Thursday, February 13, 2014

Valentine's Day

" 'Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?'  Jesus replied, ' The greatest Commandment is to love The Lord, with all your heart, and with all your soul.' " [ Matthew 22].

On February 14, we celebrate Valentine's Day.

These days, the appellation, " St. Valentine's Day" has been in decline.

But there are various stories that Valentine was a real person and a real saint.

One story says that Valentine was a Roman priest who was charged with the crime of marrying Christians.

Another story says that Valentine was a bishop who cured a young girl's blindness, but who was never less martyred by Emperor Claudius for being a follower of Jesus.

A third story says that Valentine was a priest who violated the law by performing weddings for military men, to spare them from going to war.

There is so much historical confusion about who this Valentine was, that the Catholic liturgical calendar does not celebrate his feast day.

Now, a Catholic finding out that Valentine was not verifiably a saint, is like scientists telling us that Pluto is too small to be a planet!

There are men -- husbands, boyfriends, etc. -- who will be relieved to hear that there is a major dispute over the reality of St. Valentine.  Some men feel that there is far too much pressure over finding the perfect gift. Others argue that Valentine's Day is not a "real" holiday, but rather a Hallmark holiday designed to force men to buy silly greeting cards, or expensive chocolates.

Some women lament that Valentine's Day is pure emotional torture, because they do not have a husband or a boyfriend in their lives at the moment. Valentine's Day becomes a judgement on how desirable you are. ( Leave it to Americans to make it all about sex!)

What I see in all these stories about Valentine, as a person, however, is the embodiment of Love! 

Maybe, to resurrect the real meaning of Valentine's Day, we ought to be telling some new stories :

Consider the story of a young couple who were married on Valentine's Day.  Several years later, she became seriously ill. The husband cared for her tenderly.

OR consider the story of a young couple who could not have children.  After more than a dozen years, they were able to adopt a beautiful baby. But finalizing the adoption became a gut-wrenching legal battle that took a year. And yet, on Valentine's Day about a year after the baby's birth, a judge finalized the adoption! Now, the mother wears a heart charm or ring every day.

OR an older gentleman lost his wife of several decades. After his wife died, he became distraught. His health suffered. One afternoon, he met a lovely lady who fell in love with him. This lady was so alarmed at how ill he was, she insisted on taking him to the doctor. The gentleman was very frail, and the couple decided to get married, because they did not want to wait until a future time and have any regrets. After they married, the lady nursed the gentleman back to health.

Long after the Hallmark cards have been lost in a drawer, long after the chocolates have been eaten, long after the fancy dinner and wine have been consumed, the LOVE remains! 

Valentine's Day does not have to be a superficial day of hearts and jewelry and nights out on the town. 

Valentine's Day does not have to be about a painful exercise in who loves ME enough.

Valentine's Day is about the Love in our lives, day after day.

We have no certainty about who St. Valentine was, or even of he was an actual person.  But, the healing power of Love IS real! 

(c) Spiritual Devotional 2014. All Rights reserved. 








No comments:

Post a Comment