Valentine’s Day

Christine Bohlander WRITER

Valentine’s Day, Saint Valentine’s day, February 14th, the day we have come to think of as a day for lovers to celebrate their love, but is that really what the day is about? What is the true meaning of the day? Let’s take a look at what this day is truly about.

There is a Roman festival Lupercalia, held in mid-February celebrating the coming of spring and fertility rights and the pairing of women with men by lottery. Pope Gelasius I forbid the Lupercalia celebration at the end of the 5th century and replaced it with Saint Valentine’s Day which was not a celebration of romance until sometime in the 14th century.

There were many Christian martyrs named Valentine thru the years but the name most likely came from a priest that was martyred around 270BC by the emperor Claudius II. The priest supposedly signed the end of a letter “from your Valentine” to the jailer’s daughter who had become his friend and had been healed from blindness. Others believe it was named after Saint Valentine’s of Terni who was a bishop. That said it was very likely the two saints were in fact the same person.

There is another tale of Saint Valentine went against the emperors’ orders and married couples so that the husbands would not be sent to war which is how the day became associated with lovers.

Valentine’s day became a holiday with printed cards and gifts in the USA in the mid 1800’s. Cupid the Roman god of love and hearts started being printed and used to mark the day. Avian mating season is also in mid February which is why birds are also used in the art work depicting love and Valentine’s day and flowers were brought into the mix as a sign of beauty. While most people celebrate the day as a day of love and affection it is really a day that was designed originally to give women to men for procreation and had nothing to do with true love.

It’s funny how we take holidays for granted and how we allow marketing to make a day that has no meaning of love turn our hearts and minds to believe it actually started from a place of meaning and love.

So when you celebrate Valentine’s day this year maybe take a second to think about how it all started and what it truly means and thank God for the freedom to know the truth and to be free from the bondage that it originally came from!

We as people and especially those of us who are believers really should stop and research holidays and their true meanings and maybe change some of our traditions and thinking before we blindly allow companies to mold our minds and thoughts to what they want us to see simply to support their products and propaganda.

That said: enjoy your loved ones EVERYDAY and don’t wait for one day a year that started with a negative vibe to show them you love them!