From: Cindra Budiono
The Story of Valentine's Day
The holiday of Valentine's Day probably derives its origins from the ancient
Roman feast of Lupercalia. In the early days of Rome, fierce wolves roamed the
woods nearby. The Romans called upon one of their gods, Lupercus, to keep the
wolves away. A festival held in honor of Lupercus was celebrated February 15th.
The festival was celebrated as a spring festival. Their calendar was different
at that time, with February falling in early springtime.
One of the customs of the young people was name-drawing. On the eve of the
festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper
and placed into jars. Each young man drew a slip. The girl whose name was
chosen was to be his sweetheart for the year
Legend has it that the holiday became Valentine's Day after a priest named
Valentine. Valentine was a priest in Rome at the time Christianity was a new
religion. The Emperor at that time, Claudius II, ordered the Roman soldiers NOT
to marry or become engaged. Claudius believed that as married men, his soldiers
would want to stay home with their families rather than fight his wars.
Valentine defied the Emperor's decree and secretly married the young couples.
He was eventually arrested, imprisoned, and put to death
Valentine was beheaded on February 14th, the eve of the Roman holiday
Lupercalia. After his death, Valentine was named a saint. As Rome became more
Christian, the priests moved the spring holiday from the 15th of February to
the 14th - Valentine's Day. Now the holiday honored Saint Valentine instead of
Lupercus
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From: "suyento" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
History of Valentine's Day
Ever Wonder Who St. Valentine Was? Or why so many people get all mushy around
the second week of February? Here's a brief synopsis:
St. Valentine was actually two people (that weren't romantically involved) who
were martyred on the same day (c. 270). Feasts commemorating them were
celebrated on February 14. One was a priest and physician who died in Rome
during the persecution of Christians by Claudius II Grothicus. The other was
the bishop at Terni, Italy who was also martyred in Rome. Both have been buried
at different places along the Flaminian Way.
So why do people send "valentines" or "love-tokens" to one another on that day?
The origin of that tradition is not thought to have any connection with the
saint's day. Rather it comes from an early European belief that the second week
of February was when birds began to mate. The idea suggests that lovers should
probably exchange notes and gifts on February 14 in conjunction with what
nature practiced.
Nowadays, Valentine's Day is observed as a special day for love and romance.
This topic is one of the oldest, and probably most-discussed, issues in
history! As Christians, we know that love originates from God and that God is
love (1 John 4:16).
Copyright � 1999 by the author or Christianity Today International.
Taken from www.christianitytoday.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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