Saint Valentine’s Day, or Cupid’s Day, or Lovers ‘Day, has its mythologies and secrets but it seems settled that it began in Rome, initially with the Feast of

Lupercalia, held February 13-15. In a story of historicity and misconceptions of Valentine’s Day by Firstpost, all type of gods have actually been associated with love. They consist of Cupid, the Roman god of Love; Eros, the Greek god of Love; and Amor, the god of Love as defined in Latin poetry.

However Cupid’s representation as a kid in bow and arrow, has become an associative sign of Val’s Day more than any of the other gods.

In a dog, a goat and the narrative were typically provided for propitiation by guys on the Feast of Lupercalia, and “females were whipped with the hides of the sacrificed animal” in the belief that it will make them fertile. The Feast was also associated with ‘matchmaking lotto’ in which men will pick from a jar, a name of a lady whom he would paired for the duration, and perhaps longer.

The Feast of Valentine appeared to have actually got its name in the 3rd Century when St. Valentine was behead on the orders of Emperor Claudius II, for helping with the marital relationship of Christian couples (it is uncertain if the Christian couples referred to were those who got coupled during the Feast of Lupercalia). St. Valentine was performed on February 14.

Nevertheless, while St. Valentine remained in jail, prior to the execution, he still revealed love and care to the emperor (his persecutor’s) blind daughter, and he sent her a card which mentioned: ‘FROM YOUR VALENTINE’.

In the 5th Century, Pope Gelasius removed the Feast of Lupercalia of its routines and paganism, and integrated the event of the Feast with St. Valentine’s Day celebration. Thenceforth, the celebration ended up being more romantic and ended up being a significantly worldwide celebration of love.

The phenomenon gained traction as writers, particularly poets consisting of Shakespeare and Chaucer, started to blog about it in the context of romance, affectionateness and love. As Premium Times has actually interrogated and theorized, the season now includes a huge ‘fond memories and romance’, including nearly a pandemic of love and gifting.

In the hoopla and craze is to be determined the underlying spirit of commercialism and the attendant consumerist culture that Val’s Day stimulates– the shopping, gifts, dining and wining, takes a trip, hedonism and remarkably the eroticism that throws up a paradox of suggesting exchange.

Alarmed by the countercultural realities of St. Valentine’s Day, my church parish, a provincial head office of The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), arranged a programme for teenagers to re-direct the story of Val’s Day to the Love of Christ that we all need to share with mankind instead of the sensual, romanticism and the extravagances that are neither in congruence with the deeds of St. Valentine the priest, nor the spirit of commandments in the Scriptures.

Matter-of-factly, the symbolism of Val’s Day dots every landscape, because it is of international character and territoriality, as it cuts across cultures, faiths, and religion. Even when many faith-based organisations do not authorize of the worldly celebrations attending the Day, Val’s Day or Lovers’ Day has become an unvarnished feature of the human experience.

Today, it is the most significant consumer vacation after Christmas, and it is particularly commemorated in United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, France, Australia, Denmark and Italy. The impact on the economy is amazing. According to Globaledge, in 2019, more than $20.7 billion was invested in St. Valentine’s Day, and in 2020, even in the vortex of a global pandemic, the Day expectedly added $27.4 billion to economies.

Globaledge similarly reported that on the average, an American is expected to invest $162 on St. Valentine’s Day. And the Indian Express asserts that, in some countries, the anniversary is a weeklong event that begins on 7th February and climax on the genuine day, February 14.

As you honor the St. Valentine’s Day this year, may the love of God continue to be a mark of your life, may the death of St. Valentine materialize meaning, may those who have found love grow stronger in it, may those searching for love find befitting love, may those whose love got burst get restoration or a discover a brand name new love, and may those whose genuine love got lost recover them.

After all, as Mokwugo Okoye perceptively reasoned in THE BEARD OF PROMETHEUS, those who have enjoyed prior to and stopped working are more likely to like again than those who never ever loved.

Omoniyi Ibietan is a strategic communication and multi-stakeholder relationship management professional.