Valentine's Day

So today is Saint Valentine's Day (shortened to Valentine's Day). I thought I would do a basic little history/legend piece on it. Valentine's Day, like Halloween and Christmas, was taken from a pagan holiday/festival. The holiday can be traced back to the Roman holiday of Lupercalia whish was held every year on February 15. Men would strip naked and chase young women with animal hide whips, spanking them, with the hope of increasing fertility. This celebration retained its popularity into the 5th century A.D. even after Constantine changed Rome's official religion to Christianity. Since it was a pagan holiday it is said that the Chirstians at the time figured it would be easier to just call it a Christian holiday than to continue to ban it.

The church eventually pinned it to Saint Valentine's legend. According to the legend, Valentine ignored a ban on marriage during the 3rd century A.D. under Claudius II who was trying to swell the size of his army and so forbade them to marry. Valentine decided to marry people in secrecy. For this crime it is said he was executed on February 14 in the year A.D. 270. Nobody can say whether the legend is true but experts say it is a convenient explanation for a Christian version of Lupercalia.

As an adornment to the legend it is also said that on the night before he was executed Valentine sent the first "valentine" himself to a young girl usually said to be his lover. It was a note that read "From your Valentine" Happy Valentine's Day everyone!!!