Do you know the origins of Valentines Day? Found the following tid bit of interesting history here.
Most scholars believe that the St. Valentine of the holiday was a priest who attracted the disfavor of Roman emperor Claudius II around 270. At this stage, the factual ends and the mythic begins. According to one legend, Claudius II had prohibited marriage for young men, claiming that bachelors made better soldiers. Valentine continued to secretly perform marriage ceremonies but was eventually apprehended by the Romans and put to death. Another legend has it that Valentine, imprisoned by Claudius, fell in love with the daughter of his jailer. Before he was executed, he allegedly sent her a letter signed "from your Valentine." Probably the most plausible story surrounding St. Valentine is one not focused on Eros (passionate love) but on agape (Christian love): he was martyred for refusing to renounce his religion.
Way to go St. Valentine.
Happy Valentines Day
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2 comments:
I chatted to the President of the Baptist Union of Australia about the origins of the day yesterday on my radio programme. It's a fascinating story. I put a link to the interview at my blog.
Enjoyed your post Rodney, as I always do!
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