Today, 14th of February, St Valentine’s Day, is a celebration for card companies, flower shops, and chocolate manufacturers. But St Valentine was a real person and the story is one of courage and support for those being persecuted.

Valentinus was a priest in 3rd century Rome where Christians were persecuted for their beliefs. He would administer to the needs of the oppressed. State sponsored religious intolerance and the killing of innocents because of their religion or beliefs is nothing new, and is still carried on today throughout the world.

For the work he did in helping those suffering he was put under house arrest and finally he himself was condemned to death by the Roman Emperor Claudius II. The Emperor commanded that Valentinus either renounce his faith or he would be beaten with clubs and beheaded. Valentinus refused and was executed outside the Flaminian Gate on February 14, 269.

It was not until  AD 496 that The Feast of Saint Valentine, also known as Saint Valentine’s Day, was established by Pope Gelasius I to be celebrated on February 14 in honour of the Christian martyr.

Legends around St Valentine started to grow up, especially during the 14th century. The features of St Valentine’s Day with love hearts and proposals of marriage, are linked to this much later addition of romantic love between couples. Not anything to do with the great sacrifice Valentinus made in 3rd century Rome in his support for those being persecuted for their beliefs.