Who was St. Valentine, and why do we celebrate him on February 14?

Get the facts about this enigmatic character.
by Elizabeth Hanes

1)The St. Valentine who inspired the holiday may have been two different men.
Officially recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, St. Valentine is known to be a real person who died around A.D. 270. However, his true identity was questioned as early as A.D. 496 by Pope Gelasius I, who referred to the martyr and his acts as “being known only to God.” One account from the 1400s describes Valentine as a temple priest who was beheaded near Rome by the emperor Claudius II for helping Christian couples wed. A different account claims Valentine was the Bishop of Terni, also martyred by Claudius II on the outskirts of Rome. Because of the similarities of these accounts, it’s thought they may refer to the same person. Enough confusion surrounds the true identity of St. Valentine that the Catholic Church discontinued liturgical veneration of him in 1969, though his name remains on its list of officially recognized saints.

2. In all, there are about a dozen St. Valentines, plus a pope.
The saint we celebrate on Valentine’s Day is known officially as St. Valentine of Rome in order to differentiate him from the dozen or so other Valentines on the list. Because “Valentinus”—from the Latin word for worthy, strong or powerful—was a popular moniker between the second and eighth centuries A.D., several martyrs over the centuries have carried this name. The official Roman Catholic roster of saints shows about a dozen who were named Valentine or some variation thereof. The most recently beatified Valentine is St. Valentine Berrio-Ochoa, a Spaniard of the Dominican order who traveled to Vietnam, where he served as bishop until his beheading in 1861. Pope John Paul II canonized Berrio-Ochoa in 1988. There was even a Pope Valentine, though little is known about him except that he served a mere 40 days around A.D. 827.

3. Valentine is the patron saint of beekeepers and epilepsy, among many other things.
Saints are certainly expected to keep busy in the afterlife. Their holy duties include interceding in earthly affairs and entertaining petitions from living souls. In this respect, St. Valentine has wide-ranging spiritual responsibilities. People call on him to watch over the lives of lovers, of course, but also for interventions regarding beekeeping and epilepsy, as well as the plague, fainting and traveling. As you might expect, he’s also the patron saint of engaged couples and happy marriages.

4. You can find Valentine’s skull in Rome.
The flower-adorned skull of St. Valentine is on display in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome. In the early 1800s, the excavation of a catacomb near Rome yielded skeletal remains and other relics now associated with St. Valentine. As is customary, these bits and pieces of the late saint’s body have subsequently been distributed to reliquaries around the world. You’ll find other bits of St. Valentine’s skeleton on display in the Czech Republic, Ireland, Scotland, England and France.

5. English poet Geoffrey Chaucer may have invented Valentine’s Day.
The medieval English poet Geoffrey Chaucer often took liberties with history, placing his poetic characters into fictitious historical contexts that he represented as real. No record exists of romantic celebrations on Valentine’s Day prior to a poem Chaucer wrote around 1375. In his work “Parliament of Foules,” he links a tradition of courtly love with the celebration of St. Valentine’s feast day–an association that didn’t exist until after his poem received widespread attention. The poem refers to February 14 as the day birds (and humans) come together to find a mate. When Chaucer wrote, “For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne’s day / Whan every foul cometh ther to choose his mate,” he may have invented the holiday we know today.

6. You can celebrate Valentine’s Day several times a year.
Because of the abundance of St. Valentines on the Roman Catholic roster, you can choose to celebrate the saint multiple times each year. Besides February 14, you might decide to celebrate St. Valentine of Viterbo on November 3. Or maybe you want to get a jump on the traditional Valentine celebration by feting St. Valentine of Raetia on January 7. Women might choose to honor the only female St. Valentine (Valentina), a virgin martyred in Palestine on July 25, A.D. 308. The Eastern Orthodox Church officially celebrates St. Valentine twice, once as an elder of the church on July 6 and once as a martyr on July 30.

history.com

 

Historic Event

1774 Paul Revere and Wentworth Cheswell, a Black Man, rode to warn Portsmouth of the approach of British warships

On December 13, 1774, Cheswell rode with Paul Revere to warn Portsmouth citizens of the approach of two British Warships. Along with other local men, Cheswell signed a document in April 1776, in which he pledged to take up arms and resist the British.

