Saint Valentine: Courageous Love

Many of us don’t know the history behind Valentine’s Day. Yet behind the flowers and cards stands a beautiful and inspiring story from our Christian tradition—a story of love that is not only tender and kind, but courageous.

The man behind this holiday is remembered as a 3rd-century Christian martyr. According to traditional accounts, Valentine was a priest or bishop in Italy. One well-known story tells that while under house arrest, he prayed for and miraculously restored the sight of a judge’s blind adopted daughter. Humbled by the miracle and urged by St. Valentine, the judge destroyed the idols in his home, fasted, and was baptized along with his household. Many imprisoned Christians were then set free.

Valentine was later arrested again for continuing to preach the gospel. Brought before Emperor Claudius II, he refused to renounce Christ or cease calling others—including the emperor—to faith. For this, he was beaten and beheaded on February 14, AD 269.

Another tradition says that Valentine secretly performed Christian weddings in defiance of imperial orders, strengthening believers during persecution. Some accounts even say he cut small hearts from parchment and gave them to couples as reminders of their vows and of God’s love—perhaps an early seed of the symbol now associated with Valentine’s Day.

Whether every detail of these traditions can be verified or not, they point to something deeply biblical: love joined with courage.

We need more men like that—men compassionate enough to pray for the sick, bless marriages, and care for souls, yet bold enough to preach Christ, confront idolatry, defy unjust authority, and call people to live and die for the Lord.

And today, above all, may we remember the greatest Lover of all: Jesus Christ. In love, He entered the battlefield for His bride, the church, and conquered her enemies—sin, death, the devil, and the world—through His cross and resurrection.

Deus caritas est. Caritas omnia vincit.

God is love. Love conquers all.

Nino Marques