KissMeGoodnight.com
Article Series: Valentine's Day
Tips & Ideas For A Romantic Valentine's
Day
What's
The History Of This Mysterious Valentine's Day?
February 14th, the holiday of Love! Every
February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are
exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine.
Who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday?
The history of Valentine's Day -- and its patron saint -- is
shrouded in mystery. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today,
contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition.
The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints
named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred -
none of whom were associated with roses OR chocolate.
Most
scholars believe that the St. Valentine of the holiday
was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. During
this time, around 270 A.D., emperor Claudius ll prohibited
marriages for young men, claiming that bachelors made better
soldiers. Valentine continued to secretly perform marriage
ceremonies but was eventually apprehended by the Romans and
ordered by Claudius to be put to death. But his courageous
blessing of the bonds of love may have earned him a notable
place in history.
Another
legend has it that Valentine, imprisoned
by Claudius; fell in love with the daughter of his jailer
who visited him
during confinement. Before he was executed, he allegedly sent
her a letter signed "from your Valentine" an expression
that is still used today. We could say this marked the very
first Valentine’s Day.
Possibly the most
plausible story surrounding St. Valentine
and his day is one not focused on Eros(passionate love) but
on agape (Christian love): he was martyred for refusing to
renounce his religion. Subsequently, his love for his god may
have gone down in history.
Our final
possiblity for the origins our our holiday: It could
be that we celebrate Valentines Day on the 14th because this
is the day that St. Valentine died. However, some believe that
the celebration of Valentines Day was an attempt by the Church
to civilize the celebration of the pagan Lupercalia festival
- held on the 15th of February. Lupercalia was a fertility
festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture,
as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus. Pope Gelasius
declared February 14 St. Valentine's Day around 498 A.D. The
Lupercalia festival was deemed un-Christian and outlawed.
Valentine's Greetings
The oldest known valentine gift still in existence
today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his
wife while
he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. The greeting, written
in 1415, is part of the manuscript collection of the British
Library in London, England. According to the Greeting Card
Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent
each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending
holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent
for Christmas.) The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting
cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther
A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine,
made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful
pictures known as "scrap".
And Who is this Cupid?
Another valentine icon you may be wondering
about is Cupid (from Latin cupido, "desire"). In
Roman mythology Cupid is the son of Venus, goddess of love.
His counterpart
in Greek mythology is Eros, god of love. Cupid is often said
to be a mischievous boy who goes around wounding both gods
and humans with his arrows, causing them to fall in love. The
Romans believed white roses grew where the tears of Venus fell,
as she mourned the loss of her beloved Adonis. Her son Cupid,
while being stung by a bee, shot arrows in the rose garden;
the sting of the arrows became thorns. Venus pricked her foot
on a thorn, and the droplets of blood dyed the roses red.
Sending Roses on Valentine’s Day
Why should you send roses to your loved one this Valentine’s
Holiday? The rose is the symbol of love, of magic, of hope,
and of passion….perfect to let your loved one know how you
feel about him/her! The rose represents ultimate beauty and
perfection. It is the messenger of Romance!
A
dozen red roses remains the classic Valentine's Day favorite
(ok, it's a toss up between roses and chocolate - but we all
know why chocolate is). However, many women report that they
adore roses in other colors just as much. There are hundreds
of colors to choose from. The choices are endless and it's
easier than ever to select a rose that is as unique as your
sweetheart.
Whatever your Valentine's gift to give or receive, have fun
this holiday of love - may this little bit of history add to
your enjoyment!
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by KissMeGoodnight.com
: 2010
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