Valentine's day

The celebration of Valentine’s day is another example of the secularization and commercialization of the sacred.

February 14, 2006 used to be the memorial of St. Valentine. It might come as a surprise that there is not just one St. Valentine but three. And all of them are martyrs. The first was a priest. The second was a bishop. And the third was martyred with other companions in Africa.

Because of the scant historical data about these three St. Valentines, the memorial of St. Valentine has been replaced with St. Cyril, monk, and St. Methodius, bishop. These two are the apostles of the Slavic people. They are co-patrons of Europe with St. Benedict. And they are brothers.

It might be of interest to know that the Cyrillic alphabet of the Slavs is attributed to St. Cyril.

I have said that February 14 represents the secularization and commercialization of the sacred. In 1998 internet Valentine’s Day sales in the US amounted to $ 311 million. The following year it hit $ 563 million. What has been the memorial of a Saint (or Saints) has become a day for lovers. And in the Philippines, it is a day of fornication and adultery in motels offering special rates for quickie sex (3 hours).

Be that as it may, February 14 is still an occasion for evangelization. Love is an overused, abused and misused word. Today would be an opportunity to speak of true love.

Two anecdotes come to mind. Both involve college students.

One college student told me that he would skip snacks in order to save enough money to be able to bring his girlfriend out on a date. True love knows self-sacrifice.

The second said that he couldn’t bring himself to exploit his girlfriend in his fantasies. True love respects the beloved.

I have memorized a definition (or is it a description?) of love. Love is the power in us that moves us to go out of ourselves, to give of ourselves, for the good of the one we love. The definition doesn't make your heart beat faster. It doesn’t make your head feel light. But it does say something about what true love is.