LEGENDS OF VALENTINE

"For this was sent on St. Valentine's day

When every fowl comes there to choose his mate."

-- Geoffrey Chaucer

"Parliament of Fowls."

Valentine.

It is name associated with romance and love, with roses and boxes of chocolates, with starry-eyed lovers sending messages of their undying affection.

But the real St. Valentine was undoubtedly far removed from the romantic images associated with his name over the years.

Little is known of Valentine, though many legends surrounding him have endured throughout the ages, most of which cannot be verified. Yet, the traditions and legends of St. Valentine have inspired lovers for nearly 2,000 years.

Valentinus -- the Latin form of his name -- was probably a priest in Rome who became the bishop of Ternia. Historically, the church acknowledged two men named Valentine who were martyred on Feb. 14, one a priest and one a bishop. Most scholars assume the two to have been the same person.

Valentine lived during the third century when the church faced heavy persecution from the Roman government. The Roman emperor, Claudius II Gothicus, had ordered all Roman citizens to worship the state's religious idols and had outlawed any association with Christianity. The penalty for the association was death.

When Valentine defied the edicts of Rome, he was executed in A.D. 269. Most legends say he was beaten with clubs, stoned and then beheaded. One legend says he was forced to disembowel himself publicly for violating a dictate of the emperor.

In fact, most of the stories about Valentine are legends which grew up around him and were mixed with other stories and practices over the years.

One story says that Valentine was arrested and thrown into a Roman dungeon because he had given aid and comfort to Christians. In prison, the priest had few of life's necessities and had to depend on the charity of Julia, the blind daughter of his jailer Asterius.

Julia brought food and messages to Valentine and he, in turn, used his faith and his knowledge of medicine to cure the girl's blindness.

The legend says that Valentine was called to stand before the emperor himself and Claudius, impressed by the priest, tried to convert him to the worship of the pagan Roman gods. Valentine refused and tried instead to convert Claudius.

So enraged was Claudius with Valentine's attempt to convert him that Claudius ordered the priest's execution.

It was in the final days before his death that Valentine restored the sight of the blind girl. In those days, the legend says, he converted both Julia and her father Asterius to Christianity. Then, on the eve of his execution, he sent Julia a farewell message which he signed, "From your Valentine."

His execution took place outside the Flaminian Gate in Rome, now called the Porta del Popolo. For a time during its history, it was known as Porta Valentini -- the gate of Valentine -- in his memory.

The legends also say that at his death a pink almond tree blossomed near his grave. Since that time, the pink almond tree has become a symbol of abiding love.

Another legend surrounding the saint says that he was executed because he defied an edict of Claudius and performed marriage ceremonies for young lovers wishing to wed.

Claudius believed his army would be larger and stronger if the men of Rome remained bachelors. Married men, Claudius believed, would be more likely to stay home with their families than go off to war. So to keep his army strong, he forbade marriage.

But Valentine, believing love and marriage to be the will of God, would secretly marry couples who were forbidden to wed. Because he valued love and romance, the story goes, he became known as the patron saint of lovers.

Still others believe that Valentine blessed the marriage of two young people who fell in love when they were coming to see him. So happy and serene was their marriage that other couples wanted the bishop to bless their marriages as well. In order to satisfy the numerous demands for blessing, he set aside a single day of the year to give all couples his general wedding blessing.

But many believe that the association of Feb. 14 with love and romance came from one of two less religious sources.

The Roman feast of Lupercalia, a pagan fertility celebration, was held annually on Feb. 15. The feast -- held in honor of the god Lupercalia, the protector of herds and crops -- encouraged people to protect their herds and crops and to keep themselves fertile through singing and dancing. On the eve of the festival, young women would put their names in a ceramic jar and every young man would pick a name and court the girl whose notes they had drawn.

But Christian pastors, wishing to abolish what they considered a superstitious pagan practice, substituted the names of saints on the messages. When Valentine was martyred, the 14th of February became his saint day and the practice of exchanging names became associated with him.

It is also believed that people in Europe in the Middle Ages began sending love notes on Valentine's Day because of the mating habits of birds.

In many parts of Europe, it was believed that birds began to pair off for the nesting season on or about Feb. 14. Couples who wished to emulate the birds began to send love notes to one another on that day.

Another theory says that our modern meaning of "valentine" was just a confusion with the Norman French word "galatin" meaning "lover of women." Through the passage of time, the two have merged. The result has been that Valentine has become the patron saint of lovers.