It's Valentine's Day again!!

Can you Feel or Smell Love in the air?

It’s originated Saint Valentine’s Day but commonly shortened as just Valentine’s Day; is a day we celebrate love and passion. Since Valentine’s Day falls in February, the month of February has always been associated as the month of love. When we’re in February, it’s very common to see red heart shape (love), cupid, love doves and not forgetting all those everlasting love songs. It reminds us how great love is! It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines"). That's why now it is very common to receive or give flowers, especially rose, a box of nice expensive chocolate, a Valentine's  card and have a romantic candlelit dinner on Valentine's Day.

As I’ve been searching for the connection, I seem to found nothing link between St. Valentine and romance. I instigate to wonder why we celebrate love on 14 February every year. There’s a legend that I found which I would like to share with all of you but there’s no concrete proof that support this legend to make it real. Somehow it is never bad to dedicate a day in a year to really celebrate love. Love, love, love…. Never doubt the power of love.

The history of Saint Valentine and February 14 were related to numerous Christian martyrs named Valentine. However the Valentines honoured on February 14 are Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni. Both were martyred on February 14 and buried on the Via Flaminia. The relics of Valentine of Rome can be found at Church of Saint Praxed in Rome and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland while the relics of Valentine of Terni can be found at Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni. According to the Catholic Encyclopaedia it also mentioned about the third Saint Valentine under the date of 14 February who was martyred in Africa with number of companions but nothing more were known about him.

Sadly, in the 1969 revision of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints, the feast day of Saint Valentine on February 14 was removed from the General Roman Calendar and relegated to particular (local or even national) calendars for the following reason: "Though the memorial of Saint Valentine is ancient, it is left to particular calendars, since, apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14." The feast day is still celebrated in Balzan (Malta) where relics of the saint are claimed to be found, and also throughout the world by Traditionalist Catholics who follow the older, pre-Second Vatican Council calendar.

This is the romantic legends that I want to share with all of you…

The Early Medieval acta of either Saint Valentine were expounded briefly in Legenda Aurea. According to that version, St Valentine was persecuted as a Christian and interrogated by Roman Emperor Claudius II in person. Claudius was impressed by Valentine and had a discussion with him, attempting to get him to convert to Roman paganism in order to save his life. Valentine refused and tried to convert Claudius to Christianity instead. Because of this, he was executed. Before his execution, he is reported to have performed a miracle by healing the blind daughter of his jailer.

Since Legenda Aurea still provided no connections whatsoever with sentimental love, appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to Roman Emperor Claudius II, allegedly ordering that young men remain single. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young men. (Oh! How romantic… Secret marriages) When Claudius found out about this, he had Valentine arrested and thrown in jail.

There is an additional modern embellishment provided by American Greetings to History.com, and widely repeated despite having no historical basis or whatsoever. On the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he would have written the first "valentine" card himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved, as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed or both. It was a note that read "From your Valentine." (Hmm… I wonder how many times have you been sending a Valentine’s Card to your lover and ended it with From Your Valentine without knowing the legend??)

Whatever I’m writing here, I just want to share and I wish all of you to have a real nice time on Valentine’s Day. Although it doesn’t mean that you can only show your lover that you love him or her on Valentine’s Day, (cos you can say or show them your love every second of your time) it is so worth to have a day when all the lovers in this world share the same feelings and celebrate love. Knowing exactly the sacred and pure meaning of the phrase ‘I Love You with all my heart…’ Let us all celebrate love.