ON THE VANGUARD

ST. VALENTINE
"'A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.'"
John 13:34-35

It is approximated that 141 million Valentine's Day cards will be exchanged today, making this the second most popular card-sending holiday after Christmas. The problem is, however, that not many know the true story behind why we even celebrate this holiday. Valentine's Day is not a celebration of cupid and his magical arrows of love, or a trick by chocolate makers to tempt us into a moment of gorging, but in all actuality is a celebration of a martyr. We could even say it is the celebration of two martyrs, but in truth one is because of another. Let us travel back in time to the year 268 AD and open up to the story of St. Valentine.
Like the disciples, St. Valentine preached the love of Jesus Christ. But also like the disciples, he found himself obeying God rather than men. St. Valentine knew an edict had been passed that was to prevent the Gospel of Christ from going forward, yet still he preached this love of God that he had come to know firsthand. The law eventually caught up to him, and he was ushered into a Roman prison to await his death sentence. Nearly a year later that sentence would be carried out. However, in the final days of Valentine's life, the jailer approached him and in awe of his continued belief in God even though facing death, asked that Valentine please sit with his blind daughter and read her the stories of the saints who had gone before. Not only did Valentine agree to sit and read her, but God also opened the door for him to pray with and for this girl, Julia. On the day his sentence was to be carried out, February 14, 269 AD, Valentine prayed once more for Julia. As her faith grew, she found she now had the ability to physically see. She looked upon Valentine and declared the love of God she saw on this man. In the end, she read a final letter he had prepared just days before and had signed, "Your Valentine." From there we receive our holiday.
A man was martyred because he wanted share the love of Christ with others. Was he not doing what Christ has commanded of all of us? Have we not also been told to love one another? It is by love that men will know our allegiance to God. The love we share in our actions speaks louder than the love we share in the words 'I love you.' Christ loves us but He didn't just say it, he showed it. And Valentine wanted all to know of God's love, but he also didn't just say it, he lived it. He could have denied Christ and stopped speaking of love, but he could not. He was so overwhelmed by the truth of love that death did not matter.
It is easy for me to love those dear to me - my children, my family, my friends. But there are those who I should also love, and that love is tough. Are they exempt? No, I am called to love them also. So then, maybe my prayer for today should be that God would give me the ability to see all people through His eyes instead of my own. In seeing the people though His eyes, I then will see through eyes of love. Perhaps this is the prayer that St. Valentine prayed. Perhaps this is the prayer that transformed his life to the point where he would share in love the ways of God, even if in the end he like Christ also died for his beliefs. Instead of passing it over one more day, perhaps I should start now and exude the love of God in every part area of my life, and to every person my life touches.