Since Valentine’s Day is right around the corner

I figured I’d do a little poking around and learn the history of this holiday, then I figured what the hell my readers may wanna know about it and nobody in porn is doing anything overtly stupid at the moment, or at least not stupid enough to warrant writing about it here. So here’s the scoop on Valentine’s Day for you guys to impress your sweethearts with.

Valentine’s Day

As with most Christian Holidays, Valentine’s Day is actually a celebration patterned after a pagan festival. Lupercalia was a festival of purity and took place on the ides of February, (February 15) to honor Juno, the Roman goddess of women and of marriage and Pan, the Roman god of nature. The name February comes from the Roman word februa which means to purify.

Lupercalia gets it’s name from the wolves that raised Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. According to myth they were raised in a cave on Palantine Hill. Lupe means wolf.

During Lupercalia goats and a dog would be sacrificed. Goats because Pan had hooves of a goat and the dog because no shepherd should be without a dog. A shepherds primary responsibility was to keep wolves away. Young men would chose partners for the festival by drawing names randomly from a box. These partners would then exchange gifts as a sign of affection, and they would remain partners until the next Lupercalia or until they were married whichever came first.

The Catholic church in 496 AD, by declaration of Pope Gelasius, gave Christian meaning to the Lupercalia festival by changing it to St. Valentines Day, In honor of two Saints Valentine.

The first was a priest who lived in Rome during the 200’s. he was jailed for aiding persecuted Christians and was beheaded by the Romans in about 270 AD on Palantine Hill at the site of an alter to Juno. His remains are buried in the church of St. Praxedes in Rome.

The second St. Valentine suffered a similar fate. He was a bishop of Terni, about 60 miles from Rome. He was persecuted for converting a Roman family to Christianity and was also beheaded in Rome around 273 AD.

Valentine’s Day became popular in the United States during the Civil War. We celebrate the occasion in honor of the people that we love. We often exchange gifts and other tokens of affection. Valentine’s Day is a pagan holiday in the United States in that it is not a religious holiday. Now guys I know how a lot of you are about expressing your feelings, even some of you ladies out there are lacking in your ability to express your innermost feelings. Now I don’t want to sound all mushy here but let’s think about some things. Is there a special someone in your life without whom your life would just not be as rich? Someone who stands by you and supports whatever you may do, even if they disagree? How would you feel if you lost that someone tomorrow? Would you miss not having that shoulder to cry on or just that heartfelt, everything’s going to be allright? Would there be a big hole left in your life as a result of his/her absence? Would your heart ache? Sometimes we all take things for granted, and sometimes those things are people, people that have feelings just like you do, who hurt and feel happy, same as you and me. Do something nice for them this Valentine’s Day and let them know how you feel. You don’t have to do it with money, because really it shouldn’t cost anything. Tell them how you feel, let them know that without them there would be a void in your life and that you appreciate their friendship and their love. That is what Valentines Day is really all about.

Sappy Valentine’s shit ends here.