Introduction
Valentine’s Day is a well-known day celebrated by many. It’s most known for romance, chocolates, cards, and other gifts that are exchanged among loved ones. What most people DON’T know is its origins. The Catholic Church found about three Valentine’s that have have been sacrificed. No one realizes that when we celebrate Valentine’s Day, we actually celebrate St. Valentine’s courage.
The Legend Of St. Valentine
It is said that Saint Valentine was a priest during the third century in Ancient Rome. Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made much better soldiers than those with a spouse and families. Therefore, enforced a law that made marriage illegal for young men. After a while, Saint Valentine then realized the injustice of the law and went against Claudius. He continued to perform wedding ceremonies for young men secretly. But when Saint Valentine was exposed, Claudius sentenced him to death.
Other Stories Suggest:
- Some believe that Valentine was sentenced to death for attempting to release a group of Christians from harsh Roman Prisons, where they were tortured.
- One story states that a jailed Valentine sent a ‘Valentine’s Day’, said to be the first, greeting himself after he met a lovely young lady, possibly his jailor’s daughter, who visited him during his captivity. It is also said that he wrote “From Your Valentine” on the card. An expression that is often used today. Thanks to his/their acts Valentine’s Day was born.
The Origins Of Valentine’s Day
While some people think that Valentine’s Day was to commemorate the burial/death of Saint Valentine, others claim that the Christian Church may have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February to Christianize the pagan ritual, Lupercalia. Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman God of agriculture, and others. To commence the festival, the members of Luperci and a group of Roman priests would be gathered into a sacred cave, which was believed to hold Romulus and Remus as infants, the founders of Rome. They were believe to be raised by a she-wolf or lupa. There, the priests will sacrifice a goat for fertility and a dog for purification. They would then strip the goat of its hide, strip the hide into strips, dip them into sacrificial blood and head inland. There, they would gently slap women and crop fields with the strips. The Roman women accepted the strips because they believed it made them more fertile for the upcoming year. Some time after, the city’s women would place there names in an urn, and the bachelors of the city will choose a name, and they will be paired with that woman. Normally, it would end in a marriage.
Conclusion
Lupercalia became illegal, as in the 5th century it was said to be un-Christian. Pope Gelasius stated that February 14th would be named St. Valentine’s Day, a while later it became associated with love because during the Middle Ages it was believed that the 14th was the beginning of mating season for birds.