OCR Text |
Show w w . . , ,. ,v 1 Feature i. asr jn-ss-r J. - aVM. . i - a BB j.3- - ; iejcsf-- ' .. liSJ M SOUTHERN UTAH NEWS WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY IS. 1997 15 Who started Valentines Day anyway? to believe the celebration was in By Barbara Pyles Valentines Day is a holiday honor of the Goddess Juno. Time passed and Christianity honoring lovers. Sweethearts celebrate the day by sending gained support. In AD392 all cards or gifts to express affec- pagan cults were outlawed. tion. Some suitors give their Church authorities renamed the sweethearts candy, but the most primitive celebration from Feast treasured gift is the red rose. of Lupercalia to St. Valentines People also send sentimental or Day. They replaced the practice humorous valentines to family of drawing a girls name with and friends. Valentine cards are having young people draw especially appealing to thosewho find it difficult to put their feelings into words. A 15th century woodcut showing a knight receiving flowers from his lady is the oldest known valentine. At first, men only sent valentine card 3 to, the women they loved. These men were really clever too. The cards were all handmade, sealed with wax and, of course, hand delivered. Then in about 1850 printed and manufactured cards started as imported lithographed cards. A crafty American women began to market handmade valentines using scraps" cut from these lithographs. She added paper lace, ribbons, tassels and prints of flowers, birds and so on. Today, the greeting card industry prints millions ofvalentines each year, decorating them with hearts to symbolize love. Homemade valentines messages are not want to leave their loved ones. "The Priest can perform no more marriages," declared the Emperor in a loud voice. Valentine married couples secretly and Claudius had him tossed into jail. Legend says that children threw messages to Valentine through the windows of his cell. Another version of the story says the Emperor jailed names ofSaints. The youngsters were supposed to imitate the life Valentine for helping Chrisof the Saint they drew. Well, of tians. This good deed got him beheaded on February 14. Ancourse, that did not happen. Another theory is that other account says he beValentines Day goes back to a friended the jailers blind Roman priest named Valentine daughter, and restored her sight who was a priest during the reign through his faith. This story of Emperor Claudius II. One claims he sent a letter to the story tells of the Emperors un- jailers daughter and signed it, successful attempts to recruit From your Valentine. Today, men for his army. The men did most people think of Valentine 1 vote oie, r.wj, beit buotuH aid 9':i m Uichioit rzcu uitko amhtd to. bdr,uawued to. rp&it . also common. No one knows just how Valentines Day began. Many theories are unverified stories handed down from century to century, some are perhaps half-truth-s. Maybe through the centuries they all slightly got mixed together. So, just pick the theory that appeals to you the most. A fl "sv .... V'8 A r wear a girls name on his sleeve. It was his way of telling everyone that he would protect her the following year. She became his Valentine. This custom changed near the end of the 1600s when both young men and women drew names from a container. Some scholars believe the hoi derives from the ancient pagan celebration called Feast of Lupercalia. One could say the Roman free-for-a- ll modem custom of exchanging cards accidentally started then. According to legend, during the feast, women wrote love notes and put them into an um. The man who drew a maidens love note would seek her favors. Some scholars say the celebration was in honor of the God Lupercus. However, other scholars prefer ' 9;i da and ttsa tantieme job ijaa da, both at amnh and at tmiia , V e 9 Jtaoe Qjau,, popular legend links Valentines Day to the birds. The yam tells of the medieval European belief that the birds selected their mates on February 14. People wanted to emulate the birds habits, so lovers picked this day to send tokens of love to one another. During that period a young man would I cff&pfup jbetmU, "V Whaf a perfect time of the year to get married - around Valentines Day - the holiday for love. Photo by Myma Cox. as the patron saint of lovers. A.D., Pope Gelasius declared February 14, St. Valentines Day. The Christian In w496 holiday became a day dedicated to love. In 1537, Henry VIII (who was quite a lover himself), estab- Valentines Day by Royal Charter. It took quite a few years for Valentines Day to develop as we know it today. Proving the origin of Valentines Day is hard historically, but does it really matter how the custom of sending val- February 14 as St. entines began? Si El 23 O 23 E3 O 23 23 CB S3 23 ass 29 Ql C3 Simplify Your World Attend this FREE TALK B lished a a a Success Without Stress presents a Hrimml of kenfit vmm cm tn ripkl a a a a Nonprofit No obligation Notftng to join a Q d -- JJH SocxwoncD a Show Her You Can't Wait. Send the FTD Be Kine Bouquet Early for Valentine's Dey, February 14. Why wait when you can send this sweet arrangement coupled with cupid and d SwceTARTS in a hand pain ted wooden basket heart-shape- Q Discover Yourselfl Feb 19th Wed 7pm ZION BANK InfomuU 5 (Downstairs) Fun Bring a frtnd Success wmoot Smcss St mmms 801 a ea ca b ea e a smc ad i 6670229 o q n o ia a b O ca K&nab Floral & 644-259- 1 Ceramics or 644-55- 05 |