In search of the one true Valentine
A Croation painting of St Valentine
Its association with love, romance, and, let’s be honest, sex, ensures that St Valentine’s Day on 14 February is one of only a handful of saints’ feast days most of us can immediately identify.
There’s actually precious little about the historical St Valentine to justify a connection with amorous couples, or much evidence to support the suggestion that today’s romantic associations have their origins in an ancient Roman fertility cult. And the assertion that St Valentine made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of Christian marriage, and so is a fitting patron for protectors of the institution from its ungodly, liberal enemies, also crumbles when exposed to historical scrutiny.
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