Well, today is the day, February 14th, 2022, the day of the candied hearts, red roses, and all things romantic. However, does it have to only relate to that of romantic love, but can it be a day reflective on the supreme meaning and power of that four letter L word?
With that said, I would like to share a bit of the history surrounding this day and how it came to be how it is known today.
The Catholic Church recognize three different martyred saints from their historical records with the name Valentine or Valentinus. The first tells the story of a young priest who lived during the time of Emperor Claudius II, most famous for outlawing marriage in favor of needing young men for military purposes, and this priest Valentine secretly wed for young lovers, as he saw this decree as unjust and unfair. When Claudius discovered this, Valentine was beheaded. However, some believe that Bishop St. Valentine of Terni was the one that gave Valentine's Day its name and origin.
Next, many believe that Valentine was a priest that aided in helping prisoners escape from Roman prisoners. Legend tells that when he was imprisoned he sent a note to a young girl he had fallen in love with, possibly the jailer's daughter, and signed it "From Your Valentine", thus the origin of the Valentine's card.
But, moving away from Christianity, we find ourselves in the Pagan origin of the day, that of "Lupercalia", celebrated on the 15th of February. Indeed, some believe that Valentine's Day was an attempt by the Catholic Church to christianize this Pagan holiday. Lupercalia is celebrated as a fertility festival in dedication to Faunus, the god of agriculture, and to the founders of Roman, Romulus and Remus. As the festival commenced, members of the festival, an order of the Roman priests, would gather at sacred cave meant to be where Romulus and Remus had been cared for by the she-wolf or lupa. The priests would then sacrifice a goat for fertility and a dog for purification. Once done, they would strip the goat's hide, dip it into blood, then take to the streets slapping crops and women with the bloodied hide. Women were not fearful or angry by this but believed that this would help them become more fertile the rest of the year. At the close of the festival, the women would place their names in a great urn, drawn out by eligible bachelors leading to partnership and marriage. So, if a priest hits you with a bloodied goat hide, ladies, love and babies are on their way!
No comments:
Post a Comment