The Legend of Saint Valentine’s Day

The Legend of Saint Valentine’s Day

BY Patrick Gibney

While most people will be left to their own devices on St. Valentine’s Day, there are some folks out there who have real love in their lives. (Or at least are getting laid on a regular basis.) I wish I could bestow regular, mind-blowing orgasms on everybody, but I can’t. We all know someone who wouldn’t get a kick in a stampede. Those folks, and many others, will either be jacking off or jilling off. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a little menage a moi, but it’s always nice when someone doesn’t mind shagging you or being shagged by you. So, where did all this Valentine’s business come from? And why do we give a shit?

In third century, Rome, Emperor Claudius II believed that single men made better soldiers, so he banned marriage for young men. A priest named Valentine defied the emperor and secretly performed marriages for young lovers. Eventually, Father Valentine was arrested and imprisoned. While awaiting execution, he befriended his jailer and miraculously healed the jailer’s blind daughter, restoring her sight. Before his execution on February 14th, he wrote a final note to the girl, signing it, From Your Valentine, linking his martyrdom to love and devotion.

For centuries, St. Valentine’s Day had little to do with love; it was linked to pagan fertility festivals and the martyrdom of saints. The association with romantic love truly blossomed in the Middle Ages, popularized by poets like Geoffrey Chaucer, who wrote about lovers meeting on St. Valentine’s Day. This evolved into today’s traditions, with the first heart-shaped box of chocolates appearing in the 1860’s thanks to Richard Cadbury, solidifying Valentine’s Day as a celebration of enduring love and connection, stemming from a priest’s brave defiance.

So, if you’re not getting laid on Valentine’s Day, spend it with us at Paddy’s. You never know what might happenin a great Irish bar. You might find someone to get jiggy with.