During the trial, they asked Valentine what he thought of the Roman gods Jupiter and Mercury. Of course Valentine said they were false gods and at the God that Jesus called the Father was the only true God. So the Romans threw him in prison for insulting the gods.
While in prison Valentine continued to minister. He witnessed to the guards. One of the guards was a good man who had adopted a blind girl. He asked Valentine if his God could help his daughter. Valentine prayed and the girl was given her sight. The guardand his whole family, 46 people, belived in Jesus and were baptized. Because these people had come to know Jesus, Valentine praised God rihht there in his prison cell. When the emperor heard about this he was furious that Valentine was still making converts even in prison, so he had Valentine beheaded.
Valentine knew that he might get caught in his Christian activities. He knew that if he told the court the truth about the Roman gods that he would be thrown in prison. And he knew that if he continued to witness to Christ in prison, he would be make his captors angry. But he continued, because he loved the Lord and his fellow humans. He was willing to risk his life to free the prisoners and spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who neededto hear it.
The Bible says: "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." (John 15:13). God showed us this love by coming in christ to die for our sins. And St. Valentine demonstrated this love when he died for his friends. This is the kind of love that Valentine's Day is realy about.
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