Valentines Day
(February 14) is a popular holiday celebrating love and friendship in the
US, and it is becoming increasingly popular with young people in China.
Like many holidays
that are transplanted from culture to culture, the roots have gotten lost
along the way. It could be said that Valentines Day, or Saint Valentine’s
Day to be more precise, dates back to an ancient Christian who loved a
student in a particularly difficult set of circumstances. In AD 270, a man
named Valentine (or Valentinus in Greek) was executed by Roman
Emperor Claudius II for being a Christian. Valentine was an educated man,
so his jailer asked him to tutor Julia (the jailer’s young daughter, who
had been blind from birth). Valentine taught her about Rome’s history,
nature, math, and about his faith in Jesus. One night Julia and Valentine
asked God to heal Julia’s eyes. Light flooded the prison cell and Julia
screamed, “Valentine, I can see!” On the eve of his death, Valentine wrote
a last note to Julia, his beloved student, telling her of his love and
urging her to stay close to God. He signed it, “From Your Valentine.” In
AD 496, Pope Gelasius I named February 14 (the day of Valentine’s death)
as Saint Valentine’s Day. The rest, as they say, is history.
According to the
Shanghai Star (Feb. 8, 2001), “The date of his death has become a day
to celebrate romance between couples, mostly in Western cultures. The
holiday has caught on mainly among the younger generation in China,
perhaps because it celebrates love and passion, which are so strongly felt
by the young.” The article went on to report that popular Valentine gifts
in China include chocolates, roses, candles, mobile phones and rings,
while there is also a trend toward making personal gifts like photo frames
and scarves.
There is a similar
holiday on the seventh day of the seventh month of the traditional Chinese
calendar. Again, to quote the Star: “Legend has it a fairy and her
earthly lover, who were separated by the wife of the Jade Emperor, the
paramount ruler of heaven, meet each other once a year on that day on a
bridge made up of magpies flying across the Milky Way that divides them.”
But the article went on to quote a Chinese man who said, “No young people
can remember the festival of the lunar calendar; the Western Valentine’s
Day is more romantic and modern for the young.”
In America, at least
when I was a student decades ago, elementary school children celebrated by
making “mail boxes” from paper bags, which were then hung in the
classroom. On Valentine’s Day, we dropped store-bought cards (with Snoopy
or heart-filled decorations) in each other’s mail boxes. If there was a
girl you secretly liked, this was a good time to try to make it known,
hoping she would take your card’s sentiments seriously. A popular candy (I
think they are still made) was tiny heart-shaped sugar pills with things
printed on them like “Be mine,” “You’re Sweet” and “From Your Valentine.”
By the time we were in high school, Valentine’s Day cards were only sent
to and from lovers, and I remember feeling especially lonely in
mid-February most years. In the first years of marriage, many couples make
a big deal of the holiday, going out for a nice dinner after work, and
exchanging gifts like flowers, candy and jewelry. When you get tired of
fighting with young couples for a table on Feb. 14, a nice alternative is
a quiet dinner at home, but Valentine’s cards and edible gifts remain
popular.
So, even though the
sacred roots for this holiday are largely unknown, St. Valentine might
still be pleased to know that his love for a student gave birth to an
international holiday celebrating love—which he surely counted among God’s
greatest gifts to the world. (The word “love” appears in the Bible 572
times, so it must be important!) And whether you are single or have
found your true love, why not use this annual holiday as an excuse to let
those you love know how you feel? It does not have to cost a lot to say “I
love you” and it is a phrase that most people love to hear!
Let me close with one
of the most popular paragraphs in Bible (especially at weddings); it is
from “the love chapter” and was written by Saint Paul in the first
century:
Love is kind and
patient, never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude. Love isn’t selfish or
quick tempered. It doesn’t keep a record of wrongs that others do. Love
rejoices in the truth, but not in evil. Love is always supportive, loyal,
hopeful, and trusting. Love never fails!”
Things to think about or discuss:
1. What do you think of “the love chapter”? Do you agree
with Paul about what love is? Explain.
2. Do you know anyone who loves like that? Tell us about
him/her.
3. Is this kind of love easy? Why aren’t more people this
way?
4. Where do you think one gets the power or will to “love”
in such a perfect way?
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The quote is from 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8, in the
Contemporary English version of the Bible. If you want to read some of the
other things that the Bible says about love, look in “1 John” (near the
back of the Bible), especially these verses: 2:5, 4:7-16, and 5:3.
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