Colm Fitzpatrick
The World Meeting of Families is inviting couples to share special tokens of love with a difference for Saint Valentine’s Day this year.
Following Pope Francis’ calls to celebrate St Valentine’s Day in a more meaningful way, WMOF2018 is asking couples to think beyond the traditional box of chocolates or bunch of flowers to tokens of real affection that will actually help them grow in their love.
In his document Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love), Pope Francis refers directly to St Valentine’s Day as an opportunity for couples to celebrate the importance of romantic love by gifting their time and attention to one another rather than simply relying on the more commercial approaches to the saint’s day.
This is why, as part of the preparations for World Meeting of Families in Ireland in August, the WMOF2018 are inviting individuals and couples to “Celebrate the Joy of Love this St Valentine’s Day” and to mark this day in a number of special ways.
WMOF2018 have produced a book of free gift tokens that people can give to their loved ones. This year’s tokens include invitations to share:
- A journey down memory lane – taking time to remember how we met
- A special meal cooked by me
- A technology free evening together
- Time together to pray
- A hand-in-hand walk together
The WMOF2018 asks couples to acknowledge how precious their time is together and invites them to pick up a book of tokens and a special card to go with them and to share these simple acts of love and kindness with each other.
WMOF2018 is also inviting people to visit the Shrine of St Valentine in Whitefriar Street Church in Dublin and to pray through St Valentine’s intercession to grow in the love they have already found. The tokens are free and are available in parishes across the country as part of the WMOF2018 ‘Amoris Let’s Talk Family! Let’s be Family!’ programme.