History of Valentine’s Day
The origin of this lover’s day goes back to as early as 270 A.D.
As early as the fourth century B.C,the Romans engaged in an annul young man’s rite to passage to the God Lupercus.the names of the teenage women were placed in a box and drawn at random by adolescent men, thus a man was assigned a woman companion for the duration of the year, after which another lottery was staged .after 800 years of this cruel practice ,the early church fathers sought to end this practice … they found an answer in Valentine, a bishop who had been martyred some two hundred years earlier.
When Claudius becomes the emperor, he felt that married men were more emotionally attached to their families, and thus will not make good soldiers. So to assure quality soldiers, he banned marriage.
Valentine, a bishop, seeing the trauma of young lovers, met them in a secret place and joined them in the sacrament of matrimony .Claudius learned of this ‘friend of lovers’ and had him arrested .he died on February 14,269 A.D.
Saint Valentine left a farewell note for the jailor’s daughter, who had love, and signed it ‘from your valentine ‘.In 496A.D Poe Gelasius set aside February 14 to honour St.Valentine.
Gradually February 14 became the date for exchanging love messages.
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