St. Valentine's Day

Well.. this 'romantic day of the year' is just over as I'm writing this. I think most Christians know that this feast is in honor of a particular St. Valentine (I'm not sure which one), who died a martyr (probably defending marriage, and if this were true, then this day and age is not the first time marriage is under attack!)

I never thought of myself as a romantic (after all, I've never done special things to celebrate this feast and in most places it is nothing but a commercial event), but today I watched The Notebook, a movie adapted from Nicholas Sparks' novel. Normally I hate sappy movies, but this one caught me by surprise through its beauty. Many times I have read what the Church Fathers wrote about marriage, and the romance between spouses is underplayed (if not downright derided, and today, seen as superficial) in attempt to cast marriage as a dim reflection of the great love story between God and us.

Romance exists in fantasies, I have often heard. Yet for those seeking that 'dim reflection' as a foretaste of the True Union while on our earthly journey, Sparks pointed out here a cause for hope:

"True love exists and there's evidence of it every day. I think people's perceptions about romantic love, however, are similar to people's perceptions about schools for children. It seems that most people feel that the school their child goes to is wonderful, but elsewhere, schools are terrible. But if most people feel that way, then it becomes a logical impossibility. Same thing with romantic love. Many people perceive it in their own lives, but doubt if other people do. And those who don't have it hope that someday, they will."