Valentine’s Day is
just a day away and with it, comes all forms of emotion. For some, the day
brings joy and excitement, while for others, it comes with a lot of pressure to
make the right plans, get the right gift and say the right thing.
While for some others, it is a day where immorality and unwarranted
sex comes to play, but are all these the reason for the celebration? Some
people equate the day with showing love in a material way but true love is way
more than this.
What is the origin of Valentine's Day customs and symbols?
Does God care that we celebrate it? Though hearts and roses are red, retailers
and business owners see the colour of MONEY when it comes to celebrating the
day.
How did we get the day?
In 313 A.D., Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, legalized
Christianity and ended Rome's persecution of Christians. In 380 A.D., Christianity
becomes the OFFICIAL State religion of the Roman Empire. These actions not only
enabled the teachings of Christianity to spread unhindered within the empire,
it encouraged non-Christians to convert to the once-persecuted religion.
The pagans, however, who adopted Christianity as their religion
did not entirely abandon the traditions and practices they held before their
"conversion." One of these traditions brought into the church was the
fertility celebration known as the Lupercalia, which eventually became the
Valentine's Day.
"Yet the vestiges of superstition were not absolutely
obliterated, and the festival of the Lupercalia, whose origin had preceded the
foundation of Rome, was still celebrated under the reign of Anthemius."
"After the conversion of the Imperial city (Rome), the
Christians still continued, in the month of February, the annual celebration of
the Lupercalia . . . " Twenty-four
years after the death of Emperor Anthemius, a "Christianized" form of
the festival of Lupercalia was officially adopted by the church as a time to
honor Saint Valentine.
"Early
Christians were happier with the idea of a holiday (Valentine's) honoring the
saint of romantic causes than with one recognizing a pagan festival. In 496
A.D., Pope Gelasius named February 14 in honor of St. Valentine as the patron
saint of lovers. "
Love does not need a set day to celebrate it. It should be shown
all year round. We feel love for our parents, siblings, friends and neighbour,
but are we really practicing this? Love is not a tangible thing; it is an
energy that surrounds us every moment of every day. It is up to us to recognize
and appreciate it.
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