We are about to celebrate Valentine’s Day. As usual, when a holiday can be associated with pagan beliefs or celebrations, there are some who call for Christian abstinence. Valentine’s Day isn’t too difficult to decipher, however. Valentine’s Day began as Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine. The feast was first established by Pope Gelasius I to honor one or two saints named Valentinus for being martyred on Feb. 14.
While it is clear that the origin of Valentine’s Day is connected to Christianity, there are those who claim paganism is the root. Those telling this story say Christianity took the Roman festival called Lupercalia and Christianize it. Even if that was so, a Christian needs to look into what the holiday celebrates today rather than what it may, or may not, have celebrated in times past.
Valentine’s Day is celebrated as a time to recognize romantic love. There is certainly nothing wrong with acknowledging and participating in a holiday for that (check out The Song of Solomon). It does not in any way recognize or honor a pagan deity. Neither does it way recognize or honor a pagan deity. Neither does it somehow weaken a believer’s faith or allow a portal for demonic possession. Satan hasn’t found a back door into our heart because we send our loved one a card with hearts on it.
In fact, let me turn that around a little and talk about a religious celebration that I do not celebrate because of what it has become today. The week long celebration of Mardi Gras began as a lead-up to Ash Wednesday and Lent. The idea was this: Eat all the rich foods and anything to do with leavening because we are about to have 40 days of fasting and penance. As a result, that week soon became a time of excess and debauchery. The celebrations we see in New Orleans, Mobile, and other places have no place in a Christian’s celebration. So send a card, buy a stuffed animal, or give a box of chocolate. Make your loved one feel special and enjoy the day.
Say good things about your Savior,
Bro. Tony