It started in a dance class.
When Timmerie’s five- and three-year-old were asked what they do on Valentine’s Day, their answer was simple: “We go to church.” Their teacher smiled and replied, “That is very good. That is very, very good.”
For Timmerie’s children, St. Valentine’s Day isn’t about candy or cards. It’s about a saint.
As Timmerie explained on Trending, St. Valentine lived during fierce Roman persecution. Under Emperor Claudius II, young soldiers were forbidden to marry. The emperor believed single men made better fighters. But Father Valentine knew marriage between one man and one woman was sacred, a reflection of God’s covenant love. So he secretly united couples in Holy Matrimony.
When discovered, he was imprisoned, brutally tortured, and ordered to renounce Christ. Many martyrs were told to offer just a small gesture to pagan gods to save their lives.
Valentine refused.
He boldly declared, “I am a Christian.”
While in prison, Valentine encountered the blind daughter of his jailer, Asterius. He prayed for her, and her sight was restored. Tradition holds that this miracle led to her conversion.
Before his execution, he wrote her a final letter, signing it, “From your Valentine.”
Today, that phrase is printed on sentimental cards. But its origin is far deeper. It was written by a priest who would rather be beaten and beheaded than deny Christ.
Jesus said, “No greater love have any man than this, than to lay down his life for his friend.”
St. Valentine lived those words. His witness reminds us that real love is not sentimental. It is sacrificial, faithful, and courageous.
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