FEAST OF ST VALENTINE 14th FEBRUARY

 FEAST OF ST VALENTINE

14th FEBRUARY

St Valentine was a widely recognized 3rd century Roman saint, and, since the Middle Ages, his feast day has been associated with courtly love, probably deriving from the legend of his martyrdom but also from the seasonal time of his feast day. Chaucer spoke of:

“Seynt Valentyne’s Day,

When every foul cometh to choose his mate.”

According to the Legenda Aurea of Jacobus de Voragine, compiled about 1260, a widely read book of the Middle Ages, St Valentine was executed in the year 269 AD for refusing to deny Christ. The Nuremberg Chronicle (1493 AD), provided that his arrest was the result of his being caught marrying and otherwise aiding Christian couples who, at the time, were being persecuted in Rome.

He is a hugely popular saint, both with Catholics and the wider community. Nevertheless, after Vatican II, the Church, in their drive to modernise the Church and to make the faith more relevant to the modern world, removed this much-beloved saint from the General Roman Calendar, (along with St Christopher). However, contrary to some popular misunderstanding of the Church’s directions, St Valentine is still recognised as a saint by the Church, and his feast day is still celebrated on 14th February, liturgical veneration of him being in accordance with the rule that the Mass may be of any saint listed in the Martyrology for that day.

St Valentine’s Feast-day on 14th February is remarkable for its adoption throughout the secular western culture, accompanied by a complete silence regarding its Catholic origins. This celebration is accompanied by an excision of the word “saint” from the title, and the day is treated as a tribute to romantic love, portrayed and evangelised as an invention by Hollywood.

In this context, Catholics can take back their own feast-day by honouring St Valentine and what he stands for. In such circumstances, a Catholic celebration of the feast of St Valentine is a counter-cultural statement, albeit a private one. It can be celebrated by attending Mass, by saying the Rosary together as a family and by a celebration in which the true nature of sacramental marriage and love can be given expression - that is, the commitment of a couple to the sharing of a life together, taking up the cross as well as the good times - as St Paul says;

“Every day, as long as this day lasts, keep encouraging one another.”

It must be admitted, however, that the popular idea of a meal of oysters, red roses and champagne is a pretty good celebration. I think though that, in the days before mass availability, the point of this combination, (as a symbol of romance), was to signal wealth and luxury to a community generally denied such opportunities. Is it a bit cynical to speculate that this idea of ‘romance’ seems to be associated with money and power? If so, it does not seem to accord with the Catholic idea of sacramental married love; ‘for richer, for poorer’ etc. It also seems to be directed to a shorter duration; not ‘till death do us part’ and ‘let no man drive asunder’. There is, however, a lot to be said for a beautiful and sincere romantic dinner and, if heading in this direction, when choosing a champagne, it is important to recall that the inventor of champagne was Dom Perignon, a Benedictine monk, (1638-1715), who perfected the fermentation of grapes to produce a beautiful sparkling wine, which he described as “drinking stars” (1). I am sure that Dom Perignon was a firm supporter of Catholic sacramental marriage, chastity within the vocation of marriage, together with trust and loyalty to one’s partner under the blessing of Christ and His blessed Mother. Perhaps, though, the cost of a bottle of Dom Perignon is prohibitive and, bearing in mind that it is now made by a multinational company, there is no obligation for brand loyalty as a Catholic alcohol imbiber.

For the more sober or younger family members, the following recipe for St Valentine Cookies, from the Feast Day Cookbook, by Katherine Burton and Helmut Ripperger, (2), will provide a sweet celebration of the romance of St Valentine’s Day:

St Valentine Cookies

2/12 cups brown sugar

1/1/2 cups cream

1 cup molasses

1 tablespoon ginger

½ grated lemon rind

8 cups flour

3 teaspoons soda

Beat the sugar into the cream until it is thickened but not stiff; then add the molasses, ginger and lemon rind and mix thoroughly. Knead until smooth and then chill thoroughly, or better still, overnight. Roll out dough 1/8 inch thick, cut into desired shapes (hearts of course!) and bake at 135 Celsius for fifteen minutes. Allow to cool before removing from the sheet. Decorate.

As both St Gobnait and St Valentine are closely associated with bees, it is a good excuse, on their Feast Days, to cook up a delicious dessert using honey. Choices could include Greek-style desserts or more ambitious desserts such as Portuguese Tarts with Sticky Cinnamon honey, or Honey Vanilla Slice with Honeycomb; as to recipes for which see on-line at delicious.com.au, from where the following recipe is taken

HONEY VANILLA SLICE WITH HONEYCOMB

INGREDIENTS

• 375g sheet frozen all-butter puff pastry

• 1/2 cup (180g) honey, warmed, plus extra to drizzle

• 90g cornflour

• 2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar

• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) milk

• 1 tbs vanilla extract

• 2 titanium-strength gelatine leaves

• 2 cups (500ml) pure (thin) cream

• 50g unsalted butter, chopped

• 4 egg yolks

HONEYCOMB

• 1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar

• 1/4 cup (90g) honey

• 3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda, sifted

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease 2 baking trays and line with baking paper, then grease a 22cm square cake pan and line with baking paper, leaving 5cm overhanging each side.

• 2.Cut the pastry sheet into 2 squares and place on the prepared trays. Brush both the pastry sheets generously with honey, then cover each sheet with a piece of baking paper and place another baking tray on each to weigh down and keep flat while baking (work in batches if you don’t have enough baking trays).

• 3.Bake, swapping trays halfway, for 40-45 minutes or until the pastry is cooked through. Remove the weights and the top sheets of baking paper, then brush the pastry with more honey. Bake, checking every 3-5 minutes (be careful, as the honey can burn easily), for a further 10 minutes or until crisp, golden and glossy. Set the pastry sheets aside to cool completely.

• 4.Meanwhile, to make the custard, place the cornflour and the sugar in a heatproof bowl. Place the milk and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to just below boiling. Gradually whisk the warm milk into the cornflour mixture until smooth.

• 5.Meanwhile, soak gelatine in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes to soften.

• 6.Return milk mixture to saucepan and place over medium heat. Add cream, then bring to the boil, whisking until thickened. Squeeze the excess water from gelatine, then add to the pan with the butter. Whisk until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and whisk in egg yolks until smooth and combined.

• 7.Using a serrated knife, trim the pastry to fit the prepared pan. Place 1 piece, honey-side up, in base of pan. Pour the custard over pastry base, then set aside for 15 minutes to cool slightly. Place remaining pastry piece, honey-side up, on top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight or until firm.

• 8.For the honeycomb, grease a 20cm x 30cm lamington pan and line with baking paper. Place sugar, honey and 2 tbs water in a large saucepan over medium-low heat and stir to dissolve sugar. Increase the heat to high and bring to the boil. Cook, without stirring, for 5 minutes or until deep golden and it reaches 154°C on a sugar thermometer. Remove from the heat and allow bubbles to subside. Working quickly, add bicarb, stirring with a wooden spoon to combine (honeycomb will foam). Quickly pour into the prepared pan and set aside to cool completely. When ready to serve, remove honeycomb from pan and roughly chop.

• 9.Using a serrated knife, cut the vanilla slice into pieces. Drizzle with extra honey and top with honeycomb to serve.

(1) "Drinking with the Saints, the Sinner's Guide to a Happy Holy Hour," Michael P Foley, Regnery, (2015), at p. 415.

(2) Catholic Authors Press, 1951, at p. 36.