St Valentine's story

Once Christmas is over, shops are once again invaded with visions of red ... this time however, St Valentine's the cause.

Yes... those two words wreak havoc. Men seem to fear the very mention of this ominous day, while women are high on expectation at the mere thought of what their lover/partner might conjure up for what is supposedly the most romantic celebration on the annual calendar.

Roses and romance aside, and also little chubby angles clad with bow and arrow aside... who was St Valentine? Was he an actual saint, a martyr? Is he just a legend? Is there any connection between the saint and cupid, aka the god Eros?

In this article I have sought to get to the bottom of this conundrum - curiosity having been sparked after discovering that St Valentine has a connection to Malta and to Balzan parish church.

Although the 17th century church is dedicated to the Annunciation of Our Lady, the parish also celebrates the feast of St Valentine, and as a consequence, the village radio station, was named Radio Valentine, which closed down officially in 2006.

Yet St Valentine is the name of several martyred saints of ancient Rome. Of the Saint Valentine whose feast is on February 14 however, nothing is really known except for his name and that he was buried at Via Flaminia north of Rome on February 14. It is moreover uncertain whether this feast celebrates the one or more saints by the same name. And for this reason this liturgical commemoration was not kept in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints.

A little bit of background, and precious information from on the net reveals that "St Valentine is said to have lived in the middle of the third century AD and to have died around the year 269. He is said to have been imprisoned, and then beheaded, by Emperor Claudius for helping Christian prisoners escape during a persecution."

Timesofmalta.com sought to delve deeper into St Valentine's origins in relation to the Maltese Islands, and contacted Balzan parish council secretary (and Balzan history buff) Joe Felice Pace.

Mr Felice Pace explained how the reliquary of St Valentine currently found at the Balzan Parish - precisely within St Michael's altar - was brought to Malta by Mgr. Antonio Grech Delicata (1823-1876) in 1784. It was previously conserved in St Helen's cemetery, ad duas lauras (of the two laurel trees) in Rome.

Mgr Grech Delicata, resided with his family in Balzan and donated the remains of St Valentine to the parish church of Balzan on January 26, 1820. He later paid 200 scudi to dress the corpse in gold and silver lame.

Mr Felice Pace explains how, with the passing of years, the devotion to the saint excelled, and in the 19th century, his feast was the cause of much celebration, especially after St Valentine was declared the second patron saint of the village. Consequently, several parishioners named their children Valent or Valentina.

Owing to the fact that St Valentine's feast comes at the beginning of the season of the breeding of birds, popular belief and devotion led to St Valentine being made patron of young lovers. However it is also probable that his feast was in some measure a survival of the Lupercalia, an ancient pagan festival dedicated to Pan or Lupercus, which is celebrated on February15.

So for all those Cupid fans out there, sorry to burst your bubble... that's another story completely!

On February 14, the Diocesan Family Commission, together with the Balzan Parish Family Commission, will be organising a function to which all engaged couples in Malta are invited. Mass will follow at 6.30 p.m. in the Balzan Parish Church, topped by a social gathering at the Aurora Hall.