The feast of Saint Valentine was removed from the Roman calendar during the reforms of 1969. It seems a shame, since this is one of a vanishingly small number of saint’s feasts that have remained in the secular culture.

It seems that it could be used as a touchstone for the new evangelization. Mind you, he’s still in the Martyrology, so he’s not been “un-sainted” as some seem to think.

And of course, at this morning’s Lauds (prayer) from monastic breviary, the commemoration remains.

Why was Valentine removed from the general calendar?

This was done mostly because it’s difficult to tease apart the stories of several early martyrs who shared this name.

Over time, their stories and their identities accreted one to another like the formation of some new planet. There were, in fact, at least 14 saints named Valentine or Valentinus.

Very little is known of the “original” martyr whose feast was fixed at 14 February by Pope Gelasius I in 496. Even in the original decree creating the feast, the Pope declared that he was a martyr “whose acts are known only to God”.

The very earliest accounts seem to conflate two men buried near Rome, one a Roman priest and the other the Bishop of Terni.

The tradition of Valentine as the patron saint of lovers seems to come from Chaucer in his poem “Parliament of Fowls“.

Now, these days, today is the Memorial of Saints Cyril and Methodius, two brothers who preached the Gospel in eastern Europe to the Slavs in the ninth century.

They even invented an alphabet for the Slavic languages so they could distribute their Slavonic translation of the Bible.

The "Valentine's day massacre" of 1349 resulted in the murder of 2000 Jews. Those who converted before the burning to death of the Jews were allowed to live. About 100 did this.

The town council of Strasbourg voted that Jews could not return for 100 years and their property and possessions were divided amongst the burghers. Within six months Emperor Charles IV pardoned the town council for the murders.

I don't see much of a reason for any Jew to want celebrate this Chrstian holiday.

Not to mention that it is pagan in origin. In Ancient Rome they celebrated on February 14th by honoring the god Ju-no Fructifier, Queen of the Roman gods and goddesses and also the goddess of marriage. Love, ain't it grand? Women put their names to a common box and men would draw a name. This "couple" were together for the festival and lots of (um) "love" ensued.

On February 15th the Romans also had a holiday honoring Lupe-raclia, honoring Faunus, god of fertility.

Nope, not a real good holiday for a Jew no matter how you cut it.

So Valentine is pagan just like Christmas?

No wonder most Christians celebrate both?