In 1835 an Irish Carmelite by
the name of John Spratt was
visiting Rome. He was wellknown
in Ireland for his skills as
a preacher and also for his work
among the poor and destitute in
Dublinʼs Liberties area. He was
also responsible for the building
of the new church to Our Lady
of Mount Carmel at Whitefriar
Street.

While he was in Rome, Pope
Gregory XVI (1831-1846) gave
him the remains of Saint Valentine.
On November 10, 1836,
the Reliquary containing the remains
arrived in Dublin and were
brought in solemn procession to
Whitefriar Street Church, where
they were received by Archbishop
Murray of Dublin.

Today, the Shrine is visited
throughout the year by couples
who come to pray to Valentine
and to ask him to watch over
them in their lives together. The
Reliquary contains some of the
remains of St Valentine.

There is also included a small
vessel tinged with the blood of
the martyr. This container is inside
the casket which is seen beneath
the altar. The outer casket
has only been opened on a couple
of occasions and then only
to verify that the contents are
intact.

St. Valentine is the Patron Saint
of bee keepers, engaged couples,
happy marriages, love, lovers
and young people. He was a Roman
priest who was arrested and
imprisoned upon being caught
marrying Christians.

Helping Christians to marry at
this time was considered a crime
and he was condemned to death.
He was beaten with clubs and
stoned; when that didnʼt finish
him, he was beheaded and was
martyred for refusing to give up
Christianity.

The other legend surrounding
St. Valentineʼs martyrdom was
that one day a jailer for the Emperor
of Rome knocked at Valentine
ʼs door clutching his blind
daughter, named Julia, in his
arms. The jailer had learned that
Valentine was a doctor.

In the weeks before his execution,
Valentine continued to
treat the young girl and on the
eve of his death wrote a note to
her. When the jailer went home,
he was greeted by his little girl,
who opened the note and discovered
a yellow crocus inside. The
message said, ʻFrom your Valentine
ʼ.
As the little girl looked down
upon the crocus that spilled into
her palm, she saw brilliant colours
for the first time in her life!

The girlʼs eyesight had been restored…
It is said that Julia herself
planted a pink-blossomed
almond tree near his grave. Today,
the almond tree remains
a symbol of abiding love and
friendship.

Gradually, February 14 became
the date for exchanging
love messages and St. Valentine
became the patron saint of lovers.

The date was marked by
sending poems and simple gifts
such as flowers.

Some people used to believe
that if a woman saw a robin flying
overhead on Valentineʼs Day,
it meant she would marry a sailor.

If she saw a sparrow, she would
marry a poor man and be very
happy. If she saw a goldfinch,
she would marry a millionaire.

Another popular way of finding
your Valentine was to think
of five or six names of boys or
girls you would like to marry,
then, as you twist the stem of an
apple, recite the names until the
stem comes off. You will marry
the person whose name you were
saying when the stem fell off. After
that, cut the apple in half and
count how many seeds are inside
and you will also know how
many children you will have.

Modern Valentine symbols
include the heart-shaped outline,
doves, and the figure of the
winged Cupid. Since the 19th
century, handwritten notes have
largely given way to mass-produced
greeting cards and estimates
say that approximately
one billion valentines are sent
each year worldwide, making
the day the second largest cardsending
holiday of the year after
Christmas. On average, men
spend twice as much money as
women on this day, something to
do with guilt I suppose.

Top: St. Valentine baptizing St.
Lucilla by Jacopo Bassano.
Below: A Victorian Valentine
card with cherubs.