A little Valentine history and a question

Question

It seems that St. Valentine, as far as can be determined, has come by this day of his namesake honestly. Valentine was a Roman priest, martyred during the reign of Claudius II (Claudius Gothicus). Since at the time married men could not be drafted as soldiers, Claudius outlawed marriage. Valentine did not obey this law, and conducted marriages in secret. He was ultimately arrested because 1) he was flaunting the law and 2) Christians were being persecuted anyway during the reign of Claudius II. His execustion was delayed when the Emporer took a liking to him, but the order was reinstated when Valentine tried to convert Claudius to Christianity. He was beaten with clubs and stoned; when that failed to kill him, he was beheaded outside the Flaminian Gate.

For this, Valentine has been remembered at the patron of lovers.

Who would you like to ask to be your SpanishDict! Valentine?

• flout vs. flaunt - Sabor Feb 14, 2011

Answer 1

Ray, would you be my Valentine?

Answer 2

My friend, who I've known for a long time. He has no idea I like him. :(

• Today would be a good day to tell him. - Echoline Feb 14, 2011
• Excatly what I was thinking! :D - kiersten11 Feb 14, 2011

Answer 3

Wow! Realmente una historia muy interesante, triste y reveladora a la vez. Gracias por compartirla. Me reservo el no responder a tu pregunta. Tal vez en otra ocasión, ¿de acuerdo?

¡Feliz día de San Valentín, Echoline!

• Muchimas gracias, userenzo, y feliz día de San Velentin a tí - Echoline Feb 14, 2011

Answer 4

• Happy V-day, bandit. Hope your day is filled with love, my friend. - Echoline Feb 14, 2011

Answer 5

As is true in many "Christian" holidays, including Christmas, Valentine's Day started out as a pagan celebration, but was given a christian conotation so "Christians" would feel at ease in celebrating it. One would think that God is not at all pleased by it. The following is imformation from the internet on the subject.

**In Ancient Rome, February 14th was a holiday to honor Juno, Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses. The Feast of Lupercalia started the next day. During these times boys and girls were segregated. However, the young people had a custom that began on the eve of the Festival of Lupercalia. The girl's names were written on pieces of paper and inserted into jars. Each boy then drew a girl's name from the jar and they were partners throughout the Festival. After being paired, the children would often continue to see each other throughout the year and on occasion even fell in love and got married.

Emperor Claudius II of Rome, also known as Claudius the Cruel was having a difficult time recruiting men as soldiers. He believed that the men did not want to leave their sweethearts and cancelled all engagements and marriages throughout Rome. St. Valentine, a priest of Rome at the time, secretly married couples. He was eventually caught, arrested and condemned. He was beaten to death and beheaded on February 14th, around the year 270.

Lupercalia was a feast to a heathen God. Pastors and priests of the early Christian church did away with the pagan custom by replacing the names of the girls with the names of saints. They chose St. Valentine's Day as the day of celebration for the new feast.

Valentine Day greetings became popular during the middles ages. During that time period, lovers sang or spoke their sentiments. Paper and written Valentines became popular at the end of the 15th Century. The oldest Valentine that exists today was made during this era and is on display in the British Museum. In early years Valentine cards were handmade. Rebus Valentines had verses in which tiny pictures took the place of some of the words. Fraktur Valentines had ornamental lettering in the style of illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages. Cutout Valentines were made by folding a piece of paper several times and cutting out a lacey pattern with small, pointed scissors. A Puzzle Purse Valentine was a folded puzzle, which was read and refolded. Among the numerous folds were written lines and verses that had to be read in a certain order to be understood. Using a stencil cut from oilpaper and painting through the stencil made Theoren Valentines. These Valentines originated in the Orient. Pinprick Valentines were made to look like lace by pricking tiny holes in paper with a needle or pin. I well remember receiving one of these from my grandmother many years ago.**

• Even by your own account, V day didn't begin as a pagan holiday, but in response to the beheading of V. Just because sweethearts were celebrated by other cultures doesn't mean that St. V day was a "rip-off" of a pagan holiday. - Echoline Feb 14, 2011
• Christmas did not start out as a pagan celebration. While it is true that no one knows for certain the date of Christ's birth (which was most likely in the spring) Christmas itself has always been a religious holiday celebrated by Christians. - Echoline Feb 14, 2011