban the card exchange.  The Chicago post office rejected some twenty-five thousand cards on the grounds they were not fit to be carried through the U.S. mail.

 

Chocolate was a relative late comer, but a natural for this over sexed celebration.  Eating chocolate causes the release of beta phenytethylamine, a neuromidulator associated with mood enhancement and sexual stimulation.  In other words it makes one a little high and amorous.  Many highly regard this combination in a woman.  The first sweet chocolates in heart shaped boxes rolled off the assembly line around 1870 and have been a staple on the menu of romance ever since.  

 

>From the earliest times flowers have carried a wide array of meanings and symbolism.  Roses and Violets are favorites at this time of year as they both represent love.  A rose also represents impermanence, so even blooms can have sharp edges.  Pink flowering almond trees and the crocus are especially associated with Valentinus.

 

It is ironic that a saintly figure reputed to have been chaste and virtuous lends his name to a modern holiday that encourages the sale of an arsenal of erotic paraphernalia such as games, oils, leather, candles, foods, clamps, alcohol, lingerie, electronics, rope, pills, videos, a smorgasbord of plastics and unmentionable sundries that only lack of imagination and technology can limit.  Love is truly a grand affair in these current middle ages.  

 

Since there is so little known of the saint's true life, speculations have been made and liberties have be taken.  There is even a recent suggestion that the name Valentine was originally "Galantine" signifying "gallant".  The consonant shift to "V" possibly arose from the Medieval French peasant pronunciation of "G".  We may never know.

 

In the end, it is not only the stories behind the long list of Valentine personalities that is diverse and confusing; it is also the nature and paths of love itself.  Perhaps more than one day a year should be set aside to better understand and appreciate the ones that are near and dear to us.  Love is a miracle that is too often overlooked.  

 

Peace, love and good things to all that read these words, and remember.  When you and your mate make your journey of affection to the Shrine of Saint Valentine, the pilgrimage is not complete until you both have heard the bells of bliss.         

 

 

* Valentinus (160) - Founded school of Christian Gnostic theology in Rome.



* St. Valentinus Priest of Rome (269) - feast day February 14 - Beheaded outside of the Flaminian Gate during the reign of Claudius II



* St. Valentinus Bishop of Interamna (270) - feast day February 14 - Beheaded on the Via Flaminia during the reign of Claudius II



* St. Valentinus (270) - feast day February 14 - Lived and beheaded in Africa 



* St. Valentine (303) - feast day November 17 - Executed with Dubatatius for their faith at Carthage



* St. Valentine Priest (304) - feast day November 3 - Beheaded with his deacon Hilary at Viterbo, Italy, during the persecutions under Emperor Diocletian. 



* St. Valentine Bishop of Trier, Germany (305) - feast day July 16 - Was executed during the severe persecutions of Emperor Diocletian.

* St. Valentine (305) - feast day December 16 - Martyred with Navalis, Concordius, and Agricola. Possibly synonymous with same era Valentine martyrs that died in Ravenna.                                                                                                                           

* St. Valentine Bishop of Genoa, Italy (307) - feast day May 2 - Aided monastic expansion in his era. His relics were discovered in 985.                                                      

* St. Valentina (308) - feast day July 25 - Protested the arrest of Meuris and Thea by the Roman Governor in Palestine and so was bound with Thea and burned to death.               

* St. Valentine Bishop of Strasbourg, France (4th century) - feast day September 2 - Regulated his diocese in the faith after initial conversions.                                                  

* St. Valentine Abbot and missionary Bishop in Rhaetia (470) - feast day January 7 - Died at Mais, Austria.                                                                                                            

* St. Valentinian Bishop of Salerno, Italy (500) - feast day November 3 -                         

* Valentine (827) an upper-class Roman was Pope of Rome for about 40 days.                 

* St. Valentine Berrio-Ocho Bishop (1861) - feast day November 1 - A native of Ellorio, Spain, he entered the Dominican Order and was sent to the Philippines. From there he went to Vietnam in 1858, serving as a vicar apostolic and titular bishop until betrayed by an apostate. He was martyred by beheading with St. Jerome Hermosilla and Blessed Peter Amato, by enemies of the Church.
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