15 Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day as a Single Catholic

Valentine’s Day as a single person is the pits! It seems like almost everyone is paired up, except for yourself. If you hate being single, hearing and seeing all your friends celebrating the day with their significant others can feel, well, terrible.

The green-eyed monster threatens to rear its ugly little head and you may be tempted to go on a date with someone – anyone! – just to not spend the day alone.

First, step away from your phone, social media profile, or anything that will make you do such a thing out of desperation. As the saying goes, “It’s better to be alone than with bad company!”

The commercials exaggerate everything to make it seem like you “have to” be paired up or that you “have to” give/be given something the day of because it shows that someone loves you.

Nope.

They are wrong… and, really, they just want your money.

You want the ultimate love story? Look at the Cross or Crucifix on your way or your Rosary beads. That’s what real life is all about, not the consumer version that seems to be everywhere.

I know; that still doesn’t take the sting of wanting someone special in your life. However, perhaps this Valentine’s Day you may want to see the special people already in your life and be grateful for them. Here are 15 ideas on how to have a lovely Valentine’s Day as a single person.

1) Spend the day with your closest friends. Make it an “all singles” or “everyone included” gathering but surround yourself with people you love.

2) “Treat yo’ self…” with moderation. You don’t have to go to the extremes that Donna Meagel and Tom Haverford did on Parks and Recreations. You don’t need to spend your entire paycheck. How about getting yourself your favorite dessert for dinner? Even a nap when you feel tired would be lovely on this day. You can also experience the joy of delayed gratification and wait for the unsold Valentine’s Day chocolate to go on sale the next day.

3) Spend the day with the One who loves you above all – attend Mass! What a better way to spend the day than by giving thanks to Christ for the ultimate act of love? If you can find adoration the day of, even better!

4) Show strangers love by doing random acts of charity. For example, you can go to a nursing home and spend the day showing those who no longer have friends and/or family around that they still matter in this world.

5) Pray the Rosary for your future spouse. You may be sure of your vocation but perhaps your future spouse is still trying to figure out there. Perhaps they may feel the sting of loneliness on Valentine’s Day. You can ask Mama Mary to bring them peace on this day.

6) Read Three to Get Married by Ven. Fulton Sheen or Love and Responsibility by Pope St. John Paul II and learn more about the wonderful vocation of marriage!

7) Enjoy the fact that we won’t be in Lent this Valentine’s Day… and that it’s not on a Friday, either. Steak dinner or burger from your favorite burger joint, here you come!

8) Pull a Taylor Swift and write a song about how much it stinks to be single… or channel Weird Al and write your own love song parody. 

9) Tell people happy anniversary of the day St. Valentine lost his head… or not. This one is to be used only if the other person knows about Saint Valentine.

10) If there’s someone you fancy, try one of the many Catholic pickup lines we have on this site to help you.

11) Check out the newest members of Catholic Chemistry but don’t message the person the day of as it may come off as a little too strong.

12) Use Jennifer Fulwiler’s Saint Generator and pick your vocation patron saint.

13) Spend some time praying for the intercession of and/or watching a movie based on the life of your saint crush…

14) … or figure out who your saint crush is. See if you can figure out which of their traits you like. It could help you figure out what you look for in a future spouse.

15) If you have a girl friend who is discerning the religious life and you’d think they’d make a great Sister, send them a rose. You may help them get closer to their own vocation discernment.

Whatever you do, don’t forget that there are literally thousands upon thousands of us in the “Singles” Boat and that, eventually, our future spouse will come along. In the meantime, enjoy this season of your life and don’t forget to celebrate the love you already have in all its forms.