Wentworth Cheswell (1746-1817) – BlackPast.org

In the middle of December 1774, messengers on horseback carried news to the people of New Hampshire’s seacoast. Two British warships were headed to New Castle to reinforce Fort William and Mary. The messengers, or dispatch riders, helped organize the resistance. One messenger was Paul Revere. And one was Wentworth Cheswell.

Revere made quite a few rides before war broke out, and so did dozens of dispatch riders before and during the American Revolution. As part of the secret patriot network, the riders shared intelligence about the enemy and communications between the colonial provisional governments.

Wentworth Cheswell took a number of rides like Revere. He volunteered to serve in the military and fought at Saratoga.  He is also considered New Hampshire’s first archaeologist — and the first African-American elected to public office in the United States.

For the complete article: newenglandhistoricalsociety.com

Biography: Famous for alerting the Colonial militia to the approach of British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride.”

Born: January 1, 1735
Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Star Sign: Capricorn

Died: May 10, 1818 (aged 83)

Source: onthisday.com

newenglandhistoricalsociety.com

“If music did not pay, it would be given up.” So wrote Associate Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in a landmark Supreme Court decision in 1917. Holmes wasn’t referring to musicians themselves in that statement, but to places of business in which copyrighted musical works could be heard, whether such music was live or recorded and, critically, whether or not it generated direct revenues. “Whether it pays or not,” continued Holmes, “the purpose of employing it is profit and that is enough.” Narrowly speaking, the decision in Herbert v. Shanley Co.  forced Shanley’s Restaurant in New York City to pay a fee to the American songwriter Victor Herbert for playing a song of his on a player-piano during dinner service. The case represented a much broader victory, however, for the new organization of which Herbert was the head: the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), which was founded on February 13, 1914.

Among the founding members of ASCAP were the musical giants of the day: Irving Berlin, James Weldon Johnson, Jerome Kern, John Philip Sousa. Circa 1915, songwriters like these made their living primarily from fees earned through the sales of sheet music. Protection from unauthorized printed reproduction of their compositions was a right clearly established under U.S. copyright law, but it was a novel contention at the time that the composer had a further right to a share of any other revenue stream to which his work was a contributing factor. This was the claim made by ASCAP, which said that its fundamental goal was to “assure that music creators are fairly compensated for the public performance of their works, and that their rights are properly protected.”

For the complete article: history.com

On February 13, 1923, the New York Renaissance, the first all-Black professional basketball team, is organized. The Renaissance, commonly called the Rens, become one of the dominant teams of the 1920s and 1930s.

The team’s founder was Robert L. Douglas, whose primary objective was to give New York City’s male, Black athletes opportunities to better themselves. In February 1923, Douglas struck an agreement with William Roach, a Harlem-based real estate developer who owned the New Renaissance Ballroom and Casino, and the Rens were born.

With Black players barred from professional basketball leagues, the Rens barnstormed throughout the country, often competing against all-white teams. 

Along with owning the team, Douglas coached it from its inception through its last game in 1949. Douglas was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor in 1972. One of the greatest players in the sport’s history recognized his impact.

“I tried to spread the word [about Douglas] with my book and documentary, On the Shoulder of Giants,” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar told The Undefeated in 2017. “I did both to make people aware of the Rens’ contribution to basketball because it’s important that we honor those pioneers who made this billion-dollar industry possible.”

The team played its first game November 3, 1923, winning 28-22 against the Collegiate Five—an all-white team.

For the complete article: history.com

Thu, Feb 13, 4:25 AM PST to Thu, Feb 13, 1:00 PM PST

What

For the Cold Weather Advisory, Very cold wind chills as low as 15 to 25 degrees. For the Wind Advisory, east winds 15 to 30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph expected.

Where

Bellevue and Vicinity.

When

For the Cold Weather Advisory, until noon PST today. For the Wind Advisory, until 1 PM PST this afternoon.

Impacts

Very cold temperatures can lead to hypothermia with prolonged exposure and will impact vulnerable populations such as the homeless, pets, and those without adequate access to heating. Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

Additional Details

Strongest winds are expected along the I-90 corridor especially near Issaquah.

Summary

Keep pets indoors as much as possible. Make frequent checks on older family, friends, and neighbors. Ensure portable heaters are used correctly. Do not use generators or grills inside. Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high profile vehicles. Secure outdoor objects.

Issued By

NWS Seattle WA