During the holiday of Valentine’s Day, many people will ask each
other will
you be my valentine. Asking this question is the same as asking if they will be
your date. During this time, people will give each other gifts, and the
valentine is the one that receives the gifts. If you are wondering what kinds of
gifts they give, it is usually candy, cards, and stuffed animals. Of course, you
can give different items than those on this list. If you are going to ask
someone to be your valentine, it is best that you make sure to have a card or
other gift with you to give to him or her.
The Legend of St. Valentine
The history of Valentine’s Day–and the story of its patron saint–is shrouded
in mystery. We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of
romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of
both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was Saint Valentine, and how
did he become associated with this ancient rite?
The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named
Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that
Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor
Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives
and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the
injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for
young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius
ordered that he be put to death.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl–possibly his jailor’s daughter–who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and–most importantly–romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl–possibly his jailor’s daughter–who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and–most importantly–romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.
Origins of Valentine’s Day: A Pagan Festival in February
While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of
February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial–which
probably occurred around A.D. 270–others claim that the Christian church may
have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an
effort to “Christianize” the pagan celebration of Lupercalia. Celebrated at the
ides of February, or February 15, Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated
to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders
Romulus and Remus.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at a sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification. They would then strip the goat’s hide into strips, dip them into the sacrificial blood and take to the streets, gently slapping both women and crop fields with the goat hide. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed the touch of the hides because it was believed to make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would each choose a name and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at a sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification. They would then strip the goat’s hide into strips, dip them into the sacrificial blood and take to the streets, gently slapping both women and crop fields with the goat hide. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed the touch of the hides because it was believed to make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would each choose a name and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage.
Valentine’s Day: A Day of Romance
Lupercalia survived the initial rise of Christianity and but was outlawed—as
it was deemed “un-Christian”–at the end of the 5th century, when Pope Gelasius
declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day. It was not until much later, however,
that the day became definitively associated with love. During the Middle Ages,
it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the
beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of
Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
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